A shallow body of water, especially one separated from a sea by sandbars or coral reefs.
Opportunities for temporary or permanent use and occupation of land for purposes of shelter, productive activity, or the enjoyment of recreation and rest. Land access is obtained by direct occupation; exchange (purchase or rental), through membership of family and kin groups; or by allocation by government, other landowners or management authorities.
The observed physical and biological cover of Earth’s surface, including living vegetation such as native ecosystems and agricultural lands, and non-living surfaces such as rock and ice, and human-made environments. Land cover can be measured using on-ground techniques or through remote sensing.
The reduction or loss of the biological or economic productivity and complexity of rain-fed cropland, irrigated cropland, or range, pasture, forest and woodlands resulting from a combination of pressures, including land use and management practices.
The process of managing the use and development of land resources. The degree that areas of land and water are managed by humans may differ from intensively managed (e.g. built-up areas, cropland) to not managed (e.g. polar regions, oceans).
The approach taken to achieve a land-use outcome (e.g. cultivation practices, such as minimum tillage and direct drilling). Some land management practices, such as stubble disposal practices and tillage rotation systems, may show characteristic land cover patterns and be linked to particular issues.
The total above-ground net primary production, defined as the energy fixed by plants minus their respiration, which translates into the rate of biomass accumulation that delivers a suite of ecosystem services.
The way land is held or owned by individuals and groups, or the set of relationships legally or customarily defined among people with respect to land. Tenure reflects relationships between people and land directly, and between individuals and groups of people in their dealings in land.
The activities undertaken and the management arrangements in place for a given area for the purpose of economic production, maintenance and restoration of environmental functions. Land use may include urban development, agricultural production, grazing, nature conservation and cultural uses by Indigenous peoples, where land and water are used and maintained both physically and spiritually.
An area of land comprising landforms and interacting ecosystems; an expanse of land, usually extensive, that can be seen from a single viewpoint.
Processes that affect the physical aspects of the landscape (e.g. weathering of rock formations, erosion, water flow).
(Indigenous); a group of Indigenous people sharing a common language. Language is linked to particular geographical areas. The term is often used in preference to the term ‘tribe’, and many Aboriginal people identify themselves through their language group.
A periodic extensive cooling of the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. In Australia (particularly eastern Australia), La Niña events are associated with increased probability of wetter conditions in eastern Australia.
See also El Niño.
(Indigenous); social control based on consensus and individual rights being subordinate to the welfare of the community.
The institutional unit entitled in law and sustainable under the law to claim the benefits associated with the entities.
The ability of systems and processes to continue without negatively affecting the environment or depleting natural resources. (Indigenous); the quality of being able to continue implementing key activities to ensure Indigenous guardianship of vital ecosystems. It involves securing that financial sustainability is in place and that good governance is maintained over time.