Glossary of Scenario Terms

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Browse or search for a term alphabetically by clicking the appropriate letter above, or enter the term below to search all the pages in the glossary.

 

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capital: wealth in the form of money, property or other investments.

 

capital flight: the rapid withdrawal of funds invested by business or financial interests in another country. Also describes the situation when people in a country choose to invest their money abroad rather than in domestic markets.

 

capital flows: the movement of money into or out of an economy.

 

capitalist economy: an economy that limits government to a small role. Also known as a free market economy, it stresses the independence of businesses to make their own decisions. It is opposed to the planned economy, where governments make all decisions.

 

carbon sinks: in a natural chemical process, trees and other plants draw carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas, out of the air and stash the carbon in the ground or in wood, forming what experts have called carbon sinks and helping to cool the climate. Coastal regions of ocean water may also act as carbon sinks. The concept is new and somewhat controversial. In 2000, the inability of the EU and the US to agree on this issue stalled talks to finalize the Kyoto Protocol.

 

caste system: a system of rigid social stratification characterized by hereditary status, marriages within a specific group as required by custom or law, and social barriers created by custom, law, or religion.

 

catalytic converter: adevice that converts three harmful compounds in car exhaust into harmless compounds.

 

cede: to give up or grant something, typically by treaty.

 

chaebol: large clusters of South Korea businesses whose interests are tightly integrated and that compete with one another.

 

civil war: a war between political factions or regions within a country.

 

client state: a country dependent on a larger or more powerful one for trade or security.

 

Cold War: the period following the end of World War II when the United States and Soviet Union were engaged in a period of intense hostility and competition. Even though there was no actual warfare between the two countries, this period of rivalry became known as the “Cold War.” The Cold War ended with the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991.

 

comparative advantage: a trade theory based on the idea that countries should each try and do the things that they do best, instead of trying to perform all of the activities that are needed in their economies. By trading goods and services, everyone should be better off.

 

compliance: when a country agrees with the terms of an international agreement or treaty.

 

computer model: (This definition refers to computer models specifically related to global warming.) Computer-based mathematical representations of the interactions of the atmosphere, oceans, land surface, and ice. These mathematical representations can be used to simulate the hypothetical effects of human activity on the earth’s climate.

 

concentration camps: forced labor camps. Most infamous example was the camps constructed by the Nazis in World War II, which utilized violence, torture, and execution. The occupants of the camps included primarily persecuted Jews, however, others who lost favor with the Nazis were also sent there.

 

Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE): Conference established in 1972 specifically to discuss security issues of mutual concern to the countries of Europe. It has 53 members, including most of the countries of Western and Eastern Europe, and the republics of the former Soviet Union, with Japan serving as an observer.

 

consumer: the ordinary person who buys and uses goods and services (see also producer).

 

containment: the act of restricting the expansion of a country’s influence or the spread of a disease.

 

Convention on the Rights of the Child: The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is an international human rights treaty about young people. It was accepted by the UN General Assembly in 1989. The Convention is made up of 41 articles about the rights of young people, one article about public awareness and education, and twelve articles on how to monitor, ratify, and enforce the Convention. It has been adopted by 191 countries which is more than have accepted any other international human rights treaty.

 

constitutional republic: a form of democratic government that is organized by a written document. This constitution describes the different responsibilities of each branch of government, and the process for voting in a new government. The US is an example of a constitutional republic.

 

coup d’Ètat: a sudden revolution in which control of a government is seized by force, usually military force.

 

cronyism: a system where government posts and favors are given to friends without regards to their qualifications. Cronyism acts as a drag on economic and political development in many countries.

 

cross-border pollution: pollution that seeps across the border of a country to pollute or damage the environment of another country.

 

cultural imperialism: when one country imposes its standards or values on another country which has different standards and values. This is often the case when countries of the West (e.g., the US, France, Britain) make assumptions and value judgments about non-Western countries. These assumptions, in turn, get translated into policies.