The word of the year for 2007 was “locavore.”
All of this goes to show what we already knew: green has gone mainstream, and it's there to stay.
Here’s the scoop on the word soon to become a part of our daily lexicons:
Hypermiler – someone who employs various techniques to achieve an average daily mileage higher than the EPA’s estimated fuel economy rating for his/her car’s model
Hypermiling – Fuel economy-maximizing behaviors describe techniques that drivers can use to optimize their automobile fuel economy
According to the Oxford University Press, “hypermiling” was first coined by Wayne Gerdes in 2004. The goal of hypermilers is to achieve the highest possible gas mileage from their cars by using fuel-efficient driving techniques and making slight adjustments to their cars. You may be a hyper miler if you maintain proper air pressure in your tires, turn off your air conditioner, drive barefoot, turn your engine off instead of idling and avoid stop-and-go traffic.
Here's what I do – Ride my bike a lot. Turn the air conditioner off and the vent on. Keep my tires inflated. Buy regular gas, not ethanol.
frugalista – person who leads a frugal lifestyle, but stays fashionable and healthy by swapping clothes, buying second-hand, growing own produce, etc.
topless meeting – a meeting in which the participants are barred from using their laptops, Blackberries, cellphones, etc.
toxic debt – mainly sub-prime debts that are now proving so disastrous to banks. They were parceled up and sent around the global financial system like toxic waste, hence the allusion.
CarrotMob, carrot mob – a flashmob type of gathering, in which people are invited via the Net to all support and reward a local small ethical business such as a shop or café by all patronizing it at the same time. Also as noun, carrotmobbing.
ecohacking (also known as geoengineering) – the use of science in very large-scale projects to change the environment for the better/stop global warming (e.g. by using mirrors in space to deflect sunlight away from Earth).
rewilding – the process of returning an area to its original wild state/flora/fauna etc.
staycation – vacation taken at or near one’s home, taking day trips, etc.