Glossary definitions

The IPBES glossary terms definitions page provides definitions of terms used in IPBES assessments. Some definitions in this online glossary have been edited for consistency. Please refer to the specific assessment glossary for citations/authorities of definitions.

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Concept	Definition	Deliverable(s)
dry forest	Tropical and sub-tropical dry forests occur in climates that are warm year-round, and may receive several hundred centimetres or rain per year, they deal with long dry seasons which last several months and vary with geographic location.	Land degradation and restoration assessment
drylands	Arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas. The term excludes hyper-arid areas, also known as deserts. Drylands are characterized by water scarcity and cover approximately 40% of the world's terrestrial surface.	Europe and Central Asia assessment
drylands	Drylands comprise arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas. The term excludes hyper-arid areas, also known as deserts. Drylands are characterised by water scarcity and cover approximately 40 % of the world's terrestrial surface.
drylands	Drylands comprise arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas. The term excludes hyper-arid areas, also known as deserts. Drylands are characterised by water scarcity and cover approximately 40 per cent of the world's terrain.	Asia-Pacific assessment
drylands	Drylands comprise arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas. The term excludes hyper-arid areas, also known as deserts. Drylands are characterised by water scarcity and cover approximately 40% of the world's terrestrial surface.	Americas assessment
drylands	Tropical and temperate areas with an aridity index (annual rainfall/annual potential evaporation) of less than 0.65.	Land degradation and restoration assessment
dynamic downscaling	Downscaling based on mechanistic models, which may be more appropriate than statistical downscaling in systems where the relationship between coarse scale and fine scale dynamics are complex and non-linear, or observational data are insufficient.	Scenarios and models assessment
dynamic model	A model that describes changes through time of a specific process. See also process-based model.	Scenarios and models assessment
dynamic model	See models.
dynamics and processes	refer to the emergent patterns of change across ‘depths’, ‘breadths’ and time that unfold as non-linear pathways. These may be characterised by ‘punctuated equilibrium’ in which more stable periods of incremental change are punctuated by bursts of change in which underlying structures are reorganised into new states.	Values assessment

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