Ecologize

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To render a process, product, or place environmentally sound, so that it causes less harm to natural systems
2. To bring something into line with ecological principles so that it supports rather than damages the environment
3. To transform an activity or setting so that it respects and protects the natural world and its living systems

Etymology: "Ecologize" is a verb formed by adding the verbal suffix "-ize" to "ecology," the study of organisms and their relationships with one another and with their surroundings. "Ecology" itself was coined in German as "Ökologie" by the zoologist Ernst Haeckel in 1866, built from the Greek "oikos" meaning "house" or "dwelling," with "-logia" meaning "study of." The English word "ecology" followed in the later nineteenth century, and the verb is a much later derivative. The verb's meaning follows the sense of "ecology" as a concern for environmental systems, so to ecologize something is to make it environmentally sound or to approach it in terms of ecological principles. Its use dates to the later twentieth century, when environmental concern became widespread in public debate.

Synonyms: green, environmentalize