Advocacy (technical mine action)
Public support, recommendation or positive publicity with the aim of removing, or at least reducing, the risk from, and the impact of, mines and ERW.
All reasonable effort
Describes what is considered a minimum acceptable level of effort to identify and document contaminated areas or to remove the presence or suspicion of explosive ordnance. All reasonable effort has been applied when the commitment of additional resources is considered to be unreasonable in relation to the results expected.
Audit
An assessment of the adequacy of management controls to ensure the economical and efficient use of resources; the safeguarding of assets; the reliability of financial and other information; the compliance with regulations, rules and established policies; the effectiveness of risk management; and the adequacy of organisational structures, systems and processes.
Communication and consultation
Continual and iterative processes that an organisation conducts to provide, share or obtain information, and to engage in dialogue with stakeholders regarding the management of risk.
Consequence
Outcome of an event affecting objectives.
Context
The combination of internal and external issues that can have an effect on an organisation’s approach to developing and achieving its objectives.
Control
Measure that is modifying risk.
Establishing the context
Defining the external and internal parameters to be taken into account when managing risk, and setting the scope and risk criteria for the risk management policy.
Event
Occurrence or change of a particular set of circumstances.
Explosion consequence analysis (ECA) (technical ammunition management)
The structured process, utilising explosives science and explosives engineering, to provide scientific evidence of the potential risk to individuals and property from the effects of an undesirable explosive event.
Explosives classification (technical ammunition management)
The division of explosives according to the risk they present when initiated in storage and transport.
Exposure
Extent to which an organisation and/or stakeholder is subject to an event.
External context
External environment in which the organisation seeks to achieve its objectives.
External context (technical mine action)
The local, national, and international parameters and factors, that influence the establishment and achievement of objectives and that fall outside the exclusive decision making authority of an organisation, including external stakeholders, their values, perceptions and relationships, as well as key drivers and important trends within the social, cultural, political, professional, legal, regulatory, technological, economic, natural, and competitive environment.
Frequency
Number of events or outcomes per defined unit of time.
Governance
Includes the organisation’s structure, policies, objectives, roles, accountabilities, decision making processes, and capabilities including its knowledge and human, technological, capital, and systemic resources.
Harm (technical mine action and ammunition management)
Physical injury or damage to the health of people, or damage to property or the environment.
Hazard
Source of potential harm.
High risk area (technical mine action)
An identifiable area that is typically mined in a confirmed hazardous area, or an area that is described by a non-technical survey as being more likely to be mined, or contain ERW than others.
Impact (technical mine action)
The level of social and economic suffering experienced by the community resulting from the harm or risk of harm caused by explosive ordnance hazards and hazardous areas.
Improvement
Activity to enhance performance.
Internal context
Internal environment in which the organisation seeks to achieve its objectives.
Internal context (technical mine action)
The parameters and factors that fall within the internal decision-making authority and ability of an organisation and that can influence the establishment and achievement of objectives, including the organisation’s internal stakeholders, approach to governance, contractual relationships, capabilities, culture, and standards.
Level of risk
Magnitude of a risk or combination of risks, expressed in terms of the combination of consequences and their likelihood.
Lightning protection system (LPS) (technical ammunition management)
A system designed to protect against the effects of lightning discharges by providing a conductive path between the atmosphere above a structure and the general mass of earth so that the discharge can pass to earth with the minimum risk to the structure, its contents and occupants.
Likelihood
Chance of something happening.
Maximum credible event / effective risk (technical ammunition management)
In each situation the greatest quantity of explosives which can function virtually at once to provide an explosion effect.
Mine risk
The probability and severity of physical injury to people, property or the environment caused by the unintentional detonation of a mine or ERW.
Mine risk reduction
Those actions which lessen the probability and/or severity of physical injury to people, property or the environment.
Monitoring
Continual checking, supervising, critically observing or determining the status in order to identify change from the performance level required or expected.
Probability
Measure of the chance of occurrence expressed as a number between 0 and 1, where 0 is impossibility and 1 is absolute certainty.
Protective measure
Means used to reduce risk.
Qualitative risk assessment (technical ammunition management)
Qualitative risk assessments are descriptive versus measurable.
Note: this is by far the most widely used approach to risk analysis. Probability data is not required and only estimated potential loss is used.
Quantitative risk assessment (technical ammunition management)
A method of estimating and compounding the approximate probability of an accidental explosion with that of fatalities and other losses. This enables professional judgement to be applied as to whether or not the risk meets the alarp (as low as reasonably practicable) principal.
Residual contamination (technical mine action)
Refers to contamination which gives rise to residual risk.
Residual risk
Risk remaining after risk treatment.
Residual risk (technical mine action)
Is the risk remaining following the application of all reasonable effort to identify, define, and remove all presence and suspicion of explosive ordnance through non-technical survey, technical survey and/or clearance.
Residual risk (technical ammunition management)
The remaining potential for harm to persons, property or the environment following all possible efforts to reduce predictable hazards.
Resilience
Adaptive capacity of an organisation in a complex and changing environment.
Review
Activity undertaken to determine the suitability, adequacy and effectiveness of the subject matter to achieve established objectives.
Risk
Effect of uncertainty on objectives.
Risk (technical mine action and ammunition management)
Combination of the probability of occurrence of harm and the severity of that harm. Risk may be expressed in terms of risk sources, potential events, their consequences and their likelihood.
Risk acceptance
Informed decision to take a particular risk.
Risk aggregation
Combination of a number of risks into one risk to develop a more complete understanding of the overall risk.
Risk analysis
Process to comprehend the nature of risk and to determine the level of risk.
Risk analysis (technical mine action and ammunition management)
Systematic use of available information to identify hazards and to estimate the risk.
Risk appetite
Amount and type of risk that an organisation is willing to pursue or retain.
Risk assessment
Overall process of risk identification, risk analysis and risk evaluation.
Note (technical ammunition management): the objective evaluation of risk in a manner in which assumptions and uncertainties are clearly considered and presented. The determination of the quantitative or qualitative value of risk related to a concrete situation and a recognised threat.
Risk attitude
Organisation's approach to assess and eventually pursue, retain, take or turn away from risk.
Risk aversion
Attitude to turn away from risk.
Risk avoidance
Informed decision not to be involved in, or to withdraw from, an activity in order not to be exposed to a particular risk.
Risk control (technical mine action)
A measure that maintains and/or modifies risk. In mine action a risk control is normally one that reduces/mitigates risk.
Risk criteria
Terms of reference against which the significance of a risk is evaluated.
Risk description
Structured statement of risk usually containing four elements: sources, events, causes and consequences.
Risk evaluation
Process of comparing the results of risk analysis with risk criteria to determine whether the risk and/or its magnitude is acceptable or tolerable.
Risk financing
Form of risk treatment involving contingent arrangements for the provision of funds to meet or modify the financial consequences should they occur.
Risk identification
Process of finding, recognizing and describing risks.
Risk management
Coordinated activities to direct and control an organisation with regard to risk and the complete risk-based decision-making process.
Risk management audit
Systematic, independent and documented process for obtaining evidence and evaluating it objectively in order to determine the extent to which the risk management framework, or any selected part of it, is adequate and effective.
Risk management framework
Set of components that provide the foundations and organisational arrangements for designing, implementing, monitoring, reviewing and continually improving risk management throughout the organisation.
Risk management plan
Scheme within the risk management framework specifying the approach, the management components and resources to be applied to the management of risk.
Risk management policy
Statement of the overall intentions and direction of an organisation related to risk management.
Risk management process
Systematic application of management policies, procedures and practices to the activities of communicating, consulting, establishing the context, and identifying, analyzing, evaluating, treating, monitoring and reviewing risk.
Risk matrix
Tool for ranking and displaying risks by defining ranges for consequence and likelihood.
Risk mitigation (technical ammunition management)
The measures taken to reduce the effects should an explosion or deflagration occur. Examples would be following compatibility mixing rules to prevent an item in an incompatible group exacerbating the effects of an explosion, and keeping inhabited buildings outside the yellow line (inhabited building distance).
Risk owner
Person or entity with the accountability and authority to manage a risk.
Risk perception
Stakeholder's view on a risk.
Risk profile
Description of any set of risks.
Risk reduction (technical mine action)
Actions taken to lessen the probability, negative consequences or both, associated with a particular risk.
Risk reduction (technical ammunition management)
Description of those measures to be taken to reduce the risk of ammunition exploding or deflagrating. It also refers to the methods used to make the ammunition more secure. Examples would be continuous surveillance of ammunition to ensure any safety problems are detected at an early stage and storing ammunition in optimum conditions in secure areas and buildings.
Risk reduction process level 1 (RRPL 1) (technical ammunition management)
Basic safety precautions are in place to reduce the risk of undesirable explosive events during ammunition storage, but fatalities and injuries to individuals in local civilian communities may still occur.
Risk reduction process level 2 (RRPL 2) (technical ammunition management)
Safety precautions, in the form of appropriate separation and quantity distances, have been implemented to reduce the risk of fatalities and injuries to individuals within local communities to a tolerable level.
Risk reduction process level 3 (RRPL 3) (technical ammunition management)
A safe, secure, effective and efficient conventional ammunition stockpile management system is in place that is fully in line with international best practices.
Risk register
Record of information about identified risks.
Risk reporting
Form of communication intended to inform particular internal or external stakeholders by providing information regarding the current state of risk and its management.
Risk retention
Acceptance of the potential benefit of gain, or burden of loss, from a particular risk.
Risk sharing
Form of risk treatment involving the agreed distribution of risk with other parties.
Risk source
Element which alone or in combination has the intrinsic potential to give rise to risk.
Risk tolerance
organisation's or stakeholder's readiness to bear the risk after risk treatment in order to achieve its objectives.
Tolerable risk (technical mine action and ammunition management)
Risk which is accepted in a given context based on current values of society.
Risk treatment
Process to modify risk.
Risk treatment (technical mine action)
The selection and implementation of options for addressing risk. Risk treatment in mine action may also be referred to as risk mitigation or risk reduction.
Safe (technical mine action and ammunition management)
The absence of risk. Normally the term tolerable risk is more appropriate and accurate.
Note: in the context of munitions, the term safe is related to the “safe position” of a fuze.
Safety (technical mine action and ammunition management)
The reduction of risk to a tolerable level and degree of freedom from unacceptable risk.
Sex and age disaggregated data (SADD)
Collection of data which includes details on sex and age, knowing who is affected – men or women, boys or girls - and who among them is the most at risk, and so prevents the services provided from being off target. Data on the population affected by the crisis should always be broken down by age and sex and other relevant factors such as ethnicity or religion.
Stakeholder
Person or organisation that can affect, be affected by, or perceive themselves to be affected by a decision or activity.
Stockpile safety (technical ammunition management)
The result of measures taken to ensure minimal risk of accidents and hazards deriving from explosive ordnance to personnel working with arms and munitions as well as adjacent populations.
Vulnerability
Intrinsic properties of something resulting in susceptibility to a risk source that can lead to an event with a consequence.