common currency

In global climate-speak, terms like 'scenario', 'impact', 'vulnerability', 'irreversible', 'mitigation', 'adaptation' and 'adaptive capacity' have become common currency, verbal coins sometimes so worn that they almost lose meaning, even though they carry sinister messages about the future of humanity.

Based on these factors, scientists can calculate their global warming potential, which makes it possible to have a "common currency" for greenhouse gasses, translating any given gas into its equivalent in carbon dioxide.