mitigate

Mitigate is a verb meaning to make something less severe, serious, or painful; to lessen the effect of something harmful, often by reducing its likelihood or intensity. The term is commonly used in risk management, law, and public policy, among other fields.

Etymology: from Latin mitigare "to soften, make mild," from mitis "mild, soft."

In risk management, mitigation refers to actions designed to reduce the probability or impact of adverse events, such as implementing safety procedures, redundancies, or contingency planning. In law and criminal justice, mitigating circumstances are factors that may lessen the severity of a sentence. In environmental and climate policy, mitigation describes efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or enhance sinks to limit climate change. In public health, mitigation strategies aim to slow transmission or lessen the severity of illness, rather than solely treating cases. In disaster management, mitigation involves measures that prevent hazards from becoming disasters, such as building codes or land-use planning. In information security, risk mitigation includes patching vulnerabilities, applying access controls, and security monitoring.

Mitigation is often contrasted with remediation, which focuses on fixing problems after they occur, whereas mitigation emphasizes prevention and reduction of harm. Related terms include alleviation and reduction. Common collocations include mitigate risk, mitigate damage, mitigation measures, and climate change mitigation.