Breakdown of Það sem við ætlum að minnka er losunin, og samdrátturinn er aðkallandi.
vera
to be
og
and
það
it / there (existential) / the one (n)
við
we
að
to (infinitive marker)
ætla
to intend
sem
who / which / that
minnka
to reduce / to decrease (intransitive) / to reduce (something)
aðkallandi
urgent
losunin
the emission
samdrátturinn
the reduction (contraction)
Questions & Answers about Það sem við ætlum að minnka er losunin, og samdrátturinn er aðkallandi.
Why do we use Það sem instead of Hvað for the word 'What' at the start of the sentence?
In English, 'what' can be a question word or mean 'the thing that'. Icelandic strictly separates these. Because this is a statement and not a question, you cannot use the question word hvað. Instead, you build the abstract idea using það (it/that) plus the relative particle sem (that/which). This literally translates to 'That which we intend to reduce'.
If we are reducing the emissions, why is losunin in the nominative case instead of the accusative?
This is a key feature of pseudo-cleft sentences. The action of reducing is contained entirely within the first clause (við ætlum að minnka). The noun losunin comes after the linking verb er (is). Because the verb 'to be' links things in the same state, it triggers the nominative case. Therefore losunin stays nominative, even though logically it represents the thing being reduced.
The English translation says 'emissions' (plural). Why is losunin singular here?
When talking about greenhouse gases or pollution, Icelandic treats losun (release/emission) as an uncountable mass noun, so it takes a singular form. With the definite article attached, it becomes losunin (the emission). English simply prefers a plural noun to express the exact same concept.
What type of adjective is aðkallandi and how does it agree with the masculine noun samdrátturinn?
The word aðkallandi (urgent/pressing) is a present participle, which you can spot by the -andi suffix, much like the English '-ing'. A great trick for B2 learners is that present participles used as adjectives are completely indeclinable in Icelandic. It stays exactly the same regardless of the noun's gender, number, or case, so it doesn't need a special masculine ending to match samdrátturinn.
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