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Class 12th Political Science NCERT Solutions Part A Contemporary World Politics
Q1. Which among the following best explains the reason for growing concerns about the environment?
(a). The developed countries are concerned about protecting nature.
(b). Protection of the environment is vital for indigenous people and natural habitats.
(c). The environmental degradation caused by human activities has become pervasive and has reached a dangerous level.
(d). None of the above
Answer:- (c) The environmental degradation caused by human activities has become persuasive and has reached a dangerous level.
Q2. Mark correct or wrong against each of the following statements about the Earth Summit:
(a) It was attended by 170 countries, thousands of NGOs and many MNCs.
(b) The Summit was held under the aegis of the UN.
(c) For the first time, global environmental issues were firmly consolidated at the political level.
(d) It was a summit meeting.
Answer:-
(a) Correct
(b) Incorrect
(c) Correct
(d) Correct
Q3. Which among the following are true about the Global Commons?
(a) The earth’s atmosphere, Antarctica, ocean floor and outer space are considered as part of the Global Commons.
(b) The Global Commons are outside sovereign jurisdiction.
(c) The question of managing the Global Commons has reflected the North-South divide.
(d) The countries of the North are more concerned about the protection of the global commons than the countries of the South.
Answer:-
(a) True
(b) True
(c) true
(d) False
Q4. What were the outcomes of Rio-Summit?
Answer:- The outcomes of Rio Summit were :
(a) The ecological conservation mainly the forest preservation were given huge amount of importance.
(b) The idea of climate change and its effects were also deliberated and then also presented “Agenda 21” -developmental ideas.
Q5. What is meant by Global Commons? How are they exploited and polluted?
Answer:- ‘Global Commons’ are resources which are not owned by a particular individual but its
under community ownership. These are also known as ‘community resources’ and are mostly
subjected to huge about to exploitation because of rapid economic development. The capitalism
and industrialization has led to the destruction of these resources which include Antarctica,
ocean floor etc.
Q6. What is meant by ‘Common but differentiated responsibilities’? How could we implement the idea?
Answer:- Global North, which includes the developed countries believe in the equal responsibility
of every country in ecological conservation and environmental protection. On the other hand,
Global South, which includes the developing countries believe in ‘common but differentiated
responsibility’. This principle explains that the former countries have already developed the
major avenues of their economy and are responsible for most of the degradation. They believe
in the recognition of uniform principle but believe that developed countries have to take more
responsibility.
This principle can be implemented by the correct implementation of policies revolving around
the restriction upon the developed countries. The coop
Q7. Why have issues related to global environmental protection become the priority concern of states since the 1990s?
Answer:- Environmental issues have become a priority concern since 1990’s because:
(a) The rapid ecological degradation and the imbalance in the environmental processes.
(b) The overgrazing of the fields and the overharvesting of fisheries.
(c) The decreasing fertility in agricultural lands and the considerable impact upon the area of cultivable lands.
(d) The decreasing biodiversity and the impact upon the marine ecosystems due to water pollution.
(e) The increase in Global Coastal Pollution, affecting the marine life.
Q8. Compromise and accommodation are the two essential policies required by states to save planet Earth. Substantiate the statement in the light of the ongoing negotiations between the North and South on environmental issues.
Answer:- Compromise and Accommodation are imperative for the environmental protection and
ecological conservation. The principle of common but differentiated responsibility is a classical
example of ‘compromise’, so that the avenue of economic development can go in hand with
environmental protection. The Earth Summit of 1992, brought up the Agenda 21 and the
UNFCCC further land emphasis on the former principal. The protection of community resources
is also very important , the Antarctica protocol and the Montreal protocol are classical examples
of such practice.
The accommodation of all the countries towards a sustainable setup will
require the cooperation of developed countries. The withdrawal of the USA from the Paris
Convention, created a huge set back towards achieving the goal but the environmental
movements have kept the environmental politics at bay. Recently, the speech of Greta
Thunberg and the role played by the United Nations is also moving towards the goal of
‘compromise or accommodation’.
Q9. The most serious challenge before the states is pursuing economic development without causing further damage to the global environment. How could we achieve this? Explain with a few examples.
Answer:- The balance between economic development and ecological conservation can be
achieved by the principle of ‘sustainable development’. The Earth Summit of 1992, upheld the
principle of sustainable development but the Brundtland report also empowered the respective
notion. The economic development of developed countries, beyond the current sustainable
structure has received a huge amount of restrictions upon the carbon emissions. The
restrictions and the use of alternate resources has led to the achievement of the goal of
‘sustainable development’.
Extra Questions of Class 12 Political Science Chapter 8 Environment and Natural Resources
Q1. Define indigenous population.
Answer:- Indigenous population are tribals or native people whose interests and rights are imperialised by the foreign people who migrated from time to time in territories.
Q2. Which world summit conference was held at Rio in 1992?
Answer:- Earth summit was held at Rio in 1992.
Q3. Why were India and China exempted from the Kyoto Protocol?
Answer:- India, China and other developing countries were exempted from the requirements of Kyoto Protocol because their per capita emission was comparatively lower than it was in developed countries.
Q4. What were the recommendations of the Rio Summit Known as?
Answer:- The recommendations of the Rio Summit was known as ‘Agenda 21’.
Q5. Why have the issues relating to environmental degradation become part of world politics.
Answer:- The issues relating to environmental degradation become part of world politics because such issues can not be addressed by one country alone. Thus, they became the part of world politics as shared action is necessary to deal with them.
Q6. What is Agenda 21?
Answer:- Agenda 21 is a list of developed practices ecological responsibility to promote sustainable development.
Q7. What do you mean by Global Commons?
Answer:- Global Commons are the common governance by international community over the areas or regions which are located outside the sovereign jurisdiction of any one state or authority.
Q8. Why do indigenous people need special protection to protect their rights?
Answer:- Issues related to the rights of indigenous people have been neglected as people of varied cultures from various parts of the world overcome them. Also these people have threat to their survival due to loss of land which is main source of their livelihood. This is the reason they require special protection to protect their rights.
Q9. What is meant by the concept of ‘common but differentiated responsibility’?
Answer:- Common but differentiated responsibility refers that all nations share common responsibility for environmental degra¬dation but developed nations have greater responsibility than developing nations because of their different contribution to environmental degradation.
Q10. Give any two environmental concerns of global politics.
Answer:-
- Ozone layer depletion is an alarming concern for ecosystem.
- Loss of fertility of agricultural land • due to extreme use of fertilizers and overgrazed grasslands.
Q11. Explain the most obvious threat to the survival of indigenous people.
Answer:- The most obvious threat to the survival of indigenous people is the loss of land
which was occupied by their ancestrals. The loss of land referred to a loss of their economic resource also.
Q12. How did Earth Summit draw attention of global politics towards environmental issues?
Answer:- The Earth Summit drew attention of global politics towards environmental issues because it produced conventions to deal with climate change, biodiversity, forestry and recommended a list of development practices called Agenda 21 which combined economic growth with ecological responsibility known as ‘Sustainable Development’ as well as Earth Summit laid stress on the cooperation of states to conserve, protect, restore the health and integrity of the earth’s ecosystems.
Q13. What is meant by ‘common property’?
Answer:- Common property represents common property for the group. The underlying norm here is that members of the group have both rights and duties with respect to the nature, levels of use and maintenance of a given resource.
Q14. What are global commons? List any two examples.
Answer:- In the world, some areas are situated beyond a sovereign jurisdiction of any one state. Hence they need united control by the international community. They are called global commons.
Two examples are :
Earth’s atmosphere
Ocean floor
Q15. What is ‘Resource Geopolitics’?
Answer:- ‘Resource Geopolitics’ is concerned with allocation of distribution of natural resources among the nation states of global arena:
- It is about who gets what, when, where and how.
- Inter state rivalry and western geopolitical thinking about resources have been dominated by the relationship of trade, war and power.
Q16. Is there any difference between the prospectives adopted by the rich and the poor nations to protect the Earth? Explain.
Answer:- Yes, the rich and the poor nations adopted different prospectives to protect the earth at Rio-Summit:
- The rich countries were known as Global North whereas the poor countries were called Global South.
- Northern states showed concern with ozone depletion and global warming whereas southern states showed
? concern for economic development and environmental management.
Q17. Explain the role of environmental movements to meet the challenge of environmental degradation.
Answer:- The role of environmental movements to meet the change of environmental degradation is very important. It is justified from the points below :
Some of the most significant responses to environmental challenges have come not from government but rather from groups of environmentally conscious volunteers around the world.
Thee environmental movements are amongst the most vibrant, diverse and powerful social movements all over the world. These movements creates new ideas and long-term visions. There are some examples to show that diversity is a significant feature of contemporary environmental movements.
The Forest Movements of the South, in Mexico, Chile, Brazil, Malaysia, Indonesia, Continental Africa and India are facing lots of pressure. The process of forest clearing in the Third World Countries is on at an alarming rate, despite 30 years of environmental activism.
In the Philippines, a big network of groups and organisations campaigned against the Western Mining Corporation. Vehement opposition to the company in its own country, Australia is based on anti-nuclear sentiments and support for the basic rights of Australian indigenous peoples.
Another group of movements are involved in struggles against mega-dams In every country where mega dams are being built, we find the environmental movements opposing the projects. Basically, anti-dam movements are pro-river movements for more sustainable and equitable management of river systems and valleys. “The Narmada Bachao Andolan” is one of the best known of these movements.
NCERT Lessons for Class 12 Political Science Part. 1
Contemporary World Politics
- Lesson 1 The Cold War Era
- Lesson 2 The End of Bipolarity
- Lesson 3 US Hegemony in World Politics
- Lesson 4 Alternative Centres of Power
- Lesson 5 Contemporary South Asia
- Lesson 6 International Organisations
- Lesson 7 Security in the Contemporary World
- Lesson 8 Environment and Natural Resources
- Lesson 9 Globalisation