Class 12 Environment and Natural Resources Mock Test (CBSE)

Topics in Environment and Natural Resources

• Environmental concerns in global politics
• The protection of global commons
• Common but differentiated responsibilities
• Common property resources
• India's stand on environmental issues
• Environmental movements
• Resource geopolitics
• The rights of indigenous peoples

Environment and Natural Resources practice questions with answers

1. Q1Multiple choice·1 mark
   Which of the following areas is considered part of the global commons, requiring cooperative international governance because they lie outside sovereign national jurisdiction?

   1. (a)Antarctica, the Earth's atmosphere, ocean floor, and outer space
   2. (b)Territorial waters of littoral states
   3. (c)Exclusive economic zones of developing countries
   4. (d)State-owned mineral reserves and domestic forests
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Correct option: (a) Antarctica, the Earth's atmosphere, ocean floor, and outer space+1

   Answer: (a)
2. Q2Multiple choice·1 mark
   The principle of "Common but Differentiated Responsibilities" (CBDR) agreed upon at the 1992 Earth Summit is based on which of the following understandings?

   1. (a)States should share the burden equally, since the atmosphere is a global commons.
   2. (b)Each country's burden should depend on its present emissions rather than its past emissions.
   3. (c)Each country's share of the burden should match its share of the world's population.
   4. (d)Developed countries bear more responsibility for their larger historical emissions.
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Correct option: (d) Developed countries bear more responsibility for their larger historical emissions.+1

   Answer: (d)
3. Q3Short answer·3 marks
   Highlight the significance of environmental movements in the Global South using a relevant example.
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Explaining that environmental movements in the Global South often connect ecological conservation directly with local livelihood and survival issues.+1
   2. Example, any one of: the Chipko movement, in which villagers in Uttarakhand hugged trees to stop commercial felling that threatened their livelihood; the Narmada Bachao Andolan against the Sardar Sarovar dam, which would displace lakhs of people; the movement in the Philippines against the Australian Western Mining Corporation; forest movements in countries such as Mexico, Chile, Brazil, Malaysia and Indonesia; or any other valid movement in the Global South.+1
   3. Stressing how these movements challenge mainstream state-led development paradigms and offer alternative models of sustainable resource management.+1

   Answer: Environmental movements in the Global South link conservation with livelihood and survival, as in the Chipko movement or the Narmada Bachao Andolan (or any other valid example); they challenge destructive state-led development projects and promote community-led, sustainable use of resources.

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