NCERT solutions for Political Science Contemporary World Politics [English] Class 12 chapter 6 - Environment and Natural Resources [Latest edition]

Politics in forests, politics in water, politics in atmosphere! What is not political then?

Why do you think the fingers are designed like chimneys and the world made into a lighter?

Collect news clippings on reports linking environment and politics in your own locality.

Are there different perspectives from which the rich and the poor countries agree to protect the Earth?

Find out more about the Kyoto Protocol. Which major countries did not sign it? And why?

That’s a cool principle! A bit like the reservation policy in our country, isn't it?

I heard about some rivers being sold in Latin America. How can common property be sold?

I get it! First they destroyed the earth, now it is our turn to do the same! Is that our stand?

Let’s find out about ‘Chipko Movement’.

The larger part of the Earth is water than the land and yet the cartoonist decides to show larger image of the land than water. How does the image show the scarcity of water?

How are water conflicts different from the many water conflicts within our own country?

Why don’t we hear much about the indigenous people and their movements? Is the media biased against them?

Spoonful of Ecology

Do you agree with this perspective where a man from an urban (developed!) area becomes greedy for nature?

STEPS

• Each student is asked to list any ten items they consume/use every day. (The list could include - pen/paper/eraser/computer/water etc.)
• Ask students to calculate the amount of natural resources being used to make these items. (For finished products like pen/pencil/computer etc., students will calculate the amount of resources and for items like water they could calculate the amount of electricity used for purifying and pumping along with gallons of water). Each would calculate and arrive at an approximate figure.

Ideas for the Teacher

• Collect the approximate figures from each student and sum up all to arrive at total resources consumed by the students of that particular class. (Teacher is to act as a facilitator and allow students to do the calculations.)
• Project this figure to other classes of the same school, then to schools across the country. The country figure could be used to measure the amount of resources being used by schools in other countries too. (The teacher is to have background information about the resources being used by students in a few select countries. While selecting countries, teacher should ensure that the selected countries belong to the developed/developing countries category).
• Ask students to imagine the amount of resources we are consuming and also to estimate future consumption.

Which among the following best explains the reason for growing concerns about the environment?

Mark correct or wrong against the following statement about the Earth Summit:

It was attended by 170 countries, thousands of NGOs and many MNCs.

Mark correct or wrong against the following statement about the Earth Summit:

The Summit was held under aegis of the UN.

Mark correct or wrong against the following statement about the Earth Summit:

For the first time, global environmental issues were firmly consolidated at the political level.

Mark correct or wrong against the following statement about the Earth Summit:

It was a summit meeting.

Which among the following are TRUE about the global commons?

What were the outcomes of the Rio-Summit?

What is meant by the global commons? How are they exploited and polluted?

What is meant by ‘Common but differentiated responsibilities’? How could we implement the idea?

Why have issues related to global environmental protection become the priority concern of states since the 1990s?

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.  

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.