Environment and Natural Resources

About this unit

This unit explains how environmental questions became part of world politics. It covers the growth of the environment movement, the major international conferences and agreements, the idea of global commons, the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, conflicts over natural resources such as oil and water, the rights of indigenous peoples, and India's stand in international environmental negotiations.

Key ideas

• Environmental degradation as a global concern: climate change, ozone depletion, loss of forests and biodiversity.
• Sustainable development and the Brundtland Report.
• The Rio Earth Summit (1992), Agenda 21, and the climate change framework.
• Global commons and common property resources.
• Common but differentiated responsibilities between developed and developing countries.
• Resource geopolitics and the rights of indigenous peoples.

How to prepare

Learn the main milestones: Limits to Growth and the Stockholm conference (1972), the Brundtland Report (1987), the Montreal Protocol (1987), the Rio Earth Summit (1992) and the Kyoto Protocol (1997). Be clear on the difference between global commons and common property resources. Expect questions on India's position and on the North–South divide.