UPSC CSE Prelims
Other Global Climate Initiatives and Partnerships Previous Year Questions (PYQs)

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 1 — 1 and 2 only

The Global Climate Change Alliance (GCCA) is a flagship initiative of the European Union launched in 2007 to support developing countries, particularly LDCs and SIDS, in addressing climate change challenges. It provides both technical and financial assistance to help integrate climate adaptation and mitigation strategies into national development policies and budgets.

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: The GCCA is indeed an initiative of the European Union, established to strengthen dialogue and cooperation with developing countries on climate change.

✅ Statement 2 – Correct: A primary objective of the GCCA is to provide technical and financial support to targeted developing countries to integrate climate change into their development policies and budgets.

❌ Statement 3 – Incorrect: The GCCA is coordinated by the European Commission, not by the World Resources Institute (WRI) or the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 3 — 1 and 3 only

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: The UNCCD promotes effective action through innovative national programmes and supportive international partnerships, providing a framework for countries to collaborate on combating desertification and mitigating drought effects.

❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: The Convention has a particular focus on Africa, not South Asia and North Africa. Its full name is 'United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa'. Additionally, the Secretariat does not allocate the major portion of financial resources—financial mobilization is primarily handled through the Global Mechanism and the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

✅ Statement 3 – Correct: The UNCCD is unique among environmental conventions for its commitment to a bottom-up approach, emphasizing the participation of local communities, land users, and non-governmental organizations in designing and implementing programmes to combat land degradation.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 1 — 1 only

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: The International Solar Alliance (ISA) was launched by India and France on November 30, 2015, during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 21) in Paris. The Alliance aims to promote solar energy deployment and reduce dependence on fossil fuels, particularly in developing countries.

❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: Initially, ISA membership was limited to 121 countries located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. However, in 2018, the Alliance was expanded to include all UN member states through an amendment to its Framework Agreement. Despite this expansion, not all UN member countries have joined ISA; membership remains voluntary and countries must formally sign and ratify the Framework Agreement to become members.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 1 — 1 only

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: Agenda 21 is a comprehensive global action plan for sustainable development adopted at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (Earth Summit) in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. It addresses environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainable development across 40 chapters covering issues like poverty, consumption patterns, atmospheric protection, deforestation, desertification, oceans, biodiversity, and waste management.

❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: Agenda 21 originated at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, not at the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg in 2002. The Johannesburg Summit (Rio+10) reviewed progress on Agenda 21 implementation and produced the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, which reaffirmed and built upon the original commitments.

Detailed Explanation:

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: BirdLife International is a global partnership of over 100 conservation NGOs working to conserve birds, their habitats, and biodiversity.

❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: The biodiversity hotspots concept was originated by British ecologist Norman Myers (1988), later promoted by Conservation International, not BirdLife International.

✅ Statement 3 – Correct: BirdLife International identifies and monitors Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs), a global network of critical sites for bird conservation and broader biodiversity.

Detailed Explanation:

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: The Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) is a global partnership involving governments, businesses, civil society, and Indigenous Peoples to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.

❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: FCPF does not provide financial aid to universities or individual scientists for research; it focuses on country-level REDD+ readiness and implementation support.

✅ Statement 3 – Correct: FCPF assists developing countries in REDD+ efforts by providing financial and technical assistance for capacity building and implementation.

Detailed Explanation:

The BioCarbon Fund Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes (ISFL) is managed by the World Bank.

The World Bank's Carbon Finance Unit serves as the permanent trustee and handles the day-to-day operations of the BioCarbon Fund, which includes the ISFL programme focused on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+).

Detailed Explanation:

❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: IUCN is an independent membership organization, not a UN organ. It includes governments, NGOs, and scientific institutions as members.

✅ Statement 2 – Correct: IUCN runs thousands of field projects worldwide for better management of natural environments and biodiversity conservation.

✅ Statement 3 – Correct: CITES is legally binding on States that have ratified it, but it does not replace national laws – each country implements it through domestic legislation.

Detailed Explanation:

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is intended to assist developing countries in adaptation and mitigation practices to counter climate change, providing financial support for climate resilience and emission reduction projects.

❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: The GCF was established under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at COP 16 in Cancun, 2010, not under the aegis of UNEP, OECD, Asian Development Bank, or World Bank.

Detailed Explanation:

Montreal Protocol (1987) is the international treaty specifically designed to control and phase out ozone-depleting substances (ODS) such as CFCs and halons.

Bretton Woods Conference (1944) established IMF and World Bank; Kyoto Protocol (1997) addresses greenhouse gas emissions; Nagoya Protocol (2010) deals with access and benefit-sharing of genetic resources under CBD.

Detailed Explanation:

International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) aims at conservation and sustainable use of plant genetic resources which are essential components of agricultural biodiversity.

United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) addresses land degradation in drylands, which leads to habitat loss and biodiversity decline; combating desertification directly protects terrestrial biodiversity.

World Heritage Convention (WHC) protects natural heritage sites of outstanding universal value, which often harbor significant biodiversity hotspots and endemic species.

All three conventions have direct or indirect bearing on biodiversity conservation.

Detailed Explanation:

❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: Earth Hour is an initiative of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), not UNEP or UNESCO.

✅ Statement 2 – Correct: Participants switch off non-essential lights for one hour on the last Saturday of March every year.

✅ Statement 3 – Correct: The movement aims to raise awareness about climate change, energy conservation, and the need to save the planet.

Detailed Explanation:

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: The Global Environment Facility (GEF) serves as the official financial mechanism for both the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), providing grants and funding for environmental projects in developing countries.

❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: The GEF is a financial organization, not a scientific research body. Scientific research on environmental issues is conducted by organizations like IPCC (climate) and IPBES (biodiversity).

❌ Statement 3 – Incorrect: The GEF is an independent financial organization established in 1991, not an agency under the OECD. It operates as a partnership of 183 countries, international institutions, civil society organizations, and the private sector.