Deck 12: Global Ecological Trends and the Transformation of World Politics

Question 1

The world's oil reserves are concentrated in a small number of countries.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Population growth rates are higher in the developing Global South countries than in other places in the world.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The 1987 Montreal Protocol limits the production of CFCs in an attempt to stop depletion of the ozone layer.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Climate change will likely cause deserts to disappear due to increased rainfall.

Question 5

The production of greenhouse gases has been rising in all areas of the world, including the Global South.

Question 6

Global South countries are less likely to view forests as the "common heritage of mankind" than Global North countries.

Question 7

Scientists still believe that a global "population explosion" is likely to occur in the future.

Question 8

The metaphor of the tragedy of the commons demonstrates that individual self-interest can have a destructive effect on the interest of the community.

Question 9

Oil is being discovered at a much faster pace than it is being consumed.

Question 10

Sustainable development is economic development designed to sustain today's current population, often at the expense of the ability of future generation to meet their development needs.

Question 11

The increasing demand for water is a growing global problem.

Question 12

Deforestation is problematic because it contributes to climate change through global warming and threatens the earth's biodiversity.

Question 13

The majority of the world's fish are caught in the Global North waters and consumed in the Global North.

Question 14

The surge in population growth in the Global South is explained through high birthrates alone.

Question 15

Burning fossil fuels is the major contributing factor to the greenhouse effect, which causes global temperatures to rise.

Question 16

The Global South agrees that the genetic character of the many species of plants and animals within their borders should be considered a part of the global commons.

Question 17

Most energy experts predict that renewable resources will likely account for over half of the world's energy use in the next two decades.

Question 18

Biodiversity includes genetic diversity, species diversity, and ecosystem diversity.

Question 19

OPEC has used its control over oil production as an instrument of coercive diplomacy to influence politics in the Middle East.

Question 20

India is expected to replace China as the world's most populous country in the next few decades.

Question 21

Agricultural crops with improved characteristics created artificially by combining genes from species that would not naturally interbreed are called

A)organic crops.
B)transgenic crops.
C)improved crops.
D)cross bred crops.
E)hybridized crops.

Question 22

The country that is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases is

A)Japan.
B)the United States.
C)Brazil.
D)India.
E)Russia.

Question 23

Which of the following was a major achievement of the Earth Summit, which took place in Rio de Janeiro in 1992?

A)All activities that produced acid rain were outlawed.
B)For the first time, developmental and environmental issues were treated simultaneously.
C)Strip mining in the Global South was banned.
D)The list of endangered species was expanded to include plants and animals in the Global South.
E)All countries agreed to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide by 20 percent.

Question 24

Which area of the world has the greatest amount of oil reserves?

A)Global South
B)European Union
C)United States and Canada
D)Middle East
E)China

Question 25

Which of the following best describes why access to water will likely become a source of international conflict in future decades?

A)Pollution rates are expected to increase.
B)About 40 percent of the world's population depends on water from water systems shared by at least two states.
C)The use of hydroelectric power will increase dramatically
D)By 2025 the global demand for water is expected to exceed supply by 56 percent.
E)Both options b and d are correct.

Question 26

Clearing tropical rain forests with slash-and-burn techniques are said to be doubly destructive because not only are fewer trees able to remove CO2 from the atmosphere, but

A)as forests are burned for clearing, the amount of CO2 discharged into the atmosphere increases.
B)Runoff from the fires pollutes rivers.
C)Many people die from the difficult nature of the work.
D)The cleared land is most often used for farming.
E)Many animals are poached during the process.

Question 27

The Global South has had growing concerns about the definition of the "global commons" and its implications for their sovereignty.Explain their concerns.Should the need to protect fragile ecosystems outweigh a state's right to exclusive control over its territory?

Question 28

How much is world oil consumption expected to change by 2030?

A)20 per cent decrease
B)20 per cent increase
C)50 per cent increase
D)100 per cent increase
E)No change is expected.

Question 29

The first UN Conference of the Human Environment was held in Stockholm in

A)1952.
B)1962.
C)1972.
D)1982.
E)1992.

Question 30

A renewable source of energy is

A)solar.
B)coal.
C)oil.
D)natural gas.
E)fossil fuels.

Question 31

Which of the following is an example of a nonrenewable resource?

A)Solar power
B)Wind
C)Petroleum
D)Geothermal energy
E)Biomass

Question 32

Which country has (countries have) seen an increase in its (their) total amount of forested area in the past decade?

A)China
B)India
C)Norway
D)Both options a and b have seen an increase.
E)All of the above have seen an increase.

Question 33

Which idea is associated with sustainable development?

A)Economic growth that does not deplete the resources needed to maintain growth
B)Underutilizing resources
C)"Spending the earth's capital"
D)The ability of a corporation to sustain its development by establishing subsidiaries abroad
E)Global North countries assisting Global South countries to increase their development to the level necessary to sustain their population

Question 34

The effects of continued rising temperatures include all except which of the following?

A)Sea levels will rise.
B)Winters will get warmer and heat waves will become increasingly frequent and severe.
C)Rainfall will decrease due to the rising temperatures.
D)Drought-prone regions will become even drier.
E)Tropical diseases will appear in areas previously too cold to support them.

Question 35

One successful international agreement on the environment, which gained wide acceptance thanks in part to strong scientific evidence, was

A)the Kyoto Protocol to reduce global warming.
B)the Washington Agreement to prevent deforestation.
C)the Johannesburg Treaty on biodiversity.
D)the Montreal Protocol to reduce depletion of the ozone layer.
E)All of the above are true.

Question 36

The tragedy of the commons shows that

A)the carrying capacity of the Earth will reach its maximum level by the year 2050.
B)rational self-interested behavior by individuals may have a destructive collective impact.
C)people naturally have a self-interest in protecting the environment for future generations.
D)the use of common resources like oceans and atmosphere are not equally shared by Global South nations.
E)None of the above is true.

Question 37

Which of the following does not contribute to environmental degradation?

A)Water shortages
B)Shifts from a meat-based diet to a primarily vegetarian diet
C)Soil erosion
D)Deforestation
E)Increased demand for bio-fuels

Question 38

How political actors influence perceptions of-and policy responses to-managing the impact of human behavior on their environment is called

A)sustainable development.
B)ecodevelopment.
C)ecopolitics.
D)environmental policy.
E)environmental action.

Question 39

The gas primarily responsible for the greenhouse effect, carbon dioxide, is released by

A)livestock.
B)burning fossil fuels.
C)rising ocean temperatures.
D)desertification.
E)melting permafrost.

Question 40

In 1854, Chief Seattle of the Suquamish tribe is said to have told the U.S.government, "Man did not weave the web of life.He is merely a strand in it.Whatever he does to the web, he does to

A)God.
B)Others.
C)the universe.
D)nature.
E)himself.

Question 41

Explain how demographic problems differ in the Global North and Global South.What are the global political and economic changes that will occur as a result of these demographic transitions?

Question 42

Define sustainable development.Critics maintain that the implementation of sustainability will hinder global economic growth, especially among global South countries.Is this critique sound? Present both sides of this debate.Which do you find most convincing.

Question 43

Explain the theory of demographic transition and how it attempts to show when the population in the Global South will slow.

Question 44

Discuss the factors that scientists believe contribute to global warming and the environmental consequences.What types of global political and economic changes would occur under the worst environmental scenario? If global warming is indeed occurring, what steps can the global community take to prevent it or mitigate the impact?

Question 45

Describe three different scenarios for the global future.Which aspects of the global system will change and which will continue?

Question 46

How useful is the tragedy of the commons metaphor for understanding contemporary demographic and environmental problems? What steps can be taken by the international community to prevent the destruction of the global commons?

Question 47

Discuss the realist, liberal, and Marxist interpretations of the causes of environmental degradation.How would the different schools alleviate environmental problems.

Question 48

Some critics argue that American dependence on Middle Eastern oil has led to conflict in the region and resentment towards America.Should America pursue a policy of energy independence? If this occurs, how would it change Middle Eastern and world politics?

Question 49

In 1972, the United Nations General Assembly convened the first UN Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm.During the ensuing years, other conferences were held-the most recent ones in Rio de Janeiro (1992) and Buenos Aires (1994).What factors mitigate against international cooperation to solve global ecological problems? What are the prospects for achieving sustainable development through a managed global commons arrangement?