✅ Answer: A) Brundtland Commission (World Commission on Environment and Development)“Our Common Future” (also called the Brundtland Report) was published in 1987 by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), chaired by Gro Harlem Brundtland. It introduced the concept of sustainable development and highlighted the link between poverty, environment, and development. It called for a new era of economic growth that is “forceful and at the same time socially and environmentally sustainable.” It led to the Earth Summit (1992) in Rio de Janeiro.

✅ Answer: A) Was the first major UN conference on the environment; established UNEPThe Stockholm Conference (UN Conference on the Human Environment, 1972) was the first major UN conference on the environment. It established UNEP (UN Environment Programme) and declared June 5 as World Environment Day. It produced the Stockholm Declaration with 26 principles. India’s PM Indira Gandhi was a prominent speaker. The conference marked the beginning of international environmental governance. It was followed by the Earth Summit (Rio, 1992), Rio+10 (Johannesburg, 2002), and Rio+20 (Rio, 2012).

✅ Answer: A) UNFCCC, CBD, and Agenda 21The Earth Summit (UNCED, Rio de Janeiro, 1992) produced: UNFCCC (UN Framework Convention on Climate Change), CBD (Convention on Biological Diversity), Agenda 21 (action plan for sustainable development), Rio Declaration (27 principles), and Forest Principles. It was the largest environmental conference at the time. The Kyoto Protocol (1997) and Paris Agreement (2015) are follow-ups to UNFCCC. SDGs were adopted in 2015. The Montreal Protocol (1987) predates the Earth Summit.

✅ Answer: A) A comprehensive action plan for sustainable development in the 21st centuryAgenda 21 is a comprehensive, non-binding action plan for sustainable development in the 21st century, adopted at the Earth Summit (1992). It covers social and economic dimensions, conservation and management of resources, strengthening the role of major groups, and means of implementation. “Local Agenda 21” encourages local governments to develop their own sustainable development plans. It was followed by Agenda 2030 (SDGs, 2015).

✅ Answer: C) 2012IPBES was established in 2012 in Panama City. It assesses the state of biodiversity and ecosystem services globally, similar to how IPCC assesses climate change. IPBES’s 2019 Global Assessment found that 1 million species are threatened with extinction. It is headquartered in Bonn, Germany. India is a member. IPBES reports inform the CBD’s biodiversity targets. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) was a precursor to IPBES.

✅ Answer: A) OECD (1972)The Polluter Pays Principle (PPP) was first articulated by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) in 1972. It was later incorporated in the Rio Declaration (1992, Principle 16). In India, the Supreme Court has applied PPP in several landmark cases (M.C. Mehta cases). The NGT also applies PPP. It ensures that environmental costs are internalised by polluters rather than borne by society or future generations.

✅ Answer: A) Includes social and environmental factors that GDP ignoresThe Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) is an alternative to GDP that includes social and environmental factors. GPI adds: value of volunteer work, household work, leisure time. GPI subtracts: income inequality, crime costs, pollution costs, resource depletion, loss of farmland, loss of wetlands. GPI often shows that while GDP has grown, genuine progress has stagnated or declined in many countries. Other alternatives to GDP: Human Development Index (HDI), Gross National Happiness (Bhutan), Inclusive Wealth Index.

✅ Answer: B) BhutanGross National Happiness (GNH) was developed by Bhutan as an alternative to GDP. It was coined by Bhutan’s 4th King, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, in 1972. GNH has 4 pillars: sustainable development, preservation of cultural values, conservation of natural environment, and good governance. It has 9 domains including psychological well-being, time use, cultural diversity, ecological diversity, and living standards. Bhutan is the only country to use GNH as its development philosophy. The UN adopted a resolution on happiness in 2011.

✅ Answer: A) Companies and individuals to voluntarily buy carbon credits to offset their emissionsThe Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) allows companies and individuals to voluntarily buy carbon credits to offset their emissions, beyond any regulatory requirements. Carbon credits are generated by projects that reduce or remove emissions (renewable energy, reforestation, methane capture). India has significant potential for generating carbon credits through renewable energy and forestry projects. The VCM is growing rapidly as companies set net zero targets. India’s Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS) will create a domestic carbon market.

✅ Answer: A) Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) at COP10, Nagoya (2010)The Aichi Biodiversity Targets were adopted at CBD COP10 in Nagoya, Japan (2010) as part of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020. They had 20 targets under 5 strategic goals. Most Aichi targets were not met by 2020. They were replaced by the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (2022) with the “30×30” target. The Nagoya Protocol on access and benefit sharing was also adopted at COP10. India hosted CBD COP11 in Hyderabad (2012).