Environment and Ecology has been an important segment for UPSC Civil services Preliminary examination. Since last few years has seen inclusion of questions from Environment Section. The reason might be due to rising awareness regarding environment and conservation efforts globally. One more reason is cited behind this trend is Indian Forest Service Exam that is conducted along with UPSC Prelims Exam. Out of the total questions asked from environment a substantial number of questions are asked from Environmental conventions and its organisations.  Students have to prepare this segment really well to tackle any unpredictable questions of the UPSC Prelims Examination. In todays article we will discuss a strategy to prepare such questions for UPSC Prelims Exam point of view.

A  plethora of conventions, and organizations and their details are the integral part of the UPSC Syllabus that appears on frequent basis in the Prelims Exam. These terms and terminologies often put students in confusion . This motive of this article is to make you aware regarding these terms and let you know what is exact plan of action to tackle this segment . Before we take a plunge into this , it is imperative to learn the background and process. To have a fair understanding lets understand few definition first

A Convention is a meeting or gathering to formulate or deliberate on a generally accepted principle, a framework in which the parties decide the basic guidelines.

How to Prepare :

In contemporary world as we are embracing new technology and moving towards a developed world we are putting the environment into harm. There are various threats that are looming large and causing the environmental degradation and depletion of resources. This ecological imbalance has put the entire flora and fauna into danger by raising a question mark over their existence . The technological evolution and scientific discoveries has caused various other challenges to atmosphere. The rising population has caused the loss of  natural habitat  of various species. This has further pushed  vulnerable and threatened species on the verge of extinction. The rising number of industries and luxurious lifestyle has endangered the environment and the world has fallen prey to global warming. Changing weather pattern and havoc creating catastrophes are the result of this. Consequently various conventions have been put in place to . These conventions focus on various issues, for example climate change, stratospheric ozone layer protection, air quality, chemicals and nature conservation. The conventions are tools for promoting cooperation and the development of international environmental law and actions. Bonn Covention, Stolkholm Convention, Minamata Convention are few example of such conventions. These conventions are often announced or started by various International Environment organizations. The UPSC Prelims exam often target these environmental conventions and international organizations and approximately 2-3 questions are asked from this section.

How To Prepare:

These conventions and organizations can be covered from NCERTs and NIOS material. However all this information is not sufficient enough unless they are not integrated with current affairs. The current affairs can be prepared from  daily news paper. News paper like the Hindu and Indian Express can update your knowledge regarding the conventions and organizations. Environment related current affairs can also be read from Down To Earth website .

However all these things can be read from a single source that is GS SCORE Prelims Sampoorna fact file on Environment Conventions and Organisations. This compilation has been released by GS Score one of the best coaching for IAS Preparation in India. This compilation is aimed at giving you an edge in these areas. It has been created in a manner that all relevant information has been holistically covered, which will make your preparation and revision quick and easy.