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Q52 (IAS/2016) Environment & Ecology › Climate Change & Global Initiatives › Sustainable development framework Official Key

With reference to an initiative called The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB)', which of the following statements is/are correct? 1. It is an initiative hosted by UNEP, IMF and World Economic Forum. 2. It is a global initiative that focuses on drawing attention to the economic benefits of biodiversity. 3. It presents an approach that can help decision-makers recognize, demonstrate and capture the value of ccosystems and biodiversity. Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Result
Your answer: —  ·  Correct: C
Explanation

The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) initiative is hosted by UNEP[1], not by UNEP, IMF, and World Economic Forum together as stated in statement 1. Therefore, statement 1 is incorrect.

TEEB is an international initiative to draw attention to the global economic benefits of biodiversity[3], making statement 2 correct. The initiative was launched by Germany and the European Commission in 2007[3] and is a study led by Pavan Sukhdev[3].

Statement 3 is also correct as TEEB's fundamental purpose is to present an approach that helps decision-makers recognize, demonstrate, and capture the value of ecosystems and biodiversity - this aligns with its core objective of highlighting economic benefits for policy and decision-making purposes.

Therefore, only statements 2 and 3 are correct, making option C the correct answer.

Sources
  1. [1] https://www.greenpolicyplatform.org/sites/default/files/downloads/resource/promoting_sustainable_agriculture_food_sector_India.pdf
  2. [2] Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 8: Biodiversity > f.i.5 The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) > p. 145
  3. [3] Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 8: Biodiversity > f.i.5 The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) > p. 145
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Q. With reference to an initiative called The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB)', which of the following statements is/are cor…
At a glance
Origin: Books + Current Affairs Fairness: Moderate fairness Books / CA: 6.7/10 · 3.3/10
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This is a classic 'Organization Soup' trap. The core concept (Statements 2 & 3) is directly from standard texts like Shankar IAS. The difficulty lies in Statement 1, where UPSC mixes a correct body (UNEP) with incorrect ones (IMF, WEF) to test your specific memory of the hosting agency versus general association.

How this question is built

This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.

Statement 1
Was The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) initiative hosted by UNEP, the IMF, and the World Economic Forum?
Origin: Web / Current Affairs Fairness: CA heavy Web-answerable

Web source
Presence: 5/5
"The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) initiative, hosted by UNEP , is a type of TCA,"
Why this source?
  • Explicitly states TEEB was hosted by UNEP.
  • No mention in this passage of IMF or the World Economic Forum as hosts, contradicting the claim that those organizations hosted TEEB.
Web source
Presence: 4/5
"TEEB (The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity) (2009), The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity for National and International Policy Makers, TEEB, UNEP, Geneva."
Why this source?
  • Cites TEEB materials with 'TEEB, UNEP, Geneva', linking TEEB to UNEP institutional authorship.
  • Provides bibliographic evidence of UNEP association and does not attribute hosting to IMF or World Economic Forum.

Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 8: Biodiversity > f.i.5 The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) > p. 145
Strength: 5/5
“f.i.5 The Economics of Ecosystems and niirdiversity (TEEB) The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) was launched by Germany and the European Commission in eoo7. It is a study led by Pavan Sukhdev. It is an international initiative to draw attention to the global economic benefits of biodiversity.”
Why relevant

Direct statement that TEEB was launched by Germany and the European Commission and led by Pavan Sukhdev — this identifies likely hosts/initiators different from UNEP, IMF, or WEF.

How to extend

A student could use this to suspect the statement is false and then check external authoritative sources or official TEEB documentation to confirm the listed launch/host organizations.

Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 24: Climate Change Organizations > i:r Efil{r=t#$.fificfl$ s!:J > p. 340
Strength: 4/5
“UNEP/WMO proposal for the sening up of the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (OPCC). i1 • It was established by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in 1988 to provide the governments of the world with a clear scientific view of what is happening to the world's climate. • The Secretariat coordinates all the IPCC work and liaises with Governments. The secretariat is supported by WMO and UNEP and hosted at WMO headquarters in Geneva. • It is open to all member countries of the United Nations (UN) and WMO.”
Why relevant

Shows UNEP (with WMO) can and does establish major international environmental assessment bodies (example: IPCC origin), so UNEP is a plausible host for environmental initiatives.

How to extend

A student could combine this pattern with knowledge of who typically hosts environmental economics studies to investigate whether UNEP in particular hosted TEEB.

Contemporary World Politics, Textbook in political science for Class XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 6: Environment and Natural Resources > Environmental Concerns in Global Politics > p. 83
Strength: 4/5
“International agencies, including the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), began holding international conferences and promoting detailed studies to get a more coordinated and effective response to environmental problems. Since then, the environment has emerged as a significant issue of global politics. The growing focus on environmental issues within the arena of global politics was firmly consolidated at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June 1992. This was also called the Earth Summit. The summit was Collect news clippings on reports linking environment and politics in your own locality.”
Why relevant

Explains UNEP's role in holding conferences and promoting detailed studies on environmental problems, indicating UNEP is often involved in global environmental initiatives.

How to extend

A student could weigh this general UNEP role against the specific launch attribution in snippet 1 to judge the plausibility of UNEP hosting TEEB and seek primary sources.

Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 18: International Economic Institutions > World Economic Forum (WEF) > p. 549
Strength: 3/5
“• World Economic Forum is the international organization for public-private cooperation. • It was established in 1971 as a not-for-profit foundation (NGO). • It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. • It provides an interactive platform to the world's foremost CEOs of private companies, heads of state, ministers and policy-makers, experts and academics, international organizations, youth, technology innovators and representatives of the civil society. They 202. Davos Manifesto - Initially launched in 1973, the WEF launched the new Davos Manifesto in 2020. It is a set of ethical principles that guides companies in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It states that companies should pay their fair share of taxes, have zero tolerance towards corruption, uphold human rights and strive for competitive level-playing field.”
Why relevant

Describes the World Economic Forum as an international NGO platform for public–private cooperation (headquartered in Geneva), clarifying the type of organization WEF is and its usual activities.

How to extend

A student could use this to assess whether WEF's typical role (forum/platform) aligns with being a host for TEEB, and then check TEEB's organizers for WEF involvement.

Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 18: International Economic Institutions > BRETTON WOODS INSTITUTIONS > p. 512
Strength: 3/5
“• International economic institutions are established by the solidarity of several countries. The members of such institutions are generally the sovereign governments.• The twin international economic institutions, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) (of World Bank Group), were established after the Bretton Woods conference held in 1944 in the United States. Hence, these two are also known as Bretton Woods Twins. Note: In the conference, the proposal was also floated to establish International Trade Organization (ITO), but it was not accepted.”
Why relevant

Defines IMF and World Bank as Bretton Woods institutions focused on economic/financial functions, implying they are less commonly primary hosts of environmental ecosystem valuation studies.

How to extend

A student could use this to judge the likelihood of IMF being a host for TEEB and then verify by consulting TEEB launch records or organizational announcements.

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Statement analysis

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