With reference to the 'New York Declaration on Forests', which of the following statements are correct?
- 1.It was first endorsed at the United Nations Climate Summit in 2014.
- 2.It endorses a global timeline to end the loss of forests.
- 3.It is a legally binding international declaration.
- 4.It is endorsed by governments, big companies and indigenous communities.
- 5.India was one of the signatories at its inception.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Answer & explanation
Answer: (a) 1, 2 and 4
The New York Declaration on Forests was launched at the UN Secretary-General's Climate Summit in New York on 23 September 2014. It is a voluntary political pledge, not a treaty, signed by a mixed coalition of governments, companies, NGOs and indigenous peoples' groups, with the shared goal of ending natural forest loss by 2030. India is not among its endorsers.
- ✓ 1. It was endorsed on 23 September 2014 at the Climate Summit convened in New York by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
- ✓ 2. Its headline goals are to halve natural forest loss by 2020 and end it by 2030, alongside restoring 350 million hectares of degraded land.
- ✗ 3. It is a voluntary political declaration; it creates no legal obligations.
- ✓ 4. The launch coalition included 32 national governments, 18 sub-national governments, 40 companies, 16 indigenous peoples' groups and 49 NGOs and civil-society bodies.
- ✗ 5. India does not appear on the list of national government endorsers, either in 2014 or later.
Remember · NYDF (2014, UN Climate Summit, New York): voluntary, multi-stakeholder; end natural forest loss by 2030, restore 350 million ha. India has not endorsed it.
Sources
- Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (World Bank), UNSG 2014 Climate Summit ↗ · reference work “On September 23, 2014 , at the Climate Summit in New York, a coalition of over 150, including 32 national governments, 18 sub-national governments, 40 companies, 16 Indigenous Peoples groups, and 49 NGOs/CSOs, endorsed the New York Declaration on Forests with the shared goal of ending natural forest loss by 2030.”
- Forest Declaration Assessment, What is the New York Declaration on Forests? ↗ · reference work “The New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF) is a voluntary, multi-stakeholder political declaration calling for global action to protect, restore, and sustainably manage the world’s forests.”
- Forest Declaration Assessment, NYDF Endorsers (national governments list) ↗ · reference work “Guyana 2014 Indonesia 2014 Japan 2014 Kenya 2014 Republic of Korea 2014”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·