2025 IB DP Geography Practice Paper with Answers

The formula for the dependency ratio is:

$$\text{Dependency Ratio} = \frac{(\% \text{ of population aged 0–14}) + (\% \text{ of population aged 65+})}{\% \text{ of population aged 15–64}} \times 100$$

Substituting the values:

$$\text{Dependency Ratio} = \frac{30 + 10}{60} \times 100 = \frac{40}{60} \times 100 \approx 66.7\%$$

Award 1 mark for the correct answer: 66.7% (accept 66.7 or 67% if rounded to a whole number).

An ecological deficit occurs when the Ecological Footprint exceeds Biocapacity:

- Country A: \(8.2 - 1.6 = 6.6\) gha/person (deficit)
- Country B: \(4.5 - 5.2 = -0.7\) gha/person (reserve)
- Country C: \(2.1 - 0.9 = 1.2\) gha/person (deficit)
- Country D: \(0.8 - 1.5 = -0.7\) gha/person (reserve)

Country A has the largest deficit of 6.6 gha/person.

Award 1 mark for identifying Country A.

First, calculate the total emissions:
$$\text{Total} = 30.0 + 10.0 + 7.5 + 2.5 = 50.0 \text{ } GtCO_2e$$

Next, calculate the percentage contribution of the Energy sector:
$$\text{Percentage} = \frac{30.0}{50.0} \times 100 = 60\%$$

Award 1 mark for the correct answer: 60% (accept 60).

To find the growth rate, calculate the percentage increase:

- City X: \(\frac{18.0 - 12.0}{12.0} \times 100 = 50\%\)
- City Y: \(\frac{25.0 - 20.0}{20.0} \times 100 = 25\%\)
- City Z: \(\frac{14.0 - 8.0}{8.0} \times 100 = 75\%\)

City Z is projected to grow the fastest at 75%.

Award 1 mark for identifying City Z.

Reason 1: Rapid fertility decline. When birth rates fall, the proportion of young dependents (aged 0 to 14) decreases relative to the working-age population (aged 15 to 64). This reduces the overall dependency ratio, allowing more resources to be diverted to economic savings and industrial investment. Reason 2: Investment in human capital. A demographic dividend is only realized if the growing working-age population is educated, healthy, and there are sufficient jobs available. Government policies that improve school-retention rates and healthcare access translate the demographic shift into actual economic productivity.

Award up to 2 marks for each explained reason. For each reason: Award 1 mark for identifying a valid reason/process (e.g., rapid decline in birth rates/fertility, improvement in healthcare/education, job creation). Award 1 additional mark for explaining how this leads to the demographic dividend (e.g., linking the drop in young dependents to a lower dependency ratio, or linking human capital investment to higher productivity per capita). Maximum 4 marks total.

Factor 1: Prolonged droughts and desertification. Severe soil degradation and lack of rainfall make agricultural livelihoods impossible. In regions such as the Sahel, this leads to famine and forces communities to migrate across borders to meet basic survival needs. Factor 2: Sea-level rise and coastal flooding. Rising oceans inundate low-lying coastal areas and small island states. The permanent loss of land and freshwater salinization forces populations to permanently relocate internationally as climate refugees.

Award up to 2 marks for each outlined factor. For each factor: Award 1 mark for identifying a distinct environmental push factor (e.g., desertification, sea-level rise, severe tropical storms). Award 1 additional mark for outlining how this factor leads to forced international migration (e.g., loss of habitable land, destruction of subsistence livelihoods, salinization of freshwater). Maximum 4 marks total.

Way 1: Reduction in thermal cooling water requirements (positive impact). Unlike coal, gas, or nuclear power plants that rely on massive volumes of freshwater for evaporative cooling, solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind power generation require almost no water during operation. This frees up freshwater resources for domestic and agricultural use. Way 2: Increased agricultural water footprint from biofuel production (negative impact). Generating energy from biofuels requires the cultivation of crops like corn or sugarcane. This bioenergy pathway is highly water-intensive due to irrigation requirements, which can deplete local aquifers and decrease water availability for other sectors.

Award up to 2 marks for each explained way. For each way: Award 1 mark for identifying a valid link between renewable energy and water use (e.g., low cooling water demand for solar/wind, high irrigation demand for biofuels, water used in hydropower). Award 1 additional mark for explaining how this impacts global or local water security (e.g., reducing pressure on river basins, or causing water scarcity due to crop diversion). Maximum 4 marks total.

Way 1: Minimization of waste and landfill pressure. In a circular economy, materials are kept in use. This reduces the consumption of land for landfill sites and cuts down on environmental degradation and greenhouse gas emissions associated with waste decay. Way 2: Reduction in primary resource extraction. By recycling, remanufacturing, and cascading materials, the demand for virgin resources (like timber, ores, and fossil fuels) decreases. This lowers the ecological footprint by reducing the land area disturbed by extraction activities and the energy required for processing raw materials.

Award up to 2 marks for each explained way. For each way: Award 1 mark for identifying a core principle/mechanism of the circular economy (e.g., closed-loop recycling, designing out waste, sharing platforms, remanufacturing). Award 1 additional mark for explaining how this mechanism reduces the ecological footprint (e.g., reducing the land area required for raw extraction, reducing waste-related carbon footprints, conserving natural capital). Maximum 4 marks total.

Reason 1: High economic reliance on primary industries. A large percentage of the population in LICs relies on subsistence farming or fishing. These activities are directly dependent on stable weather patterns, making communities highly vulnerable to droughts, floods, and shifting rainfall zones. Reason 2: Limited financial and technological capacity for adaptation. Unlike HICs, LICs lack the national budgets to construct large-scale flood defenses, desalinate water, or build extensive early-warning networks, meaning extreme climate events cause disproportionately high casualties and economic loss.

Award up to 2 marks for each explained reason. For each reason: Award 1 mark for identifying a valid socioeconomic or structural vulnerability factor (e.g., reliance on agriculture, lack of adaptive infrastructure, high poverty rates, poor governance). Award 1 additional mark for explaining how this factor increases vulnerability to climate change impacts (e.g., linking agricultural reliance to food insecurity, or linking low financial resources to an inability to rebuild after storms). Maximum 4 marks total.

Reason 1: Issues with additionality. For an offset to be valid, the emission reduction must be direct and wouldn't have occurred without the funding. Often, projects like renewable energy installations are built regardless of offset sales, meaning the purchased credits do not represent any extra carbon savings. Reason 2: Non-permanence of carbon sinks. Many offset schemes rely on afforestation. However, trees are vulnerable to wildfires, disease, or future land-use changes. If a protected forest burns down, the stored carbon is released, negating the original offset benefit.

Award up to 2 marks for each outlined reason. For each reason: Award 1 mark for identifying a distinct limitation of carbon offsets (e.g., additionality, permanence, leakage, double-counting, greenwashing). Award 1 additional mark for outlining how this limitation undermines the effectiveness of emissions reductions (e.g., explaining how tree mortality releases stored carbon, or how non-additional projects fail to create net-new carbon savings). Maximum 4 marks total.

To find the range of the projected growth rates:
1. Identify the highest growth rate: Lagos at \(+44.1\%\).
2. Identify the lowest growth rate: Tokyo at \(-2.1\%\).
3. Calculate the difference (range): \(44.1 - (-2.1) = 46.2\) percentage points.

Award [1 mark] for the correct identification of the range as 46.2 percentage points (or 46.2).

Do not accept incorrect units or incorrect range calculations (e.g. 42.0).

To find the range:
1. Identify the commodity with the highest embedded water footprint: Beef at \(15,400\text{ L/kg}\).
2. Identify the commodity with the lowest embedded water footprint: Potatoes at \(290\text{ L/kg}\).
3. Calculate the difference: \(15,400 - 290 = 15,110\text{ L/kg}\).

Award [1 mark] for the correct identification of the range: 15,110 (or 15,110 L/kg).

Do not accept incorrect math (e.g., subtracting Wheat instead of Potatoes, resulting in 13,600).

A circular economy aims to minimize waste by continually recycling and repurposing existing materials. By recovering valuable secondary resources from products at the end of their life cycle, a nation can meet a larger share of its industrial demand internally, thereby lowering its dependence on foreign imports of primary raw materials.

Award 1 mark for identifying a valid mechanism of a circular economy (such as resource recovery, recycling loops, or product life extension). Award 1 mark for explaining how this leads to reduced reliance on imports (such as substituting primary resource extraction with secondary materials, or meeting manufacturing demand internally to bypass foreign supply chains).

An effective response should evaluate both the strengths and limitations of a circular economy strategy in the context of reducing a nation's ecological footprint (which measures the biologically productive land and water area required to support a population's resource consumption and absorb its waste).

**Arguments supporting its effectiveness (Strengths):**
* **Reduction in Resource Extraction:** By promoting product life-extension and recycling, the demand for virgin raw materials is drastically reduced. This preserves ecosystems and prevents land-use change, directly lowering the footprint.
* **Carbon Footprint Mitigation:** Reusing and recycling materials (such as aluminum or plastics) requires significantly less energy than extracting and refining raw resources, thereby lowering greenhouse gas emissions (the largest component of the global ecological footprint).
* **Waste Reduction:** Minimizing landfill waste reduces the area of land lost to waste disposal and lowers methane emissions from decomposing organic matter.

**Arguments limiting its effectiveness (Limitations):**
* **Energy Inputs:** Recycling and reprocessing materials still require energy. If a nation's energy grid is fossil-fuel-dependent, the circular processes will continue to contribute to a high carbon footprint.
* **The Rebound Effect:** Increased efficiency and circular design can lower the production cost of goods, potentially leading to increased overall consumer demand and net higher consumption (Jevons' Paradox).
* **Biological Footprint Constraints:** A circular economy primarily targets manufactured goods and technical nutrients. It does not easily address the massive ecological footprint driven by food consumption, dietary patterns (e.g., meat consumption), and agricultural land demand, unless regenerative agriculture is explicitly integrated.

**Conclusion:**
To a *moderate-to-high extent*, a circular economy is crucial for reducing the industrial and carbon components of an ecological footprint. However, it cannot solve the footprint crisis in isolation; it must be paired with energy grid decarbonization and a cultural shift toward reduced overall consumption and sustainable food systems.

**[5–6 marks]**
* The response provides a balanced and detailed evaluation of how a circular economy reduces the ecological footprint, identifying specific strengths and limitations.
* There is a clear understanding of the components of an ecological footprint (e.g., carbon, cropland, forest product footprint).
* A reasoned conclusion is reached that explicitly addresses the 'to what extent' aspect of the prompt.

**[3–4 marks]**
* The response describes circular economy strategies and links them to ecological footprint reduction, but may lack balance (focusing mostly on benefits with few limitations).
* The evaluation is present but superficial, or lacks a clear concluding judgment.

**[1–2 marks]**
* The response offers a basic description of recycling or ecological footprints without evaluating the relationship between them.
* Information may be unstructured, containing generalized statements.

INTRODUCTION: Define the circular economy (an economic system designed to eliminate waste through the continual use, recycling, and regeneration of resources, contrasting with the linear 'take-make-dispose' model) and resource insecurity (the lack of reliable access to essential resources such as clean water, fertile land, nutritious food, and reliable energy). State the thesis: While the circular economy is an essential paradigm shift that reduces resource depletion and environmental damage, it cannot fully resolve global resource insecurity on its own due to structural economic barriers, technological limitations, and rising absolute demand driven by global population and affluence. BODY PARAGRAPHS: 1. Opportunities of the Circular Economy: Explain how circular practices directly address resource insecurity. Closed-loop systems minimize resource extraction (e.g., recycling lithium and cobalt for electronics). Waste-to-resource systems turn agricultural or municipal waste into energy and fertilizer, supporting the food-water-energy nexus. Discuss substitution (replacing scarce, carbon-intensive resources with abundant or renewable alternatives). Provide examples such as Sweden's highly efficient waste-to-energy system or circular water recycling programs in water-scarce regions like Singapore (NEWater). 2. Economic and Financial Obstacles: Explain that virgin resources are often cheaper than recycled or recovered materials due to subsidies and established global supply chains. Transitioning to circular manufacturing requires significant capital investment, which many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) cannot afford. 3. Technological and Logistical Constraints: Explain that many modern products contain highly complex, composite materials that are extremely difficult and energy-intensive to separate and recycle (e.g., solar panels, wind turbine blades, multi-layered plastics). 4. Spatial and Developmental Inequalities: High-income countries (HICs) have the institutional capacity, technology, and capital to enforce circular policies (e.g., the EU's Circular Economy Action Plan). In contrast, low- and middle-income countries (LICs and MICs) often lack recycling infrastructure and may prioritize low-cost linear industrialization to lift populations out of poverty. 5. Conceptual Synthesis (Malthus vs. Boserup): Discuss whether circular innovation represents a Boserupian triumph where technology continually overcomes resource limits, or whether neo-Malthusian realities persist because circular systems are never 100% efficient (thermodynamic entropy means energy and materials are always lost, and absolute demand growth will eventually outstrip circular savings). CONCLUSION: Summarize that the circular economy is a critical tool but must be paired with demand-side management (reducing overall consumption), equitable global distribution networks, and strong international environmental governance to successfully achieve true global resource security.

Level 1 (1-3 marks): The response shows a limited understanding of the circular economy or resource insecurity. It relies on superficial descriptions of recycling with little to no geographical structure or detail. There are few or no relevant examples. Level 2 (4-6 marks): The response explains how the circular economy works and outlines some of its benefits for resource security. There is an attempt at evaluation, but it remains unbalanced or largely descriptive. Some appropriate examples are mentioned but lack detail or specific integration. Level 3 (7-8 marks): The response provides a well-structured and balanced analysis of both the opportunities and the limitations of the circular economy in addressing resource insecurity. It uses appropriate geographical terminology and is supported by detailed, relevant real-world examples. Level 4 (9-10 marks): The response delivers a highly sophisticated, structured, and critical evaluation. It demonstrates a deep conceptual understanding of the circular economy within the context of global change (such as the resource nexus, developmental disparities, or population-resource theories). The essay is supported by well-integrated, specific, and diverse global examples, culminating in a clear, logical, and synthesized conclusion.

INTRODUCTION: Define the circular economy (an economic system designed to eliminate waste through the continual use, recycling, and regeneration of resources, contrasting with the linear 'take-make-dispose' model) and resource insecurity (the lack of reliable access to essential resources such as clean water, fertile land, nutritious food, and reliable energy). State the thesis: While the circular economy is an essential paradigm shift that reduces resource depletion and environmental damage, it cannot fully resolve global resource insecurity on its own due to structural economic barriers, technological limitations, and rising absolute demand driven by global population and affluence. BODY PARAGRAPHS: 1. Opportunities of the Circular Economy: Explain how circular practices directly address resource insecurity. Closed-loop systems minimize resource extraction (e.g., recycling lithium and cobalt for electronics). Waste-to-resource systems turn agricultural or municipal waste into energy and fertilizer, supporting the food-water-energy nexus. Discuss substitution (replacing scarce, carbon-intensive resources with abundant or renewable alternatives). Provide examples such as Sweden's highly efficient waste-to-energy system or circular water recycling programs in water-scarce regions like Singapore (NEWater). 2. Economic and Financial Obstacles: Explain that virgin resources are often cheaper than recycled or recovered materials due to subsidies and established global supply chains. Transitioning to circular manufacturing requires significant capital investment, which many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) cannot afford. 3. Technological and Logistical Constraints: Explain that many modern products contain highly complex, composite materials that are extremely difficult and energy-intensive to separate and recycle (e.g., solar panels, wind turbine blades, multi-layered plastics). 4. Spatial and Developmental Inequalities: High-income countries (HICs) have the institutional capacity, technology, and capital to enforce circular policies (e.g., the EU's Circular Economy Action Plan). In contrast, low- and middle-income countries (LICs and MICs) often lack recycling infrastructure and may prioritize low-cost linear industrialization to lift populations out of poverty. 5. Conceptual Synthesis (Malthus vs. Boserup): Discuss whether circular innovation represents a Boserupian triumph where technology continually overcomes resource limits, or whether neo-Malthusian realities persist because circular systems are never 100% efficient (thermodynamic entropy means energy and materials are always lost, and absolute demand growth will eventually outstrip circular savings). CONCLUSION: Summarize that the circular economy is a critical tool but must be paired with demand-side management (reducing overall consumption), equitable global distribution networks, and strong international environmental governance to successfully achieve true global resource security.

Level 1 (1-3 marks): The response shows a limited understanding of the circular economy or resource insecurity. It relies on superficial descriptions of recycling with little to no geographical structure or detail. There are few or no relevant examples. Level 2 (4-6 marks): The response explains how the circular economy works and outlines some of its benefits for resource security. There is an attempt at evaluation, but it remains unbalanced or largely descriptive. Some appropriate examples are mentioned but lack detail or specific integration. Level 3 (7-8 marks): The response provides a well-structured and balanced analysis of both the opportunities and the limitations of the circular economy in addressing resource insecurity. It uses appropriate geographical terminology and is supported by detailed, relevant real-world examples. Level 4 (9-10 marks): The response delivers a highly sophisticated, structured, and critical evaluation. It demonstrates a deep conceptual understanding of the circular economy within the context of global change (such as the resource nexus, developmental disparities, or population-resource theories). The essay is supported by well-integrated, specific, and diverse global examples, culminating in a clear, logical, and synthesized conclusion.