Advanced Vocabulary for IELTS 7.0 +: ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND THE NATURAL WORLD (Part 1)

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND THE NATURAL WORLD ( Part 1)

The Developing World and Global Warming

(a) First, complete the collocations by matching up the partial phrases in Column A with their complements in Column B. Where in doubt, select the strongest collocation.

(b) Now, use the completed collocations to fill in gaps 1-15 below. There are 15 gaps and 14 collocations so you will need to use one collocation twice. You will not need to change the word forms.

We live in a 1._____________ today, of this there can be no doubt. And never is that more apparent than when we compare industrialised nations with the developing world. Call it the 2. _____________ global _____________ then, if you will. In essence, we have a situation now where, ironically, the 3. _____________ of Africa are the most impoverished. They, it seems, are the victims of mass exploitation by the West. Only recently, some of the travesties caused by Western greed and materialism were exposed, such as the lucrative underground trade in so-called 4. _____________ . But it doesn’t end there. What we all too often see is _____________ Western nations doing slightly shady deals with 5. _____________ in the impoverished regions of the world and simply 6. _____________ , knowing full well that the proceeds of such deals will be siphoned off into Swiss bank accounts while the ordinary people on the ground continue to endure deplorable living conditions and constant suffering never to benefit from this potentially life-saving 7. _____________ . By continuing to trade with and support corrupt governments, the West is giving its tacit approval to what is going on. It is, essentially, condoning the gross exploitation of 8. _____________  of Africa and parts of Latin America by an elite few in power.

And as it contributes to their suffering, the West also has the audacity to demand these impoverished nations’ complicity when it comes to solving the Global Warming crisis; it expects them to lower their 9. _____________  and limit the extent of their industrial progress for 10. _____________ . This is more than a little rich coming from those whose harmful activities and recklessness it was caused this environmental crisis in the first place. It is more than a little hypocritical for the industrialised world to 11. _____________  less-developed countries now and demand that they 12. _____________  and develop an environmental conscience. The West has already 13. _____________  of its exploitation of Mother Earth, so what right have we to ask others to suffer while we continue to 14. _____________ of their cheap labour and our industrial superiority?

We have no right whatsoever to ask this sacrifice of them; they are as deserving of a better future as we are, and if we genuinely expect them to give up their push for progress on an industrial level in the name of 15. _____________ , then we must compensate them fairly for their loss – and not simply by transferring money to the rich and powerful, but by ensuring that financial aid reaches every man, woman and child who desperately needs it.

(c) In the context of the above text (b), find a phrase that means the following

1. silent and unofficial but clear endorsement of something
2. transactions that probably have a less than honest worthy/purpose

ANSWER KEY

The Developing World and Global Warming

(a)

a xiv    b. i       c. vi     d. ix     e. ii      f. iv      g. iii     h. viii

i vii      j. v       k. xi     l. x       m. xii   n. xiii

(b)

1 two-tiered society   2. two-tiered/ society      3. resource-rich countries

4 blood diamonds      5. corrupt administrations   6. turning a blind eye

7 injection of funds   8. the general populous    9. carbon footprint

10 the greater good     11. point the finger at    12. show some restraint

13 reaped the rewards 14. enjoy the fruits      15. environmental protection

(c)

1. tacit approval
2. shady deals 

Also check :

• IELTS Vocabulary books
• IELTS Vocabulary
• IELTS Listening words
• Sports Vocabulary IELTS
• English Pronunciation in use Intermediate pdf
• Work Vocabulary IELTS
• Advanced Vocabulary for IELTS