What you'll learn
The decision-making examination — "People and environment issues: making geographical decisions" — tests your ability to use unseen information to analyse a real geographical issue and make a justified decision. This guide explains what the paper involves, the skills it assesses, how to work through the resource booklet, how to evaluate options using criteria such as sustainability and stakeholders' views, and how to write a well-structured extended decision answer. It also reviews the background topics the issue usually draws on — people and the biosphere, forests under threat, and consuming energy resources — so that you can apply your knowledge to the resources you are given.
Unlike other papers, you do not need to learn a specific case study for the decision itself: the information is provided. Marks depend on how well you interpret, use and evaluate the resources and support your decision.
Key terms and definitions
Resource booklet — A collection of maps, graphs, photographs, articles and data about the issue, provided in the exam.
Option — One of the possible courses of action presented for the issue.
Stakeholder — A person or group with an interest in the decision, such as residents, businesses, government or environmental groups.
Sustainability — Meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs, considering economic, social and environmental factors.
Biosphere — The living layer of the Earth, including all ecosystems.
Cost–benefit analysis — Weighing the costs of an option against its benefits.
Justification — The reasons and evidence used to support a decision.
Synoptic — Drawing together knowledge from different parts of the course.
Core concepts
What the paper involves
The paper is based on a resource booklet about a geographical issue involving people and the environment — for example, managing a rainforest region, developing energy resources, or protecting an ecosystem while supporting economic growth. Questions build from shorter items that check your understanding of the resources and background knowledge to a final extended question in which you choose one of several options and justify your choice.
Skills assessed
- Interpreting resources — reading maps, graphs, tables, photographs and text accurately.
- Using data — quoting figures, calculating changes and comparing information.
- Applying knowledge — linking the resources to what you have studied.
- Evaluating — weighing advantages and disadvantages for different groups.
- Making a decision — choosing an option and justifying it with evidence.
Background knowledge: the biosphere
The biosphere provides goods (food, timber, medicines, fuel) and services (climate regulation, water and nutrient cycling, soil protection). Different biomes are found in different climate zones. Human activities — farming, logging, mining, settlement and energy development — put pressure on the biosphere, but people also depend on it for their livelihoods. The decision-making issue often concerns how to balance using the biosphere for development with protecting it.
Background knowledge: forests under threat
Tropical rainforests and taiga (boreal forests) are both under threat.
- Tropical rainforests are cleared for cattle ranching, soya, palm oil, logging, mining and roads, causing biodiversity loss, carbon emissions and harm to indigenous peoples.
- The taiga, found across northern Canada, Scandinavia and Russia, is threatened by logging, mining, oil and gas extraction, fires and climate change.
Management strategies include protected areas, sustainable forestry, certification schemes, ecotourism, international agreements and supporting indigenous land rights. Each has strengths and limitations.
Background knowledge: consuming energy resources
Energy demand is rising globally. Non-renewable sources such as oil, coal and gas remain important, but their extraction can damage fragile environments — for example, oil extraction in the Arctic or in rainforest regions, and tar sands in Canada. Renewable sources reduce emissions but have their own impacts and costs. Increasing energy efficiency and reducing demand are part of sustainable energy use. Decisions often involve weighing energy security and jobs against environmental damage and climate change.
Working through the resource booklet
- Skim the whole booklet first to understand the issue, the location and the options.
- Read the questions so you know what information to look for.
- Annotate key figures, quotes and points that support or challenge each option.
- Identify stakeholders and note what each wants.
- Consider scale and time — local versus national effects, short-term versus long-term.
Evaluating the options
For each option, consider:
- Economic factors — jobs, income, costs, investment, effects on businesses.
- Social factors — effects on local communities, health, culture, indigenous peoples, quality of life.
- Environmental factors — effects on ecosystems, biodiversity, pollution, carbon emissions, landscapes.
- Stakeholders — who benefits, who loses and whether there is conflict.
- Sustainability — whether the option balances economic, social and environmental needs over the long term.
A simple table of advantages and disadvantages for each option helps you plan.
Writing the extended decision
A strong final answer:
- States the chosen option clearly at the start.
- Justifies the decision with several well-developed reasons, each supported by evidence from the resources (quoting figures, maps or statements) and by your own knowledge.
- Considers the drawbacks of the chosen option and explains how they could be reduced.
- Explains why the other options were rejected, again using evidence.
- Considers different stakeholders and the sustainability of the decision.
- Concludes by summarising why the chosen option is the best overall.
There is no single "correct" option: marks are awarded for the quality of your argument and the use of evidence.
A sample issue worked through
Imagine a resource booklet about a region of tropical rainforest where an oil company wants to drill. Three options are given:
- Allow full-scale oil extraction, with a new road and pipeline.
- Allow limited extraction in one zone, with strict environmental controls and no new public road, with part of the profits funding conservation and local services.
- Protect the whole area as a national park, with income from ecotourism and international conservation funds.
A candidate might evaluate them like this:
| Option | Economic | Social | Environmental |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Large revenue and jobs | Roads bring settlers; indigenous lands threatened | Deforestation, oil spills, carbon emissions |
| 2 | Some revenue and jobs | Profits fund local services; less disruption | Limited, controlled damage; risk remains |
| 3 | Less income; relies on tourism and donations | Protects indigenous ways of life | Best for biodiversity and carbon storage |
A justified decision could choose Option 2 as a compromise or Option 3 as the most sustainable — either can earn full marks if it is well supported by the resources, considers the drawbacks and explains why the other options were rejected.
Data skills you may need
- Percentage change = (new value − old value) ÷ old value × 100. If visitors rose from 2,000 to 2,600, the change is 600 ÷ 2,000 × 100 = 30%.
- Reading scales on maps and calculating distances.
- Comparing data across graphs and tables, quoting figures from each.
- Recognising bias in sources, such as a company report that only mentions benefits.
Accurate use of numbers from the booklet is one of the quickest ways to strengthen your answers.
Worked examples
Example 1: Using a resource
Using Figure 3 (a graph showing forest cover falling from 80% to 65% between 2000 and 2020), describe the change in forest cover. (2 marks)
Answer: Forest cover fell from 80% to 65% (1), a decrease of 15 percentage points over 20 years (1).
Example 2: Identifying stakeholder views
Suggest why a local farmer and an environmental group might disagree about clearing forest for farmland. (4 marks)
Answer: The farmer may support clearing because more land means more crops or cattle and a higher income (1), helping them support their family (1). The environmental group may oppose it because clearing forest destroys habitats and reduces biodiversity (1) and releases carbon dioxide, contributing to climate change (1).
Example 3: Structuring a decision
Select the option you think is best for the future of the region. Justify your decision. (12 marks — plan)
Plan:
- Decision: Option 2 — sustainable forestry and ecotourism.
- Reason 1 (economic): creates jobs for local people (use resource figures on employment) while protecting the forest resource long-term.
- Reason 2 (environmental): maintains biodiversity and carbon storage (use map of protected areas).
- Reason 3 (social): respects indigenous land rights and involves communities.
- Drawbacks: lower short-term income than large-scale farming; reduce through certification and premium prices.
- Why not Option 1 (large-scale farming): short-term profit but irreversible deforestation and soil degradation.
- Why not Option 3 (full protection): protects nature but removes livelihoods, which could lead to illegal clearance.
- Conclusion: Option 2 best balances economic, social and environmental needs and is the most sustainable.
Common mistakes and how to avoid them
- Not using the resources. Every reason should be supported by evidence from the booklet.
- Describing options without evaluating them. Explain advantages and disadvantages.
- Ignoring drawbacks of the chosen option. Acknowledge them and suggest how to reduce them.
- Failing to explain why other options were rejected.
- Sitting on the fence. You must make a clear decision.
- Running out of time. Leave enough time for the final extended question, which carries the most marks.
Exam technique for "Making Geographical Decisions"
- Spend the first few minutes reading the booklet carefully and annotating.
- Quote specific figures and sources (for example, "Figure 4 shows…").
- Use the economic, social and environmental framework and refer to stakeholders and sustainability.
- Structure the final answer with clear paragraphs: decision, reasons with evidence, drawbacks, rejected options, conclusion.
- Check spelling, punctuation and grammar, as marks may be available for them.
Quick revision summary
- The paper uses an unseen resource booklet about a people-and-environment issue.
- Background topics: the biosphere, forests under threat (rainforest and taiga), consuming energy resources.
- Read and annotate the booklet; identify stakeholders and the options.
- Evaluate options using economic, social and environmental factors, stakeholders and sustainability.
- Final answer: clear decision, justified with resource evidence, drawbacks addressed, alternatives rejected, conclusion.