Some people think that environmental problems are too big for individuals to solve. Others, however, believe that these problems can not be solved if individuals do not take actions. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
Sample Response
Along with the rapid social development, severe environmental issues have become the public concern, with an urgent demand for effective measures. Some people suppose that individuals can hardly make a huge difference to the seemingly overwhelming environmental problems, while from my perspective, small though individuals’ efforts and contributions are, they play an indispensable role in addressing environmental issues.
Admittedly, there are good grounds to argue that environmental issues need to be tackled on a macro-level, where efforts from every individual seem to be too small for solving large-scale problems. Since fundamentally addressing environmental issues calls for collaborative efforts from different parties, only governments and large enterprises can make use of abundant national budget and advanced technologies to take on the responsibility. Taking the climate change as an example, the effective solutions, whether it be setting stricter standards on carbon emissions or promoting greener alternatives to alleviate problems, go beyond the individual power.
However, efforts from every resident in the ecosystem should not be ignored. For one thing, the daily behavior of general public exerts impacts on the environment directly, which means only when individuals change their lifestyles can the environmental issues be ameliorated. For instance, once every person gives up the convenience of private vehicles, the problems of energy crisis and subsequent air pollution will be significantly alleviated. In the long run, accumulated individual contributions can be a huge integrated force to preserve the ecosystem. For another, any policy will be implemented in vain without the execution power of every single individual. A good example can be found in the regulation of waste collection system, where although authorities encourage the citizens to recycle garbage, the environment can hardly be improved obviously without everyone’s participation.
In conclusion, the involvement of individuals should be identified as an indispensable part in dealing with environmental issues.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Correct fixed phrase Original: the public concern Suggested revision: a matter of public concern Why it matters: This phrase needs an indefinite noun phrase to express a general public concern naturally.
- 2. Clarify the consequence Original: with an urgent demand for effective measures Suggested revision: creating an urgent need for effective measures Why it matters: The revision makes the environmental problems, rather than an unspecified party, create the need for action.
- 3. Use the right preposition Original: on a macro-level Suggested revision: at the macro level Why it matters: The standard expression uses “at” and treats “macro level” as an unhyphenated noun phrase.
- 4. Improve verb pattern Original: too small for solving Suggested revision: too limited to solve Why it matters: “Too limited to solve” is the natural adjective-and-infinitive pattern for insufficient capacity.
- 5. Use a natural collocation Original: abundant national budget Suggested revision: substantial public budgets Why it matters: “Substantial public budgets” is a natural collocation and agrees with the plural actors being discussed.
- 6. Remove the article Original: the climate change Suggested revision: climate change Why it matters: “Climate change” is normally an uncountable general concept here and does not take “the.”
- 7. Use precise wording Original: beyond the individual power Suggested revision: beyond individual capacity Why it matters: “Individual capacity” expresses the limits of what one person can accomplish more naturally.
- 8. Add the required article Original: the daily behavior of general public Suggested revision: the daily behavior of the general public Why it matters: The fixed expression is “the general public.”
- 9. Choose a natural collocation Original: a huge integrated force Suggested revision: a powerful collective force Why it matters: “Collective force” clearly describes the combined effect of individual contributions.
- 10. Clarify participation Original: the execution power of every single individual Suggested revision: the participation of every single individual Why it matters: “Execution power” is not idiomatic for individuals complying with or carrying out a policy.
- 11. Specify the development Original: social Suggested revision: socioeconomic Why it matters: “Socioeconomic development” identifies the type of change more precisely than the broad phrase “social development.”
- 12. Use an academic verb Original: suppose Suggested revision: argue Why it matters: “Argue” appropriately introduces a position in an academic discussion.
Suggested Rewrites
- the public concern a matter of public concern
- with an urgent demand for effective measures creating an urgent need for effective measures
- on a macro-level at the macro level
- too small for solving too limited to solve
- abundant national budget substantial public budgets
- the climate change climate change
Why this response received Band 7.5
The response presents a clear position and develops both views through relevant explanations, with especially strong treatment of how individual behaviour supports broader environmental action. Its main limitation is recurring unnatural or imprecise wording, alongside a few overly absolute examples; the highest-priority improvement is to use more idiomatic collocations and qualify causal claims so the otherwise persuasive argument sounds more precise and credible.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
Both views are directly addressed, the position is consistent, and the main ideas receive relevant explanation and examples.
Qualify absolute claims about individual behaviour and explain more precisely how those actions scale into environmental gains.
Coherence and Cohesion
The response progresses logically through a clear introduction, contrasting body sections, and a concise conclusion.
Make transitions within the body less formulaic and reduce repeated references to environmental issues.
Lexical Resource
A broad vocabulary supports nuanced discussion, though several collocations are unnatural or imprecise.
Replace phrases such as individual power and execution power with more natural, context-specific wording.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Complex sentence forms are used confidently, while recurring article and noun-phrase errors remain noticeable but non-impeding.
Proofread articles, countability, and preposition choices, especially in phrases referring to the public, climate change, and waste systems.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Some people think that environmental problems are too big for individuals to solve. Others, however, believe that these problems can not be solved if individuals do not take actions. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.