Individuals can do nothing to improve the environment; only governments and large companies can make a difference. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Sample Response
Environmental issues have become an increasing concern among individuals and governments in the modern world. Some people reject the role of individuals and argue that environmental protection can only be achieved by the governments and big businesses. I personally consider this to be a flawed argument, and I will explain my reasoning in the following essay.
In reality, governments and corporations take responsibility for protecting the environment. Governments could enact laws to reduce many environmental problems, while large companies are capable of investing large amounts of money in sustainable development goals. However, all the policies and campaigns will show no effect without the active cooperation of residents. In Vietnam, although the government tries to raise the public’s awareness of environmental issues and even imposes heavy fines on those who violate environmental laws, many beaches and the surrounding ecosystems have been badly polluted by the sheer number of visitors. Therefore, I believe that there needs to be more action taken from individuals in such situations.
Furthermore, all the combined actions of all people will have a profound impact on the bigger picture. Researchers found that an individual will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by around 1500 pounds per year if he leaves his car at home two days a week. Another prime example is in waste management processes. While residents can spend just a few minutes separating their biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste, it takes days for waste recycling plants to achieve the same task.
In conclusion, I disagree with the opinion that the environmental issues can only be reduced by governments and large enterprises because individuals also need to make a significant contribution to the process of keeping the planet clean. In other words, this matter can only be dealt with by simultaneous participation of governments, companies and residents.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Remove unnecessary article Original: by the governments Suggested revision: by governments Why it matters: The plural noun refers to governments generally, so it does not need the definite article.
- 2. Use formal wording Original: big businesses Suggested revision: large companies Why it matters: This phrase is more formal and matches the terminology used in the task.
- 3. Correct the collocation Original: goals Suggested revision: initiatives Why it matters: Money is invested in initiatives or projects rather than in goals themselves.
- 4. Use natural collocation Original: show Suggested revision: have Why it matters: The standard collocation is “have an effect.”
- 5. Clarify public involvement Original: cooperation Suggested revision: participation Why it matters: “Participation” more precisely describes residents taking active environmental action.
- 6. Correct the agent preposition Original: from Suggested revision: by Why it matters: Use “by” to identify the people who take the action.
- 7. Remove repetition Original: all the combined actions of all people Suggested revision: people’s combined actions Why it matters: The revision removes the repeated use of “all” while preserving the meaning.
- 8. Use precise wording Original: impact on the bigger picture Suggested revision: overall impact Why it matters: “Overall impact” expresses the broad effect more directly and formally.
- 9. Use consistent tense Original: Researchers found Suggested revision: Researchers have found Why it matters: The present perfect better presents a research finding that remains relevant to the current argument.
- 10. Correct the collocation Original: environmental issues can only be reduced Suggested revision: environmental problems can only be addressed Why it matters: Problems are normally addressed or reduced in severity, while “reduce issues” is unnatural.
- 11. Sentence rewrite Original: While residents can spend just a few minutes separating their biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste, it takes days for waste recycling plants to achieve the same task. Suggested revision: Residents can separate biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste in a few minutes, whereas recycling plants may take days to complete the same task. Why it matters: This rewrite makes the comparison between residents and recycling plants clearer and more balanced.
Suggested Rewrites
- by the governments by governments
- big businesses large companies
- goals initiatives
- show have
- cooperation participation
- from by
Why this response received Band 7.0
The response presents a clear, consistent disagreement and supports it with relevant discussion of both institutional action and individual responsibility. Its main limitation is that some supporting claims, particularly the waste-processing comparison, are not fully convincing or precisely explained; the highest-priority improvement is to develop each example with a clearer causal link to the argument and more accurate wording.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
The response maintains a clear position and develops relevant reasons showing why individual participation complements institutional action.
Explain the waste-management example more convincingly and show exactly how it proves the impact of individual behaviour.
Coherence and Cohesion
Ideas progress logically through well-focused paragraphs, with cohesive devices generally supporting the argument clearly.
Use transitions more precisely so each example follows naturally from the claim it is intended to support.
Lexical Resource
A varied environmental vocabulary conveys the argument effectively, though several collocations are awkward or imprecise.
Replace phrases such as 'show no effect' and 'action taken from individuals' with more natural, exact collocations.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A good range of complex structures is used with generally strong control and only occasional non-impeding errors.
Refine article, preposition, and agreement choices in longer sentences to improve grammatical precision.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Individuals can do nothing to improve the environment; only governments and large companies can make a difference. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.