6 November 2026
The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, published a report ahead of the COP31 climate change conference opening in Antalya, Türkiye. The report, No Escape III, says fragile and conflict-affected countries hosting large refugee populations get only around 10 per cent of global funding to address climate change. The report also warns that by 2050, in sub-Saharan Africa, one in three refugee settlements could see at least 100 days of dangerous heat a year. The report highlights the stories of eight representatives from displaced communities. The report tells of a woman who fled El Fasher in Darfur and now lives in a refugee settlement in eastern Chad. Antón Leis García, Assistant High Commissioner for Operations, said refugees face a double injustice.
Report:
No Escape III
Share of climate funding:
around 10 per cent
Publisher:
UNHCR
Why it matters for exams: UNHCR is the UN refugee agency, its report series is called No Escape, and COP31 opens in Antalya, Türkiye.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
UNHCR The UN refugee agency — The United Nations office that protects refugees and displaced people.
COP31 Thirty-first Conference of the Parties on climate change — The yearly meeting of countries under the UN climate treaty.
6 November 2026
Tara Polar Station, a 26-metre-long French research vessel, departed Norway with the purpose of becoming trapped in ice. The station sits in floating sea ice over water more than 2,500 metres deep, and moves wherever the winds and currents carry it. The team on board for the polar winter has 12 people. The crew is on Tara Polaris I, the first of 10 expeditions in a 20-year international programme on the changing Arctic Ocean. UN Secretary-General António Guterres spoke by video link to the expedition chief scientist, Maxime Geoffroy, ahead of the COP31 UN climate conference. The Arctic is warming three to four times faster than the global average.
Vessel length:
26-metre-long
Expedition:
Tara Polaris I
Programme length:
20-year
Arctic warming:
three to four times faster than the global average
Why it matters for exams: Tara Polar Station is a French research vessel, Tara Polaris I is the first of 10 expeditions in a 20-year programme, and the Arctic is warming three to four times faster than the global average.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Sea ice Frozen sea water floating on the ocean — It forms and melts on the ocean surface and carries no land under it.
6 November 2026
Bruno Lemarquis, the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan and the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in the country, briefed reporters on a deepening crisis. He said the return of 6.7 million nationals since 2020 puts additional strain on services already stretched. Many were forced out by neighbouring countries that had hosted them, and a large portion came from Pakistan and Iran. Women and girls continue to suffer severe and sweeping restrictions on their freedoms. The restrictions have denied secondary education to over 2.6 million girls, and female university enrollment now stands at zero. Afghan women staffers are also barred from entering United Nations premises anywhere in the country.
Returns since 2020:
6.7 million
Girls denied secondary education:
over 2.6 million
Main host countries:
Pakistan and Iran
Why it matters for exams: Bruno Lemarquis is the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan and the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator there, and Pakistan and Iran are named as the main hosts from which returns came.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Resident Coordinator UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator — The senior UN official who leads the UN team in a country.
6 November 2026
A staggering 15.4 million people urgently require shelter across Sudan, aid teams told reporters. The war that erupted in April 2023 between former allies turned rival forces is deepening the suffering of civilians. Mohamed Refaat, Chief of mission in Sudan for the UN migration agency, IOM, said 16 trucks had reached Darfur but supplies were running out. Aid access to displaced and returning people is better than it was, which means more people can be reached. Abubakarr Jalloh, Deputy Representative in Sudan of the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said shifting front lines continue to force more families to flee their homes. He described what a tent, a solar lamp and a kitchen set mean for a displaced family.
People needing shelter:
15.4 million
UN migration agency:
IOM
Trucks reaching Darfur:
16 trucks
Why it matters for exams: IOM is the UN migration agency and UNHCR is the UN refugee agency; the war in Sudan began in April 2023 between rival military forces.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
IOM The UN migration agency — It assists migrants and displaced people worldwide.
5 November 2026
Ministers, health leaders and partners gathered in Addis Ababa for the first WHO Emergency Medical Teams (EMT) Global Meeting held in Africa. Participants worked towards an Addis Accord that would secure steady money for national teams and make them a lasting part of the health emergency workforce. The seventh WHO EMT Global Meeting drew more than 1000 participants from over 100 countries. Hosted by the Government of Ethiopia together with the World Health Organization (WHO), the meeting drew support from Macao SAR and the Robert Koch Institute. The meeting awarded certificates to 31 newly classified and eight reclassified teams. The Regional Framework for Emergency Medical Teams 2026-2030 sets the goal of a functional national EMT in every country by 2030. Professor Mohamed Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa, said governments must invest in people, equipment and systems.
Venue:
Addis Ababa
Participants:
more than 1000 participants from over 100 countries
Teams certified:
31 newly classified and eight reclassified teams
Proposed outcome:
Addis Accord
Why it matters for exams: Professor Mohamed Janabi is WHO Regional Director for Africa, the meeting was hosted at Addis Ababa by the Government of Ethiopia, and the proposed outcome is called the Addis Accord.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
EMT Emergency Medical Teams — Trained teams a country can send to treat people after a disaster or outbreak.
5 November 2026
World Athletics has announced the calendar for its next World Athletics Indoor Tour, featuring 74 competitions across four levels. The calendar features eight Gold-level meetings, 25 Silver, 14 Bronze and 27 Challenger meetings. The Gold-level series begins in Belgrade, Serbia. The series then visits Ostrava, Madrid, Boston, Karlsruhe, Liévin and New York, and concludes in Toruń, Poland, which hosted the World Athletics Indoor Championships. Scoring disciplines on the tour rotate each year, and points are awarded to the top four finishers in each scoring discipline. The top points scorer in each scoring discipline at the tour end wins a US$10,000 bonus.
Total competitions:
74 competitions
Gold-level meetings:
eight
Series opener:
Belgrade, Serbia
Winner bonus:
US$10,000
Why it matters for exams: World Athletics is the world governing body for athletics, its Indoor Tour has four levels named Gold, Silver, Bronze and Challenger, and the winner of a scoring discipline gets a US$10,000 bonus.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
World Athletics World governing body for athletics — It sets the rules and calendars for track and field worldwide.
6 November 2026
World Athletics named three finalists for the International Fair Play Award, which is celebrated as part of the World Athletics Awards. The International Fair Play Committee (CIFP), in partnership with World Athletics, had invited fans across the world to nominate moments that epitomise fair play. A jury reviewed the nominations, and fans can now vote through the World Athletics social media channels for the shortlisted moment. The fan vote is then added to the jury vote to settle the overall winner. The finalists include Irine Cheptai, a runner from Kenya who gave her drink to Australian Paralympic athlete Michael Roeger during the Sydney Marathon. Roeger went on to break his own T46 marathon world record with a time of 2:18:36.
Award:
International Fair Play Award
Partner body:
International Fair Play Committee (CIFP)
Finalists:
three
Why it matters for exams: The International Fair Play Award is run by the International Fair Play Committee (CIFP) in partnership with World Athletics, and the winner is decided by fan votes combined with jury votes.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
CIFP International Fair Play Committee — A body that recognises sporting conduct above winning.
6 November 2026
Local sources quoted by OCHA, the UN aid coordination office, put the overnight toll in Beni Territory, North Kivu, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo at a minimum of 30 civilians. Homes were burnt in the raid and a health centre was destroyed, with several patients among the dead. The attack was attributed by local authorities to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). The Ebola response was disrupted too. People in contact with Ebola patients fled an observation centre, and response teams had to suspend operations. The outbreak now counts more than 10,700 confirmed cases and over 5,200 deaths. UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said burial practices were being addressed through community outreach.
Civilians killed:
At least 30
Confirmed cases:
more than 10,700
Deaths:
over 5,200
Province:
North Kivu
Why it matters for exams: The outbreak is in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the armed group named is the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), and Stéphane Dujarric is the UN Spokesperson.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
ADF Allied Democratic Forces — An armed group active in the eastern part of the country.
Background
CERN is the laboratory on the Franco-Swiss border near Geneva where physicists study the smallest building blocks of matter. Founded in 1954, it was one of the first joint ventures of its kind in Europe, and it now has 25 member states along with 11 Associate Member States. The short name came from the French title of the provisional body set up for it, Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire; because the work today is particle physics, the laboratory is also called the European Laboratory for Particle Physics. Its instruments are purpose-built accelerators and detectors: accelerators drive beams of particles to very high energy, and detectors record what happens when those beams meet. The Large Hadron Collider, a 27-kilometre ring of superconducting magnets, is the largest and most powerful of the accelerators and first started up in 2008. Beams inside it cross at four points, where the detectors ATLAS, CMS, ALICE and LHCb are placed. Skills built for this work, from cryogenics to ultra-high vacuums, are carried over into other fields.
Founded:
1954
Member states:
25 member states
Main accelerator:
27-kilometre ring of superconducting magnets
Also called:
European Laboratory for Particle Physics
Why it matters for exams: The founding year, the French phrase behind the acronym, the 25 member states and the 27-kilometre Large Hadron Collider with its four detectors are the durable CERN facts examiners ask.
Kerala PSCUPSC
Background
EUMETSAT, the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites, runs the operational satellites of Europe for weather, climate and the environment. It is an intergovernmental organisation, was formed in 1986, is based at Darmstadt in Germany and has 30 Member States; it calls itself user-governed and says it serves the needs of its member states. Its Council is the supreme decision-making body, and the Director-General reports to that Council as chief executive. Two satellite families carry the main work. The geostationary Meteosat satellites keep watch over Europe and Africa, and Meteosat-9 covers the Indian Ocean. Two Metop satellites fly in polar orbit under the Initial Joint Polar System, shared with NOAA, the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The European Union has also entrusted EUMETSAT with exploiting four Sentinel missions of its Copernicus space component, work done in cooperation with ESA.
Full name:
European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites
Formed:
formed in 1986
Headquarters:
Darmstadt, Germany
Member States:
30 Member States
Polar system shared with NOAA:
Initial Joint Polar System (IJPS)
Why it matters for exams: The expansion of the name, the Darmstadt headquarters, the 30 Member States, and the split between the geostationary Meteosat and the polar-orbiting Metop families are the durable facts here.
Kerala PSCUPSC
Background
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, the UNCCD, was established in 1994. It is the one framework with legal force that the world has built to take on desertification and the effects of drought, and the only binding international agreement that ties environment and development to sustainable land management. The Convention describes itself as the driving force behind Sustainable Development Goal 15. There are 197 Parties to it: 196 country Parties and the European Union. Its stated principles are participation, partnership and decentralization, and it binds governments, scientists, policymakers, the private sector and communities into one effort to restore and manage land. Degraded or drought-hit land, the Convention argues, loses the capacity to sustain life, and that runs on into crop failure, migration and conflict. The Conference of the Parties is the top body; at its thirteenth session, in 2017, it adopted a strategic framework for 2018 to 2030 and asked Parties to apply it in national policies. An Intergovernmental Working Group on Drought ran from 2022 to 2024. By the Convention's own count, 169 of the 196 country parties are affected by desertification, land degradation and drought.
Established:
1994
Parties:
197 Parties including the European Union
What it addresses:
desertification and the effects of drought
Goal it drives:
Sustainable Development Goal 15
Why it matters for exams: The expansion of UNCCD, the year it was established, the 197 Parties including the European Union, and its link to Sustainable Development Goal 15 are the facts that recur in papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC