No. Each recursive call creates its own execution context and local scope. Each call has its own copy of parameters and local variables, which is why recursion works correctly.

Through the outer environment reference in its execution context. This forms the scope chain. If a variable is not found locally, the engine walks up the chain to the lexical parent.

Yes, if it returns an inner function that captures the local scope. This is a closure. The variable environment stays alive as long as the inner function exists.