I thought this would start the week right……by taking a short pop quiz. Hold on, you’ll do fine. Besides, no one will know how you did. Take this short quiz to test your eco-IQ when it comes to buying and using environmentally friendly products. (Don’t cheat but the answers are below.)
- What makes the air in U.S. homes an average of 2-5 times more polluted than the air outside?
- A cotton T-shirt blended with polyester can release about 10 times its weight of what pollutant?
- What plant has been used to make clothing for 12,000 years but is illegal to farm in the U.S.?
- To get the most eco- and socially-responsible cup of coffee possible, your brew should have what three qualities?
- What is the world’s fastest growing energy source?
- How much mercury is enough to contaminate fish in a 20-acre lake?
- Name two ways to cut down on household water use.
- Name one of the simplest ways to save energy.
- What kind of light bulb lasts up to 10 times longer than a regular incandescent?
- Sixteen percent of the world’s production of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, comes from what?
- Washing your hands with antibacterial soap can contribute to what unhealthy side effect?
- Known for being small, what popular seafood is creating BIG problems for the health of ocean habitats and wildlife?
- Eating less meat will save big on what resource?
- What kind of furniture can save trees AND space in landfills?
- Name two things you can do to make your computer use more eco-friendly.
Quiz Answers
- Household cleaners and pesticides
- Carbon dioxide
- Hemp
- It’s shade-grown, organic, and fairly traded
- Wind power
- The amount in one fever thermometer
- Two answers from Good Stuff: Replace aging dishwashers and washing machines with newer models; landscape your home with plants that are native to your area
- Turn off the lights when you’re not using them
- Compact fluorescent
- Belching, flatulent livestock
- Resistance to antibiotics
- Shrimp
- Water
- Second-hand
- Two answers from Good Stuff: Buy an energy efficient model; donate your old computer
- 1-5 questions right: Looks like you may need a little more help recognizing your good stuff. Don’t worry, this guide will boost your eco-IQ in no time!
- 6-10 questions right: Not bad! You are on your way to living right by planet Earth!
- 11-15 questions right: Excellent! You’re the Good Stuff teacher’s pet. Now it’s up to you to keep spreading knowledge about the hidden costs behind the things we buy, and to support the alternative choices now available.
*This quiz is from the Worldwatch Institute – an organization that “delivers the insights and ideas that empower decision makers to create an environmentally sustainable society that meets human needs. Worldwatch focuses on the 21st century challenges of climate change, resource degradation, population growth, and poverty by developing and disseminating solid data and innovative strategies for achieving a sustainable society.”
