The Reader’s Digest Earth Day Quiz

1. Approximately how many people participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the world’s largest secular observance?

A: 500 million
B: One billion
C: Three billion

Answer:

B – One billion

Here’s where you’ll find the oldest trees in Canada.

2. Immersing yourself mindfully in nature is known in Japan as “Shinrin-Yoku.” What does this literally mean?

A: “Forest bathing”
B: “Going green”
C: “Returning to your roots”

Answer:

A – “Forest bathing”

Find out what forest bathing means—and how it can improve your health.

3. It’s hard to recycle plastic that’s dirty, low-value or mis-sorted. So, even though many of us put our plastic waste in the blue bin, what percentage of it actually gets recycled?

A: Around 50%
B: Around 22%
C: Around 9%

Answer:

C – Around 9%. Reducing single-use plastics would be more effective.

Aside from plastic, here are the everyday items that take the longest to decompose.

4. Globally, 2020 was the hottest year so far on record.

True or false?

Answer:

True—2020 tied with 2016 as the hottest year on record.

Did you know that Canada is heating up twice as fast as the world’s average? Find out how climate change is making you sick.

5. The adorable sea slug known as the leaf sheep is unusual for an animal because it can get energy how?

A: By desalinating sea water.
B: From photosynthesis.
C: By dissolving plastic.

Answer:

B – From photosynthesis.

Find out what Canada’s ban on single-use plastics will mean for Canadians—and the environment.

6. In 2015, which country became the first to outlaw planned obsolescence?

A: Rwanda
B: The Netherlands
C: France

Answer:

C – France

Find out the brilliant ways other countries are replacing plastic.

7. What animal’s population plunged from roughly 60 million in 1800 to less than 1,000 in 1889?

A: The plains bison
B: The western lowland gorilla
C: The Asian elephant

Answer:

A – The plains bison.

Check out these photos of the rarest animals on Earth.

8. What weather event happens when moonlight is refracted through water droplets in the air?

A: A worm moon
B: A moonbow
C: Spectral fog

Answer:

B – A moonbow, also known as a lunar rainbow.

Find out the best places for stargazing across Canada.

9. Most old-growth forests on Canada’s West Coast are protected from logging.

True or false?

Answer:

False. Read up on the long battle to save B.C.’s old-growth forests.

10. In what year did the first Earth Day take place?

A: 1966
B: 1970
C: 1974

Answer:

B – 1970

Find out how palm oil has triggered an environmental catastrophe.

11. Around what proportion of the world’s fisheries are currently pushed beyond their biological limits?

A: One third
B: One fifth
C: 10%

Answer:

A – One third.

Find out which seemingly innocent habits are harming the world’s oceans.

12. Who wrote, “We forget that we don’t need everything… material things satisfy human beings only so much”?

A: David Attenborough
B: Greta Thunberg and Francisco Vera
C: David Suzuki and Holly Dressel

Answer:

C – David Suzuki and Holly Dressel.

These shocking statistics may encourage you to rethink single-use plastic products.

13. So far, how many mass extinction events have there been in earth’s history?

A: None
B: One
C: Five

Answer:

C – Five

Find out what could happen if the Amazon rainforest disappeared.

14. In which country could you visit the Whanganui River, which has been granted legal personhood and rights?

A: South Africa
B: New Zealand
C: China

Answer:

B – New Zealand

Here are 10 lessons we can learn from the most eco-friendly nations on the planet.

15. Who described earth as “a brilliant jewel in the black velvet sky”?

A: Astronaut Buzz Aldrin
B: Environmentalist Jane Goodall
C: Musician Sting

Answer:

A – Astronaut Buzz Aldrin

If you enjoyed this Earth Day quiz, see how well you fare against 100 general knowledge quiz questions!