When did the first Earth Day take place? What’s the driest place on Earth? What is Wisconsin’s state bird? If you know the answers to these questions you might want to try your hand at Earth Day Trivia, an Earth Fest event hosted by the Nelson Ambassadors! Grace Gooley, an undergraduate student majoring in chemistry and environmental studies, is one of the wonderful ambassadors who have helped plan this year’s trivia event.
When she started at UW–Madison, Gooley didn’t know she wanted to study the environment — that is, until an abnormally warm December day derailed her plans. “On the last day of class, it was 60 degrees and I wore shorts. In the middle of December!” she says. “I had always thought climate change was something that was going to happen; I didn’t realize it was currently happening.” At that point, Gooley knew she wanted to add an environmental studies major to her academic plan.
“I chose environmental studies because it had more of a social science and humanities focus than environmental science,” says Gooley. “I like that I’m getting a more holistic view on the environment, environmental impacts, and environmental justice.” Now a senior, Gooley will graduate this spring with plans to attend grad school for a degree in environmental chemistry.
Shortly after becoming a Nelson Institute student, Gooley applied to be a student ambassador, elected to represent the student body and plan events. “The whole idea behind the program is to foster a community for students in the Nelson Institute’s undergraduate programs,” she says, “and I really wanted to take that opportunity to make the campus feel a little bit smaller and meet people with similar interests.” With the other ambassadors, Gooley has helped plan several sustainable student events — such as a clothing swap with Re-Wear It Wisconsin, and a plant repotting/swap.
Tip: if you want to succeed at this year’s Earth Day Trivia, Gooley suggests brushing up on the history of Earth Day!
In addition to these smaller-scale student events, Gooley and the other Nelson Ambassadors plan one larger event each semester for the larger Nelson Institute community — last fall, they collaborated with the Japanese Student Association and InterMission Theater to put on Fright Night, a haunted house in the Nelson Institute’s very own Science Hall. This spring, they’re gearing up to host Earth Day Trivia, part of UW–Madison’s second annual Earth Fest celebration.
“We have several categories covering a variety of topics, but we try to keep most of the questions related to the environment,” says Gooley. “It’s just a fun thing to do!” With the other ambassadors, Gooley has been working on planning questions, coordinating prizes, and other administrative tasks to prepare for the event. She also hopes to return as the Earth Day Trivia emcee!
In addition to trivia, Gooley is also looking forward to the Earth Fest Forum: Climate Courage. To her, “It’s such a fun way to celebrate Earth Fest, and I love hearing the guest speakers. Last year, it set such a good atmosphere for the rest of the week!” This year the forum won’t happen until midway through the week — however, there will still be plenty of events earlier in the week to build up the Earth Fest spirit!
Another event Gooley enjoyed from the 2024 Earth Fest celebration was the hydroponics and aquaponics open house/workshop. At this event, the community was invited to learn more about hydroponics, a soilless farming method where plants are grown on the water, and aquaponics, which explores how fish can aid this process through a symbiotic relationship with the plants. “It was really cool!” says Gooley. “It was super informative, which was one of the reasons why I liked it so much.”
While the hydroponics and aquaponics event will not be returning for Earth Fest 2025, one of the groups that hosted the event, Engineers for a Sustainable World, is planning to share a couple of solar projects they’ve been working on — a solar powered little free library, and a solar powered bee hotel (they’ll even show you how to build a miniature bee hotel to take home!).
Whether you’re testing your knowledge with Gooley at Earth Day Trivia, learning about the new solar projects campus has to offer, or exploring one of other events, one thing’s for sure — Earth Fest has an event for everyone!
To practice up, check out these questions from last year’s Earth Fest trivia list!
Trivia Questions:
- Where is the driest place on Earth? (Atacama Desert or Antartica got credit)
- When did the first Earth Day take place? (April 22, 1970)
- What is the Wisconsin state bird? (American robin)
- What’s the oldest building on campus? (North Hall)
- What percentage of water on the Earth is fresh water? (3%)
- What 1962 Rachel Carson book addressed the environmental impacts of insecticides? (Silent Spring)
- Which migratory bird was hunted to extinction? (passenger pigeons)
- Naturalist John Muir was the first president of what environmental organization founded in 1892? (Sierra Club)
- What’s the longest river in the United States? (Missouri River)
- What percentage of the ocean has been explored? (5%)
Test Your Knowledge at Earth Fest
Earth Day Trivia Night
Thursday, April 24 | 7:15–8:15 p.m.
Learn more and register