Geography · Unit 18

Environment and Sustainability

Protecting our planet

This unit is where the rest of physical and human geography meet a question with no clean answer: how do you meet present needs without removing future options?

It covers pollution and its sources, climate change and its mechanisms and effects, conservation, hazard management, and what sustainable living actually requires - which is usually a trade-off rather than a technology.

This unit breaks down into 20 short steps and 120 questions, starting at difficulty 1 and building to 3. Below you can see exactly what it covers, how the path is structured, and worked examples with explanations.

Steps: 20
Questions: 120
Difficulty: 1-3

What this unit covers

Pollution
Climate Change
Sustainable Living
Managing Hazards
Conservation

Where this fits

The final unit in the Geography track, and it assumes most of the others.

Where people slip

Sustainability is a constraint, not a virtue. A proposal is sustainable or not for a stated timescale and a stated resource, and the claim means very little without both.

How the unit is structured

Environment and Sustainability runs as 20 short steps that unlock in order. 15 are practice rounds and 5 are challenge rounds that pull together everything before them. Questions start at difficulty 1 and climb to 3 as you progress.

Step 1 · easierStep 20 · harder

Challenge rounds

Example questions

30 real questions from this unit, with the answer and the reason behind it, grouped by what they practise. There are 120 in the unit altogether.

Climate Change

Fill the blankLevel 1
1. Gases that trap heat in the atmosphere are called ____ gases.
- greenhousecorrect
- fresh
- cooling
- empty
Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide trap heat and warm the planet.
Choose all that applyLevel 2
2. Which of these are effects of climate change? Select all that apply.
- Melting ice and glacierscorrect
- Rising sea levelscorrect
- More extreme weather like heatwavescorrect
- The oceans turning into fresh water
A warmer world melts ice, raises sea levels and brings more extreme weather.
Multiple choiceLevel 2
3. What does the natural greenhouse effect do for the Earth?
- Traps some of the Sun's heat in the atmosphere, keeping the planet warm enough for life
- Blocks all solar radiation from reaching the surface
- Reflects heat away so the planet stays frozen
- Destroys ozone in the upper atmosphere
The natural greenhouse effect traps some outgoing heat, keeping Earth's average temperature near 15C instead of about -18C.
Odd one outLevel 2
4. Which of these is NOT a greenhouse gas?
- Nitrogencorrect
- Carbon dioxide
- Methane
- Water vapour
Nitrogen makes up about 78% of the atmosphere but does not trap heat, whereas carbon dioxide, methane and water vapour are greenhouse gases.
Guess the numberLevel 3
5. About how much has Earth's average surface temperature risen since the late 1800s, the pre-industrial baseline?
Answer: 1.2 degrees C
Global average temperature has warmed by roughly 1.2 degrees C since pre-industrial times, most of it in recent decades.
Match the pairsLevel 3
6. Match each greenhouse gas to a main source of it.
Answer: Carbon dioxide = Burning fossil fuels; Methane = Livestock and rice paddies; Nitrous oxide = Agricultural fertilisers; CFCs = Aerosols and old refrigerants
Different greenhouse gases come from different human activities, from burning fuels to farming.

Conservation

Multiple choiceLevel 1
7. What do we call a large protected area of nature where wildlife is kept safe?
- A national parkcorrect
- A shopping mall
- A car park
- An airport
National parks are protected areas where nature and wildlife are looked after.
Odd one outLevel 1
8. Which of these does NOT help protect wildlife?
- Cutting down rainforestscorrect
- Creating national parks
- Planting trees
- Cleaning up rivers
Cutting down rainforests destroys habitats, while the others protect nature.
Build the sentenceLevel 2
9. Build a sentence about conservation.
Answer: protected areas help endangered species survive
Protected areas give threatened plants and animals a safe place to live and recover.
Choose all that applyLevel 2
10. Which of these help save endangered animals? Select all that apply.
- Protecting their habitatscorrect
- Creating nature reservescorrect
- Stopping people from hunting themcorrect
- Draining their wetlands
Protecting habitats, making reserves and stopping hunting all help save species.
Fact or fibLevel 2
11. Setting fishing quotas and creating no-take marine zones can help overfished stocks recover.
Answer: True
Limiting catches and protecting breeding areas gives fish populations time to grow back to healthy levels.
Match the pairsLevel 2
12. Match each animal to the habitat where it lives.
Answer: Giant panda = Bamboo forest; Polar bear = Arctic ice; Orangutan = Rainforest; Sea turtle = Ocean
Protecting an animal's habitat is one of the best ways to save the species.

Managing Hazards

Multiple choiceLevel 1
13. What do we call a message that tells people a dangerous storm or flood is coming?
- An early warningcorrect
- A shopping list
- A birthday card
- A postcard
Early warnings give people time to get ready or leave before a hazard strikes.
Odd one outLevel 1
14. Which of these is NOT a natural hazard?
- A birthday partycorrect
- An earthquake
- A flood
- A wildfire
Earthquakes, floods and wildfires are natural hazards, but a party is not.
Choose all that applyLevel 2
15. Which of these help keep people safe from natural hazards? Select all that apply.
- Early warning systemscorrect
- Safe evacuation planscorrect
- Strong, well-built houses
- Ignoring the warnings
Warnings, evacuation plans and strong buildings all help people stay safe.
Fill the blankLevel 2
16. Leaving a dangerous area quickly to reach safety is called ____.
- evacuationcorrect
- celebration
- decoration
- invitation
Evacuation means moving people out of danger to a safer place.
Match the pairsLevel 2
17. Match each natural hazard to a way people prepare for it.
Answer: Earthquake = Build strong buildings; Flood = Build homes on higher ground; Wildfire = Clear dry plants nearby; Storm = Board up the windows
People prepare for hazards by building safely and reducing the danger.
Picture questionLevel 2
18. 🌊 A giant ocean wave caused by an underwater earthquake is called a...?
- Tsunamicorrect
- Puddle
- Raindrop
- Snowflake
A tsunami is a huge wave that can be triggered by an underwater earthquake.

Pollution

Fact or fibLevel 1
19. Throwing plastic bottles into the sea is good for the fish.
Answer: False
Plastic in the sea harms fish and other ocean animals.
Build the sentenceLevel 2
20. Build a sentence about air pollution.
Answer: Air pollution can make it hard to breathe
Dirty air from smoke and fumes can make it harder for people to breathe.
Fill the blankLevel 2
21. Tiny pieces of plastic smaller than a pea, found in the sea, are called ____.
- microplasticscorrect
- seashells
- pebbles
- raindrops
Large plastic waste breaks into tiny pieces called microplastics that sea animals may eat.
Guess the numberLevel 2
22. About how many years can a plastic bottle take to break down in nature?
Answer: 450 years
A single plastic bottle can take around 450 years to break down.
Match the pairsLevel 2
23. Match each type of pollution to an example of it.
Answer: Air pollution = Smoke from a factory; Water pollution = Chemicals in a river; Land pollution = Litter on the ground; Noise pollution = Very loud traffic
Pollution can dirty the air, water or land, or make harmful noise.
Multiple choiceLevel 3
24. What mainly causes acid rain?
- Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from burning fossil fuelscorrect
- Carbon dioxide from people breathing
- Chlorine from swimming pools
- Dust blown from deserts
Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from burning fossil fuels dissolve in rain to form dilute sulfuric and nitric acids.

Sustainable Living

Build the sentenceLevel 1
25. Build a sentence about saving water.
Answer: Turn off the tap to save water
Turning off the tap while brushing your teeth saves a lot of water.
Fact or fibLevel 1
26. Wind turbines make electricity using the power of the wind.
Answer: True
Wind turbines spin in the wind to make clean, renewable electricity.
Fill the blankLevel 1
27. Turning old bottles, cans and paper into new products is called ____.
- recyclingcorrect
- wasting
- burning
- burying
Recycling turns used materials into new things instead of throwing them away.
Choose all that applyLevel 2
28. Which of these are renewable energy sources? Select all that apply.
- Solar powercorrect
- Wind powercorrect
- Water (hydro) powercorrect
- Coal
Sun, wind and water give renewable energy, but coal is a fossil fuel.
Guess the numberLevel 2
29. How many UN Sustainable Development Goals were adopted in 2015?
Answer: 17 goals
The UN adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 as a shared plan for people and the planet by 2030.
Match the pairsLevel 3
30. Match each country to the sustainability project it is known for.
Answer: Senegal = Great Green Wall tree planting; Norway = Electric-car incentives; Singapore = Recycled 'NEWater' supply; Morocco = Noor concentrated solar plant
Each of these countries is linked to a well-known green project, from tree planting to solar power and water recycling.

Where these questions come from. Each unit starts as a plan of the concepts it should cover and the difficulty it should span. Questions are written against that plan with AI assistance, then checked by a validator that rejects anything without a single defensible answer, an explanation, or plausible wrong options. How we write questions sets out the whole process, and corrections are fixed in the bank and reach the site and the app the same day.

How you practise

This unit mixes 17 different question formats, so you are recalling and applying rather than recognising the same layout every time.

Build the sentence
Choose all that apply
Fact or fib
Fill the blank
Guess the number
Listen and choose
Match the pairs
Multiple choice
Odd one out
Picture question
Put in order
Sequence recall
Sort into groups
Spell it
Tap the pairs
True or false
Type the answer

Practise Environment and Sustainability

120 questions across 20 steps. Start with step one and crawl at your own pace.

Play this unit

More units in Geography

See all 18 units in Geography →