Climate Column: Take Our Climate Action Quiz

Watch the video version here!

NATASHA JULIANA
ARGUS-COURIER COLUMNIST
December 29, 2025

At Cool Petaluma’s fourth annual Stakeholder Shindig on Dec. 4, we decided to spice up the experience with an audience participation quiz show. It was a surprising juxtaposition of game-based fun revealing some serious challenges.

Fortunately, it turned out much of the audience was already working on the solutions. When the 224 attendees bought their tickets, we asked them a short series of questions, giving us some real-life insight to add inspiration. 

Curious? Get ready to play … Earth in Jeopardy!

QUESTION 1: What increases your likelihood of surviving a disaster?

1. Knowing your neighbors

2. Hiding in a doorway during an earthquake

3. Hoarding lots of toilet paper

Queue the Jeopardy music…

People living in communities where they know their neighbors are significantly more likely to survive and recover faster from a large-scale natural disaster. Plus, knowing at least six neighbors is associated with improved physical and mental health. 

This is why Cool Petaluma encourages people to prepare for emergencies by forming block-based teams called Cool Blocks. The ticket survey found that 46% of people at the event had participated in a Cool Block while 70% of people had gotten to know at least six neighbors. 

(Surprisingly, doorways being safe places during an earthquake is a myth. You are better off under a table.)

QUESTION 2: What percentage of Earth’s habitable land (not including glaciers and deserts) has been transformed from wild habitat to animal agriculture?

1. 15%

2. 25%

3. 35% 

Take your guess…

The nonprofit Our World in Data has calculated that If we combine grazing land with cropland used for animal feed, livestock has taken over an area the size of North, South, and Central America combined, or about 35% of the Earth’s habitable land. By comparison, the rest of the crops take up the size of China but provide 83% of global calories.

This is one of the reasons why it is important to rethink consumption by choosing more plant-based foods that nourish our bodies, regenerate the land, and support local farmers. An impressive 75% of people in attendance had already started adding more plant-based foods to their diets. 

QUESTION 3: What is the thickness of the Earth’s atmosphere?

1. About 7 miles, from here to Rohnert Park

2. About 34 miles, from here to San Francisco

3. About 66 miles, from here to Sacramento

Drum roll, please…

The atmosphere is surprisingly thin at only seven miles high, or from here to Rohnert Park. Unfortunately, the pollution we emit builds up year after year. Remember the first car you ever drove? The pollution from that tailpipe is still up there and will be for hundreds to thousands of years. 

This is why we need to transform transportation by helping people find healthy, non-polluting ways to get around town. It turned out that 65% of people in the audience were walking, biking, or using public transportation more for daily errands. 

QUESTION 4: What is natural gas?

1. Cow burps

2. A fossil fuel containing mostly methane

3. A clean energy source made from plants

And the answer is…

Natural gas is a fossil fuel containing mostly methane. Unfortunately, methane is an even more powerful greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Leaks from fracking and aging pipelines are a major contributor to climate change. And gas stoves are a significant source of indoor air pollution.

This is why Cool Petaluma works to improve buildings by connecting people with the resources they need to switch from gas to electric appliances like induction cooktops, electric dryers, and heat pump water heaters and HVAC systems. Despite this being a relatively heavy lift, 48% of attendees had already started or finished switching from gas to electric appliances, reducing pollution in our atmosphere and inside our homes. 

QUESTION 5: What is the likelihood the western monarch butterfly will be extinct within 60 years?

1. 5%

2. 32%

3. 95%

You probably don’t want to know this answer…

Sadly, the likelihood the western monarch butterfly will be extinct within 60 years is 95%. Loss and degradation of habitat, exposure to insecticides, and the effects of climate change are greatly decreasing their population.

This is just one of the reasons why it is critical to restore nature by inspiring people to create and protect much-needed habitat for wildlife. Happily, 65% of people at the event were already growing native or pollinator-friendly trees or plants. This has the added benefit of adding so much joy and beauty to our lives.

Congratulations! You’ve just covered Cool Petaluma’s five topics:

1. Prepare for Emergencies

2. Rethink Consumption

3. Transform Transportation

4. Improve Buildings

5. Restore Nature

Thank you for playing Earth in Jeopardy!

May your New Year be filled with climate solutions that benefit your life, your community, and your planet.

Natasha Juliana is campaign director for Cool Petaluma. She can be reached at natashaj@coolpetaluma.org.