Consider the classic white t-shirt. Annually, we sell and buy 2 billion t-shirts globally, making it one of the most common garments in the world. But how and where is the average t-shirt made, and what’s its environmental impact?

After watching the video, you can take a multiple choice question below to test your listening and memory skills.

1. Where in the world is cotton commonly grown?

A. India

B. China

C. America

D. A and b only

E. All of the above

2. To produce the average t-shirt takes:

A. 225 kg of cotton

B. Large amounts of pesticides

C. 2700 liters of water

D. C and A

E. Both B and C

3. Of the 22.7 million metric tons of cotton produced, ____ is grown organically.

A. Less than 1%

B. Approximately 10%

C. None

D. All of it

4. The snowy ropes of cotton produced to create fabric are called:

A. Yarns

B. Slivers

C. Bales

D. Knits

5. After t-shirts are made and shipped to high income countries, often the ____ footprint of the item increases drastically.

A. Cadmium

B. Cotton

C. Carbon

D. Lead

6. If you decreased the amount of laundry loads in your household to 100 less than the average, how much water would you save per year?

A. 200 gallons

B. 400 gallons

C. 600 gallons

D. 800 gallons

 

Answer:

1. E

2. E

3. A

4. B

5. C

6. B

 

Source: TED Talk