Environmental issues hit close to home for most students, from local pollution to global climate change. These questions work well for practicing modals, conditionals, and discussing real-world problems and solutions.
Questions are organized by level from beginner to advanced. A printable PDF of all the questions is available at the bottom of the page.
Beginner (A1-A2)
- Do you recycle at home? What things do you recycle?
- Where do you see trash or litter in your city? How much is there?
- What are three things people throw away that could be reused?
- Do you turn off the lights when you leave a room? What other things do you do to save energy?
- Have you ever planted a tree or flowers? Tell me about it.
- Do you try to save water at home? What do you do?
- Are there many trees and parks in your neighborhood? What is your favorite one?
- What’s the worst pollution you have ever seen? Tell me about it.
- Do you use plastic bags or bring your own bags when you go shopping? How many bags do you usually need?
- Do you walk or ride a bike to places near your home? How far do you usually go?
- Is there a river, lake, or beach near where you live? Is it clean?
Elementary (A2)
- What are some of the most serious environmental problems?
- What are some things you personally do to help the environment? Why do you do them?
- Which countries cause the most pollution? Why do you think those countries pollute so much?
- What are some local environmental problems you have noticed?
- Do you prefer products with a lot of packaging or simple packaging? What’s good about each?
- Do you walk, drive, or take the bus to work or school? What do you like about it?
- Is the air clean or dirty where you live? How do you know?
- Have you ever picked up trash that wasn’t yours? Why did you do it?
- What products do you avoid buying because of the environment? Why don’t you buy them?
- Is your city noisier now than when you were younger? What makes it noisy?
- What do you do with old clothes you don’t want anymore? Why?
Intermediate (B1)
- What are five things governments can do to help the environment?
- What is your opinion on climate change?
- What kinds of technologies might help stop environmental problems? How effective do you think they will be?
- Are corporations responsible for helping the environment? Why or why not?
- What are some things that corporations can do to help the environment?
- Do you think houses will be more environmentally friendly in the future? What changes do you expect to see?
- Where will we get our energy when we run out of oil?
- What will happen if we keep polluting the environment?
- Will the climate keep changing or go back to normal? What makes you think so?
- What kind of pollution bothers you the most — air, water, or noise? Why?
- Do you prefer to buy new things or used things? Why?
- What do people in your country throw away the most? Why do you think that is?
- Should people be required to recycle? Why or why not?
- Do you think people waste too much water? How so?
- Do you think buying local products helps the environment? How so?
- Do you think people care enough about the environment, or do most people only think about it when it affects them personally? What makes you think so?
- Do you think electric cars will really solve pollution problems, or do they create new ones? What makes you think so?
- If your city banned all single-use plastics tomorrow, how would your daily life change?
- Should people who damage the environment on purpose go to jail? Why or why not?
Upper-Intermediate (B2)
- How will our children be affected by climate change?
- How will India and China affect the environment in the future?
- Is it better to repair old things or buy new things? What are the upsides and downsides of each?
- Is it fair to ask developing countries to stop using cheap energy like coal when richer countries already used it to grow? Why or why not?
- How has awareness of environmental problems changed over the last 20 years? What do you think caused those changes?
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of using renewable energy like solar or wind power?
- How do economic growth and environmental protection conflict with each other? Can both goals be achieved at the same time?
- What role do international agreements play in solving environmental problems? How effective have they been?
- How does living in a big city affect the environment differently than living in the countryside? What are the trade-offs?
- Some people say we should focus on individual behavior like recycling, while others say the real problem is big industries. What do you think is more effective, and what are the limits of each approach?
- Fast fashion is cheap and convenient, but it creates a lot of waste. How should we balance the desire for affordable clothing with the environmental cost?
- Some cities have started charging people for driving into the city center to reduce pollution. What are the benefits and drawbacks of this kind of policy?
- How is climate change affecting the economy in your country? What industries are being hit the hardest?
- Some people argue that tourism helps protect nature by bringing money to conservation areas, while others say it destroys the places it claims to protect. What evidence do you see for each side?
Advanced (C1)
- People often say they care about the environment, but their daily habits tell a different story. Why is there such a gap between what people believe and what they actually do?
- How do environmental movements balance urgency and fear with hope and empowerment when communicating with the public? What happens when that balance tips too far in either direction?
- When people try to live more sustainably, what challenges do they face in everyday life? How do social norms and infrastructure either support or undermine individual efforts?
- Why have some environmental problems received massive public attention while others remain invisible? What determines which issues become priorities?
- In what ways do environmental solutions create new dependencies and vulnerabilities? When does ‘solving’ one problem create unexpected consequences elsewhere?
- Clean energy is getting cheaper, but many countries still depend on oil and coal. What makes it so hard to switch, and who benefits from keeping things the way they are?
- Wealthy countries often export their trash and pollution to poorer countries. How does this shape the relationship between economic power and environmental responsibility?
- Some of the biggest tech companies promote themselves as environmentally friendly, but their data centers and supply chains use enormous amounts of energy and resources. How do you separate genuine environmental action from marketing?
- Eating less meat is one of the most effective ways to reduce your environmental impact, but food is deeply tied to culture and identity. What happens when environmental goals conflict with cultural traditions?
- Young people are leading many environmental protests around the world, but they are also the biggest consumers of fast fashion and technology. How do you explain this contradiction?