Think you know everything there is to know about the Alabama Gulf Coast? Prove it!

The Alabama Coastal Foundation (ACF) has launched Coastal IQ, a quiz for adults to test their knowledge.

“We have 20 different topic areas at three different levels: beginner, intermediate and advanced,” said ACF Executive Director Mark Berte. “They get to learn, they get to see pictures and click on links to understand and explore different facets of our coastal environment.”

Alabama Coastal Foundation educates kids of all ages from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

Berte said the quiz was originally planned for restaurants and bars to use in their trivia nights, but those plans changed when COVID-19 arrived.

“We had to change it around to give some people when they are at home something interesting they can do to learn about our coastal environment,” Berte said. “They go to our website and sign up and take the quiz. It has been well-received.”

Among the education opportunities provided by the Alabama Coastal Foundation is Bay Buddy, which includes a live osprey webcam for teachers to share with their students. (contributed)

The online quiz is the latest program in a series launched by ACF to improve and protect Alabama’s coastal environment. Berte said ACF was founded in 1993 to focus on inclusive environmental stewardship efforts across Alabama.

“We do that through cooperation, education and participation,” Berte said. “We have people from all over who come and enjoy our coastal environment so we want to make sure to educate people throughout the state and the region about what we have to offer here.”

Berte said a majority of the work done through the ACF is accomplished with the help of volunteers.

“We have fantastic staff members who give people good experiences but those volunteers we draw from other nonprofit groups and the business sector are excellent,” Berte said. “Whether you have a small business or a large industry, there’s ways for people to plug in and help our coastal environment. The participation part is where you get to roll up your sleeves and do something positive.”

Coastal IQ is one of several educ​​​​​​​​​​ation initiatives created and maintained by ACF for kids and adults. Other programs include water festivals, workshops and the Bay Buddy program for elementary school teachers.

“Bay Buddy includes a live osprey camera that’s at Wolf Bay so teachers can use that as a great resource,” Berte said. “Everything we do is tied into what the state curriculum is doing, so it helps to reinforce what the teachers are already doing but in a fun way for their students.”

So what’s next for ACF? Berte said the organization is actively trying to grow its oyster shell recycling program for restaurants that sell oysters on the half shell. Instead of throwing away the shells, ACF returns them to the Gulf where oysters use the old shells as new habitats.

“The outside of an oyster shell is the favorite place for a new oyster to latch onto,” Berte said. “It helps to create great habitat for oyster reefs.”

To learn more about the oyster recycling program or other ACF programs, visit the organization’s website at joinacf.org.