Of the many academic clubs at Edina High School, WorldQuest is the only one that combines a trivia style competition with a study of international issues. EHS has two teams this year, both of which competed at the State Tournament on March 6. For State, the stakes were high, “If we get first place, we will get a free trip to DC for nationals,” senior captain Sadie Uri said before the competition.

Members have to be knowledgeable on a range of issues, “The topics we’ve had ranged from global climate change, to ASEAN, to North Korea,” Uri said. In October, each team from high schools around Minnesota is given a study that outlines each of the topics. The guide also gives them resources such as articles and videos to help them prepare. “These questions all come from the study guide so there’s not much outside research,” Uri said.

In competition, timing is everything. Teams have only a minute to choose an answer after talking amongst the team. Each question you get right gives you one point, and the team with the most points in the end moves onto nationals. Even if you don’t get first place, they still had prizes for second and third, and they even did random raffle giveaways throughout the competition.

The senior team got 25 points, the junior team got 26 points and the sophomore team got 25 points out of 50. However, even the winning team missed several questions. While the team didn’t qualify to nationals, they finished in the top half of teams, with the junior team even winning free tickets Conquer Ninja Gyms.

“The team’s long term goal is to learn as much as we can about geopolitics and to grow in our knowledge of the world,” junior first-time team member Adam Schwinghammer said. Uri echoes this mindset, “Ultimately, we just want people to actually discuss world issues and get them out of the Edina bubble.”

Overall, the laid-back nature of the activity makes it a welcoming place. “The people in WorldQuest are also very chill and motivated, and the discussions we have are always very enriching and allow people to debate issues and speak their minds,” Uri said. “It’s a fun environment and it’s a chance to hang out with likeminded people who have similar interests,” Schwinghammer agreed.