As I drove through Pennsylvania, I admired the scenic rolling hills and all the green that surrounded me I literally was lost in the woods trying to find Lafayette College. But when I managed to find my way, I came to a beautiful, quaint campus. As I pulled up, the sisters of Pennsylvania Eta welcomed me to celebrate Founders’ Day 2016.

I had the opportunity to chat with Pennsylvania Eta Alaina Ungarini about her experiences in college. She is a double major in government and law and environmental studies and attributes her mother’s passion for the outdoors as the main reason for her interest.

Along with serving as Chapter President, Alaina is the ECOrep for Pi Beta Phi. (ECOrep is a pilot program through Lafayette Environmental Awareness and Protection (LEAP).) Each ECOrep is responsible for monthly programs around the theme of the month; the themes include water, waste and air pollution.

She knows her sisters are progressive on issues and often are willing to advocate for something they are passionate about; for Alaina, she is passionate about sustainability. During the month focusing on water, Alaina showed documentaries like “Tapped” and “Bottled Life.” Each film showcased how plastic water bottles pollute our waters due to improper disposal. Alaina hopes the films encourage her sisters to use reusable water bottles. In an effort to support this, the chapter house now has a water cooler to help the chapter members transition into using reusable containers.

It is a fun experience for Alaina to teach her sisters about things she is excited about. She says, “One person can do a lot to make a difference, a lot of simple changes to lessen the environmental impact.”

As Lafayette College continues to support programs, host speakers and provide focused classes to get the campus engaged in sustainability efforts, Alaina is excited to see what the coming years have in store for the college.