Professional Alliances
Lehigh Alumni Sustainability Alliance
The Lehigh Alumni Sustainability Alliance (LASA) is a group of alumni, faculty, and staff committed to sustainability — and its economic, environmental, and social aspects — in professions and industries of the Lehigh community.
About the Lehigh Alumni Sustainability Alliance
The Lehigh Alumni Sustainability Alliance (LASA) is a group of alumni, faculty, and staff committed to sustainability — the economic, environmental, and social aspects — in professions and industries of the Lehigh community.
The goals of LASA are:
- To facilitate and create opportunities for Lehigh alumni to advance their careers in sustainability-focused and sustainability-related industries.
- To strive to contribute to the on-campus academic and operational goals of the university through experiential learning opportunities.
- To generate interdisciplinary connections that strengthen the reputation and support the mission and goals of Lehigh University.
With these goals in mind, and with a strong connection to Lehigh’s Office of Sustainability, LASA members are committed to bringing their experience and expertise back to Lehigh to help shape the next generation of professionals in the field as well as helping Lehigh alumni thrive professionally.
For the past 150 years, long before the term “sustainability” became a hot topic in board rooms across the country, Lehigh had been embracing fundamental interdisciplinary concepts to educate students about cost-saving manufacturing techniques, environmentally aware material designs, and socially conscious policy practices. LASA, and its affiliates, are here to carry on this tradition of sustainability for the next 150 years and beyond.
You don’t have to fight the good fight on your own. Connect with Lehigh alumni as passionate about sustainability as you are. Meet alumni who can help you take the next step in your career, then pay it forward for other LASA members.
LASA also provides mentorship opportunities so you can help students find their way to a career in sustainability. Pass on to students what you wish you knew when you were in their shoes so that they can take the next steps toward a more sustainable future in their personal and professional lives.
Lehigh’s Office of Sustainability
Lehigh’s Office of Sustainability encourages and facilitates interdisciplinary sustainability efforts of students, faculty, and staff and initiates transformative programs that contribute to a sustainable Lehigh. Through the engagement of stakeholders at all levels of the university and across the community, the office strives to address issues of sustainability in daily life (recycling, green building, composting), while simultaneously seeking to influence the long-term sustainability of Lehigh University. By introducing long-term planning for institutional policies and programs that integrate sustainability into work, research, and learning, the office works to instill sustainable best practices across the university with the goal of significantly reducing Lehigh’s environmental footprint. To learn more, visit Lehigh's sustainability website.
Support Lehigh’s Sustainability Strategic 2030 Plan
Lehigh’s Sustainability Strategic 2030 Plan builds on Lehigh’s commitment to sustainability through six focus areas and 113 goals over the next ten years. Build a bridge between fellow alumni and the Strategic 2030 Plan by communicating what all alumni need to know to get involved. Past engagements between LASA and the Strategic 2030 Plan included an event where LASA announced the plan to the broader Lehigh alumni family.
Sustainability impacts nearly every industry and interest, including those within the Lehigh alumni network. LASA works with other professional alliances and affinity groups to show how sustainability can not only change but improve the way the world works.
Join the Lehigh Alumni Sustainability Alliance, and connect with other Lehigh alumni in the industry via Lehigh Connects, LinkedIn and by joining our alumni network. Make LASA part of your everyday life by networking with fellow alumni, mentoring students, and even finding your next big break in sustainability-related careers.
Based upon environmental stewardship, social equity, and economic prosperity, there are countless sustainability career opportunities throughout the private, public, and nonprofit sectors. Now more than ever, employers seek candidates that understand and encompass core sustainability competencies. For more resources on careers in sustainability, visit Lehigh’s careers webpage.
Meet the Leaders
Brad Levin
Brad has 15 years of experience in custom packaging across multiple industries with a focus on sustainability.
Brad Levin earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Lehigh University in 1990 and is Vice President for Packaging Trends Inc. He has 15 years of experience in custom packaging across multiple industries with a focus on sustainability. Specializing in retail and display packaging, Brad has worked with companies to bring their products to market as well as improving existing packaging to be more efficient and cost-effective. Having worked with a wide range of products and industries, he brings a unique perspective on how to achieve a company’s packaging goals. Additionally, Brad has full turnkey capabilities, from formulation through distribution, which has enabled him to bring new products to market. He is heavily involved in the sustainability space, having helped companies to achieve their goals with both primary and secondary packaging and has appeared on numerous platforms to help educate companies on becoming more sustainable
Maggie Battaglin
Maggie currently works for the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency.
Maggie Battaglin graduated from Lehigh University in 2016 with a degree in Political Science and Environmental Studies. She currently lives in Durham, NC, where she works for the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency, an office that leads the state's efforts in rebuilding from Hurricanes Matthew and Florence and recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. There, she manages a $180 million buyout federally funded grant program, which helps to identify flood-prone areas around eastern North Carolina and provides the affected residents and property owners with assistance and incentives to move them out of the floodplain. Maggie is working towards becoming a Certified Floodplain Manager and has been featured on nationwide panels on the challenges of implementing "managed retreat" programs. She is passionate about environmental justice and how people interact with the environment and the impacts of climate change through their government and elected representatives. While at Lehigh, Maggie was a Gryphon and involved in other on-campus activities.
Nicole McCallum
Nicole currently works as an ESG/Sustainability Consultant in Stantec’s Air Quality, Climate Change, and Sustainability team.
Nicole McCallum graduated from Lehigh University with a dual degree in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Development in 2018 and a master’s in Environmental Policy in 2019. She currently lives in San Francisco, CA, where she works as an ESG/Sustainability Consultant in Stantec’s Air Quality, Climate Change, and Sustainability team. There she develops and calculates client greenhouse gas footprints and researches technologies to develop ESG programs to help clients reach their carbon neutrality goals. She has two years of previous experience with Langan Engineering working in Corporate Sustainability as a Sustainability Specialist and Environmental Remediation as Staff Environmental Engineer. There she focused on completing Phase 1, 2, and 3 Environmental Site Assessments as well as calculating annual company greenhouse gas emissions, launching the company’s first GIS Insights dashboard to track and make all greenhouse data and sustainability program initiatives accessible, launching a company-wide sustainability newsletter, and supporting internal working groups including internal and external sustainability communications and sustainability technical trainings. While at Lehigh, Nicole was involved in the Office of Sustainability as an Eco Rep Coordinator and Metrics and Reporting Assistant, the Global Citizenship Program as a Graduate Assistant, and African Renaissance.
Samantha Smith
Samantha currently works for Lafayette College’s Office of Sustainability as the Sustainability Outreach and Engagement Manager.
Samantha Smith graduated from Lehigh University with a dual degree in Environmental Studies and Marketing in 2018 and a master’s in Environmental Policy in 2019. She currently works for Lafayette College’s Office of Sustainability as the Sustainability Outreach and Engagement Manager. She has previous experience in consulting and government, having most recently worked for Ichor Strategies, a Brooklyn-based consulting firm focused on community engagement strategies. Prior, Samantha worked for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey on sustainability programs for transportation initiatives in aviation, ground transportation, and shipping. While at Lehigh, Samantha was involved in the Office of Sustainability as an Eco Rep Coordinator, the University Choir, Alpha Gamma Delta, and the Gryphon Society.
Get in Touch
Have a Question? Reach Out!
Lehigh University Alumni Relations
(866) 758-ALUM (2586)
AlumniRelations@lehigh.edu
