Media Features
December 26, 2021
December 21, 2021
December 21, 2021
November 6, 2021
October 22, 2021
July 27, 2021
August 24, 2021
FANCY SCIENTIST PODCAST EPISODE: GOING ZERO WASTE/CIRCULAR ECONOMY WITH ALEXA SMITH
June 10, 2021
March 22, 2021
February 17, 2021
February 23, 2021
December 26, 2021
St. Charles North alum Alexa Smith wasn’t so sure she was ready to publish her own book when she enrolled in an online course for university students on how to turn passions and ideas into books.'
But after working with Georgetown University professor Eric Koester at the Creator Institute, an online program for college students to develop ideas for novels or nonfiction books, she began to gain more confidence.
And thanks to Koester’s encouragement, Smith completed her book “An Economic Eclipse: Shifting Towards a Sustainable Future by Eliminating Waste,” in April. The book is published through New Degree Press and is available on Amazon.
“My first thought was, absolutely not,” she said. “I’m 20 years old. Why would anyone want to listen to what I’ve got to say?”...
December 21, 2021
Hear from Alexa Smith, a senior in natural resources & environmental sciences in ACES, who was awarded this year's Lincoln Laureate Student Award for the University of Illinois. Smith published a book on sustainability, and has led several initiatives on and off campus to support the zero waste movement.
Each fall, an outstanding senior from each of the four-year degree-granting institutions of higher learning in Illinois is awarded the Abraham Lincoln Civic Engagement Award. They become Student Laureate of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois. In the spirit of Lincoln, Student Laureates are honored for their leadership and service in the pursuit of the betterment of humanity and for overall excellence in curricular and extracurricular activities…
December 21, 2021
URBANA, Ill. – Alexa Smith, a senior in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, has been awarded the 2021 Lincoln Academy Student Laureate award.
Each fall, an outstanding senior from each of the four-year degree-granting institutions of higher learning in Illinois is awarded the Abraham Lincoln Civic Engagement Award. They become Student Laureate of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois. In the spirit of Lincoln, Student Laureates are honored for their leadership and service in the pursuit of the betterment of humanity and for overall excellence in curricular and extracurricular activities...
November 6, 2021
I'm going to #Glasgow this week and in this #COP26 special coverage, we are featuring sustainability champions from around the world who want to play their part to make a positive contribution to the goals set at COP26.
Check out the video below with Alexa Smith telling us what she wants to see achieved at COP26 this year and what she's doing to help meet the climate goals…
October 22, 2021
While the rest of us were watching Tiger King last spring, University of Illinois senior in environmental science Alexa Smith was working on her first manuscript. She published it in April of this year.
The book is called An Economic Eclipse: Shifting Toward a Sustainable Future and argues for a zero-waste lifestyle and a “circular economy.” Essentially, that means reusing and recycling as many things as possible instead of throwing them out, while asking big companies to do the same.
The circular economy has been the premise of a major international zero-waste movement since the early 2000s. Its supporters say that sustainability is the job of everyone and that there are ways to make the process of creating and consuming goods better for the environment...
August 24, 2021
My name is Alexa Smith, and I am a rising senior at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. This summer I was fortunate enough to work at Plant Chicago as a Farmer’s Market Intern.
For me, my journey with Plant Chicago began earlier this year when Rock Evans came to give a presentation to one of my student organizations at school—Illinois Enactus. Enactus is an international 501c3 non-profit that aims to educate and empower a generation of social entrepreneurs, and my particular chapter contains several enterprises aiming to reduce waste in our own community. For example, one of our projects—Symmetry—has developed an alternative to wood from excess cellulose produced during the kombucha brewing process. Another project—Phoenix—runs a program for high school students to create their own upcycled clothing brand using resources and materials that we provide...
July 27, 2021
The Circular Economy Explained! With Alexa Smith
Today I’m speaking with Sustainability Champion, Alexa Smith (@an.economic.eclipse), the Amazon #1 best-selling author in Green Business of the book "An Economic Eclipse: Shifting Toward a Sustainable Future by Eliminating Waste".
Did you know if we move to a circular economy, we could reduce CO2 emissions by 48% by 2030?
Alexa is a 20-year-old undergraduate student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign studying environmental science and sustainability. She saw this opportunity and decided to do something about it...
June 10, 2021
When I scroll through my Pinterest home feed, zero waste is a common word that comes up among eco-friendly bloggers. I always wanted to try it, but producing no waste seemed so hard! I was really intimidated by the challenge and felt like I needed help. So when Alexa Smith, author of An Economic Eclipse, reached out to me to talk all about zero waste, I was definitely on board...
March 22, 2021
Plastic is all around us, even in places we might not expect. It’s in clothes, oceans, streets and has even been found in fish. It’s detrimental to the planet and difficult to always avoid.
For Emily Dickett, sophomore in Engineering and intern at the University’s Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment, the fact that plastic is so prevalent was enough for her to want to make some changes in her life.
She decided to start living a plastic-free lifestyle and is working with the Institute on its plastic-free challenge throughout March to help other students make small, lasting changes in their lives...
February 17, 2021
While quarantine can be rough, something good that has come out of it for many people is the discovery of new hobbies.
Maybe you took an interest in bread baking or tried the famous whipped coffee? Or maybe you’re like University of Illinois student Alexa Smith and decided to write a book during quarantine.
Smith, a junior in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences (NRES) in the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences (ACES), is writing her first book. Smith’s book is about the zero-waste movement and circular economy, which centers around three main principles laid out by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation: designing out waste, keeping products in reuse, and regenerating natural systems, Smith explains...
February 23, 2021
Alexa Smith is a junior at the University of Illinois majoring in natural resources and environmental science. After graduating, she hopes to be a sustainability director at an international company and eventually become an entrepreneur. Her book, Economic Eclipse: Unlocking a Circular World Through the Assets of Trash, will be published by New Degree Press sometime around the last week of April. You will be able to order it on Amazon.
It’s a common misconception that environmentalists are anti-business and that businesses don’t care about the environment. In her upcoming book, Economic Eclipse: Unlocking a Circular World Through the Assets of Trash, college student Alexa Smith explores how entrepreneurs can help lead the fight against waste by using the concepts of the circular economy movement...