On Jan. 23, Seegers Union was abuzz with a new event: a sustainable clothing swap. Students gathered around tables where clothes were laid out for them to take and trade for old clothing items of their own. That way, students and staff could spruce up their closet for the spring while also refraining from creating clothing waste.
All the while, as people browsed clothes, the eager, friendly members of enACT sat behind tables, ready to chat. For those who don’t know: enACT is the sustainability club that has just recently come back from a two year hiatus brought about by the pandemic. “This sustainable clothing swap is our first event!” said Lacey Pasco ‘23. “We’re trying to prevent waste, prevent fast fashion and do it in a stylish way.”
After all, these sustainable choices have impacts that stretch beyond the Muhlenberg community. “At enACT, we’re all about engaging the Allentown community,” said longtime member Kyle Ropski ‘22. “All of the clothes that are not taken after [the clothing swap] are going to be donated – not to Goodwill or a place that is going to sell them, but rather to something that gives it out to our local community.”
Members were more than willing to chat about what has them excited about the club’s return and why enACT got started at Muhlenberg in the first place. “All of us felt like there was a hole in the environmental spectrum on campus,” stated Maddie Davidson ‘25. “We are all really into sustainability and there were some parts of sustainability on campus but we felt like there was a missing link. So we got together and decided to create a club that facilitates collaboration between the already established sustainability clubs. enACT acts as an educator and a place for action for people who are passionate.”
At enACT, we’re all about engaging the Allentown community.
– Kyle Ropski ’22
Harli Strauss-Cohen ‘24 concurred, stating that one of enACT’s primary goals is “providing a safe space for ourselves and our peers, to center around sustainability and just talk about climate change. It’s something that weighs on all of us but we don’t always have a space to talk about it. So [enACT is] a space for us to talk through our emotions and then harvest that to then create action.”
The club is striving for a strong and more secure future as members plan events and hope that a hiatus never hits them again. “We want to build something super firm and have a very strong foundation now,” Jessica Rosen ‘25 emphasized. “And we want to do that while we’re young and starting out, so that in the future, enACT doesn’t go dormant. It stays strong. We’re trying to have our roots very, very deep in the ground for the next generation of presidents, secretaries and members of the club. We do not want it to shut down again.”
We’re trying to have our roots very, very deep in the ground for the next generation of presidents, secretaries and members of the club. We do not want it to shut down again.
– Jessica Rosen ’25
Rosen went on to say, “We really want to stress the intersectionality of sustainability. So that’s why we really want to collaborate with anyone and everyone on campus. We’re working to get a poetry workshop with MUSES, we’re going to do bottle cap art with the Art Club and we’re really going to focus on Earth Day.”
To those interested in getting involved in sustainability efforts, members of enACT encouraged following the club on its brand new Instagram page (@enact.berg), reaching out to their email (enactberg@gmail.com) or contacting the College’s newly appointed Sustainability Specialist Morgan Tietz ‘21.
According to club members, there is no better time to join in on enACT’s efforts. “We’re welcoming to anyone: any age, any group, any club,” said Rosen. “And we have a lot of ideas and events in the works.”
