Penn State’s Student Programming Association (SPA) will host environmental activists Alexandra Cousteau and Leah Thomas for a free lecture at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 18, in the HUB’s Alumni Hall. The lecture comes in celebration of Earth Day.

Cousteau has made an impact as an ocean conservationist and environmental advocate. She’s best known for her work as a senior advisor with OCEANA, the largest international advocacy organization focused on ocean conservation. Cousteau also developed the OCEANS 2050 initiative in hopes that in the year 2050, children will still be able to explore the ocean.

Thomas, meanwhile, is best known for using her writing and creativity to advocate for social justice and environmentalism. She launched Intersectional Environmentalist in 2020, through which she promotes educational resources related to intersectional environmentalism and advocates for environmental justice. Additionally, Thomas manages a blog she uses to talk about environmental justice to more than 400,000 followers.

Like every SPA event, April 18’s lecture is free for Penn State students and funded by their student-initiated fee. Registration is not required to attend the event