Programming
2026 Grant Project
In Fall 2025, the UA’s College of Engineering awarded Epsilon Eta’s first grant alongside the Office of Sustainability! This will fund our exciting project: a Rainwater Garden outside the Civil Engineering Building. Rainwater gardens are an innovative resource to replenish groundwater, reduce local flooding, and provide habitats for pollinators, while also embracing the diversity of Tucson native plants.
We are so excited for this new adventure, and want to acknowledge Tucson Clean and Beautiful for their hard work, helping hand, and partnership!
Road Clean Ups
Through the ‘Adopt a Site’ Program, Epsilon Eta adopted South Freeman Road in East Tucson in 2023! We are responsible for keeping this road clean of trash.
EH is required to pick up roadside litter a minimum of two times per year, or as necessary to keep its area clean based on evaluation by the county. In three clean ups thus far, our club has helped South Freeman Road be significantly more clear of litter! Everyone always has such a great time bonding and beautifying our city!
Tree Planting
Trees for Tucson is a program headed by Tucson Clean & Beautiful, TCB, where the community comes together to plant trees! Tucson Million Trees is TCB’s initiative to improve shading and promote urban ecosystems. Volunteers convene on Saturday mornings to plant trees for neighborhoods in the Tucson community.
Homeowners in these neighborhoods select the type and number of trees they would like planted in their yards, and volunteers plant the trees accordingly. We have participated in two planting events in 2024, and will continue to participate this coming October and going forward. This event is a great opportunity to create a positive impact on our planet, tree by tree.
Santa Cruz River Clean Ups
Santa Cruz River clean up days are sponsored by many local organizations including the Sonoran Institute and the Tucson Audubon Society. The quantity of trash in the Santa Cruz River is a serious issue, and these events unite the larger community to take it on. We gather at specific locations along the river and work together to make it beautiful.
At the most successful event this past year, hundreds of volunteers removed over 5,000 pounds of trash from the river! Volunteers can enjoy live music, food trucks, merch, and more! Most of all, it provides an opportunity to meet like-minded people who care about making our world a better place.
Community Garden
Working in our fraternity’s plot at the University of Arizona Community Garden has become one of our favorite ways to spend time together outside of meetings and events. Whether we’re planting new vegetables, pulling weeds, watering in the Arizona heat, or figuring things out as we go. It’s a space where people can learn something new and enjoy being outdoors together. From afternoon work days to board games in the garden, our plot has become an important part of our chapter community!
Partnerships
There is strength in numbers to create visible, substantial and positive environmental change. For this reason, Epsilon Eta partners with many organizations for our community service events. Tucson Clean & Beautiful leads Trees for Tucson, and partners with the Santa Cruz River Clean Ups. Tucson Clean & Beautiful aims to foster a cleaner, more sustainable environment through community involvement and education.
The Sonoran Institute focuses on their Growing Water Smart Program to aid the functionality of the entire Colorado River Delta, in addition to the Santa Cruz River. Tucson Audubon Society’s main mission is to inspire people to enjoy and protect birds through recreation, education, conservation, and restoration of the environment.
The Ironwood Tree Experience aims to create healthy and resilient communities; they have provided tools for events and seed balls to help the river. The Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area (SCVNHA) honors and celebrates the natural environment, cultural traditions, historical places, and working landscapes of the watershed. We have partnered with the SCVNHA to remove buffelgrass, an invasive species in the Sonoran Desert. All of these partnerships help us unite with the Tucson community to make a difference with our programming events!