Olga Álava

Olga Mercedes Álava Vargas (born 14 February 1988) is an Ecuadorian model, social, lifestyle entrepreneur, environmentalist and beauty queen.

She became the first delegate from Ecuador to win the Miss Earth pageant.

Álava, born on 14 February 1988, in Guayaquil, Ecuador, is the daughter of Ramón Álava and Teresa Vargas.

She has three brothers and is the oldest of four children.

Her hobbies include photography and modeling.

During her childhood years she frequently visited the province of Manabi and spent much of her time on its beaches.

She has a Bachelor's degree in International Business and graduated from the Universidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo.

She speaks Spanish, English, and Mandarin Chinese; and studied the French language at the Alliance Française.

Her interest in cultural exchange has led her to live in other countries.

She lived in China for one year, where she studied the Chinese language in Shanghai for seven months and helped her father in the import and quality control of their business.

She also spent seven months in Colorado, United States where she had a public relations internship in a restaurant.

Álava's foray into beauty pageants is no accident.

She competed in Ecuador's Super Model of the World competition in 2006 and won second place.

In October 2008, she competed and won in the Reina de Guayaquil pageant and performed various social works.

She participated in Charity Catwalk along with other beauty queens that raised $4,000 for families with AIDS to benefit the Fundación Nuestra Belleza.

In addition, modeling has also been part of her life since joining the Agencia Chantal Fontaine.

She proceeded to Shanghai where she previously studied Mandarin for seven months in 2009 and worked for four months in 2010.

Álava's achievement was an improvement from Ecuador's placement in 2010 where Jennifer Pazmiño placed second in Miss Earth 2010 which was held in Vietnam.

She becomes a spokesperson for the Miss Earth Foundation and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

In March 2011, she competed as the representative of Guayas in Miss Ecuador 2011, and became the eventual third runner up.

As part of her duty, she worked with the Fundación Bellezas por la Vida (Foundation Beauties for Life), which assists mothers infected with HIV, and worked with projects for the community.

Álava was chosen and crowned Miss Earth Ecuador 2011 on 28 July 2011 at the Unipark organized by José Hidalgo of Diosas Escuela de Mises, the franchise holder of Miss Earth Ecuador.

She wore a crown created by Catalina Salcedo made in silver with rhinestones and has a flower design and pearl nacre valued at approximately $10,000.

To dispel the rumors of disagreement of the other organization, Miss Ecuador Organization, for her participation in the Miss Earth 2011, Alava clarified that the directors of the contest and Gama TV, official channel of the national gala, support her representation in the Miss Earth 2011 pageant.

As part of her preparation in the Miss Earth 2011 pageant, Álava travelled to Bolivia in October 2011 to represent Ecuador in the twenty-first edition of the Reina Hispanoamericana.

She eventually placed fourth (second runner-up) at the conclusion of the Reina Hispanoamericana 2011 pageant.

Álava won and was crowned Miss Earth 2011 by Miss Earth 2010 Nicole Faria on 3 December 2011 at the University of the Philippines Theatre in Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines.

She presented at the pageant an environmental project to protect mangroves in Ecuador and has also become a spokesperson for the protection of the natural reserve of Yasuní.

During the gala, she told the jury that "education is the best solution for the environment because children are the ones that preserve the earth for future generations", in response to the final question.

She will reign over the next twelve months, after winning the pageant that participated by 84 countries in which the delegates of Latin America accounted for three of the top four.

After winning Miss Earth 2011 in the Philippines, Álava toured several Asian cities before arriving in Ecuador.

She traveled to Beijing in the last week of December 2011 and met with the Ecuadorian ambassador in China, upon the embassy's invitation.

On 28 December 2011, Álava returned to Ecuador and was met at the airport by her relatives and friends, including Miss Earth Ecuador national director José Hidalgo.

A press conference for her victory in Miss Earth was held at the City Hall of the Municipality of Guayaquil.

She was honored by the mayor for her performance in the Miss Earth pageant and for highlighting the name of Guayaquil worldwide.

After the tribute, she stopped the traffic along the Malecon Simon Bolivar then aboard a Chevrolet Impala sixties, she was paraded at the main downtown streets.

She signed an agreement to be the face and spokesperson for the campaign Manos Juntas por el Estero Salado (Hands Together for the Estero Salado)

that aims to educate the public about the importance of reducing pollution in Guayaquil estuary.

The project, undertaken by the Centro Internacional de Investigaciones del Fenómeno del Niño (International Research Center of El Niño) and the United States Agency for International Development is part of her environmental campaign as Miss Earth.

She also joined the collection of funds for the Yasuní rainforest and wildlife and launched a campaign for the preservation of the Galápagos Islands.