Commissioner Will Toor

Will Toor was elected to the Board of County Commissioners of Boulder County in 2004, and was re-elected to serve a second 4-year term in 2008.

Will is a recognized community leader for his work and dedication to Sustainability. Under his leadership, the County has adopted two resolutions on sustainability and Zero Waste, and is developing numerous programs and policies designed to reduce energy waste and transition to more renewable energy sources.

Act Locally…
• Will spearheaded the effort to create and adopt a countywide Sustainable Energy Plan for Boulder County that sets recommendations for concrete actions to take in order to reduce the County's "carbon footprint."

• The County adopted the “BuildSmart” green building code for residential properties, and is working on a similar green building code for commercial properties.

Regionally and beyond…
Mr. Toor represents Boulder County on the Denver Regional Council of Governments (which he chaired in 2005). He is also founding member of the U.S. 36 Mayors' and Commissioners' Coalition, and is actively involved in efforts to get funding for alternative transit options for U.S. 36 including commuter rail, bus rapid transit, and a bikeway.

At the state level, Will was recently appointed by Governor Bill Ritter to serve on the Transportation Finance and Implementation Panel, and he has served on the state SP1 Transit Committee. He frequently works with congressional members and national leaders to bring about more sustainable, efficient modes of transportation for Colorado.

Prior to being elected County Commissioner, Will was elected to the Boulder City Council in 1997. In 1998 he was elected mayor by the city council. He was re-elected to council and as mayor in 2001, and served until taking office as County Commissioner in January 2005. He played a strong role in the development of the city of Boulder’s community transit network, EcoPass program, and strongly supported policies for denser, mixed-use urban infill development as an alternative to sprawl.

Will was born in 1961 in Pittsburgh, PA. He graduated from Carnegie-Mellon University with a B.S. in physics in 1978 and moved to Boulder in 1980 where he worked as a truck driver, mechanic and yard foreman for Eco-Cycle from 1981 to1984 and 1986 to 1987. He attended graduate school in Chicago, receiving his Ph.D. in physics from the University of Chicago in 1992.

Will was also an instructor in the University of Colorado’s Environmental Studies Program, teaching classes on Environmental Leadership, the Campus and the Biosphere and Transportation and Environmental Policy. He is currently an adjunct professor in the CU school of Architecture and Planning.

He served as the director of the CU Environmental Center from 1992 to January 2005. During his tenure, the center received national recognition, including a 2001 green Power Leadership award from the US Department of Energy for initiating the nation's largest university green power program. He is co-author of the books "Finding A New Way: Campus Transportation for the Twenty-First Century," and "Transportation for Sustainable Campus Communities."

Since his election as County Commissioner, Will has been honored with numerous recognitions, including the following awards:

• 2009 – Colorado Solar Energy Industries Association - President’s Award
• 2008 – PLAN Boulder County Award
• 2008 – Eco-Cycle’s “Mary Wolff Community Leader Award”
• 2007 – National Association of Counties (NACo) Sustainable Communities Award (received by Boulder County)
• 2005 – Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) Distinguished Regional Leadership Award
• 2005 – Center for ReSource Conservation Community Conservation ReWard
• 2005 – University of Colorado at Boulder Legacy Achievement Environmental Award

He lives in Boulder with his wife and two children. He and his wife, Mariella, remodeled their home in 2005 in order to update a 1928 home to high energy efficiency standards, and have added solar hot water and solar photovoltaic panels to their property. He’s an active gardener, climber and bicycle commuter.