Tom Weis is a social change agent with 25 years of environmental and political organizing experience. He currently serves as president of Climate Crisis Solutions, a mission-driven environmental consulting firm dedicated to solving the global climate crisis. In 2010, Tom rode his “rocket trike” 2,500 miles from Boulder, CO to Washington, DC calling for a national goal of 100% renewable electricity by 2020. In 2011, he led a 2,150-mile ride from the U.S./Canada border to the Texas Gulf Coast to block TransCanada’s proposed “Keystone XL” toxic tar sands pipeline.
Prior to conceiving the Ride for Renewables, Tom worked in the wind industry for six years as a public outreach consultant to enXco, one of the nation’s largest renewable energy companies. During this time, he helped permit 600 MW of wind energy projects and served as Strategic Advisor to the President of the Board of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). Tom received AWEA’s 2009 Special Achievement Award for his role in creating the American Wind Wildlife Institute and also helped spearhead the creation of the Colorado Renewables and Conservation Collaborative. He served as Chair of AWEA’s 2007 Fall Symposium and was a board member of the Interwest Energy Alliance from 2005-2009.
From 1996-2003, Tom served as National Field Director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER); designed and directed a recycling drop-off and education center for Eco-Cycle (the nation’s largest non-profit recycler); and served as Executive Director of the National Forest Protection Alliance. Prior to that, he directed a statewide “Save the Everglades” campaign for Clean Water Action in Florida, where he played a key role in launching a multi-million dollar ballot initiative against the Florida sugar industry, generating extensive print, radio and television coverage as campaign spokesperson. Tom has an extensive political background, including working on Capitol Hill as an environmental legislative aide to U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and directing field operations for presidential campaigns in Iowa and Texas.
Locally, Tom served on the campaign committee of a Boulder ballot initiative resulting in voter passage of the nation’s first-ever municipal “carbon tax” and is backing efforts to municipalize Boulder’s electric utility and shut down Boulder’s coal-fired power plant.
Tom is a graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he earned a B.A. in Environmental Conservation. An avid adventurer and biker, he enjoys frequent camping, backpacking, and whitewater float trips throughout the U.S. and abroad. When not pedaling his rocket trike across the country, Tom resides in Boulder, CO.
Pingback: CENSORED NEWS: Native leaders challenge presidential candidates on Keystone XL, environment and treaties