Bill Stirling: A Lifetime of Climate Action

Bill Stirling devoted 30 years to CORE, our community, and the environment. He represents altruism, giving back, and making climate action possible for everyone, for a better tomorrow.

“My life has really been about trying to make things better in the world and bringing about positive change,” Bill said.

Bill Stirling’s journey began in Gainesville, Florida, before taking him to Kenya as a Peace Corps volunteer from 1964-1966. His commitment to service continued as he taught in Harlem and Fort Dix, New Jersey. In 1972, Bill moved to Aspen, Colorado, where he launched Stirling Homes in 1978.

As Mayor of Aspen from 1983 to 1991, Bill shaped the city’s future by preserving its charm through restrictions on development, codifying historic preservation, and implementing Real Estate Transfer Taxes (RETT) for affordable housing. His tenure also saw the creation of the Roaring Fork Transit Authority (RFTA), the installation of clean energy projects like the Ruedi Reservoir generator and Maroon Creek hydro project, and the formation of the Aspen Energy Efficiency Committee (AEEC).

In 1994, Bill transformed AEEC and Energy 2000 into the Community Office for Resource Efficiency (CORE), with Randy Udall and Lynn Haines as co-directors, to lead regional climate action and greenhouse gas reduction.

“I realized it was high time to stop talking about doing something and finally do something,” Bill Stirling said. "We were trying to come to grips with all the things that were going on here with climate change. One of the first warnings for us was that the ski [resort] was losing a few days of winter in the spring and a few days of winter in the fall. We started with the low-hanging fruit, like changing lighting, insulating doors, and installing solar panels.”

Today, Bill remains a political activist and full-time realtor, serving on the CORE board for all 30 years and chairing multiple times. He continues to support CORE’s mission and Pitkin County’s goal of mitigating and adapting to climate change to preserve natural resources for current and future generations. 

“Over the past 30 years, I'm incredibly proud of what this organization has accomplished,” continued Stirlilng. “CORE has remained agile and adaptive, playing a key role in initiatives like bringing wind power to Colorado and partnering with Aspen Ski Company to build a generator harnessing methane gas from the closed coal mine in Somerset. This effort provided energy for the Roaring Fork Valley. Now, we're once again tackling methane emissions, this time from an abandoned mine in Coal Basin above Redstone.”

In August 2024, CORE established the Bill Stirling Giving Society to honor Bill’s legacy and give CORE a platform to recognize our most loyal donors. Join us in continuing the work Bill started.