Carol Collier served for more than 15 years as executive director of the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) before joining the Academy. Before joining DRBC, she was executive director of Pennsylvania’s 21st Century Environment Commission and regional director of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) Southeast Region. Prior to PADEP, Collier served 19 years with BCM Environmental Engineers, Inc., beginning as a student intern and ultimately becoming vice president of environmental planning, science and risk.
She has a B.A. in biology from Smith College and a master’s in regional planning from the University of Pennsylvania. She is a professional planner licensed in the State of New Jersey, a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP), and a certified senior ecologist. In 1997 she was presented the Touchstone Award from the Society of Women Environmental Professionals and in 1998 the Woman of Distinction Award from the Philadelphia Business Journal. In 2007 the American Water Resources Association (AWRA) presented her with the Mary H. Marsh Medal for exemplary contributions to the protection and wise use of the nation’s water resources. In 2014, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded her the Bronze Order of the DeFleury Medal.
She is a member of her township’s environmental protection advisory board, on the Boards of the American Water Resources Association (AWRA) (President, 2013), the U.S. Water Alliance, and recent past chair of the Board for the Pinchot Institute for Conservation. She teaches environmental management courses at the University of Pennsylvania and has published on environmental and water-related topics. She has testified before the House of Representatives and the Pennsylvania Legislature. In 2004 she was a member of a nine-person U.S./China/Japan team to assist the People’s Republic of China with river basin management. She has also participated in water management and sustainable forest practice events along the Yangtze River in China and in the rain forests of Ecuador.
