Peter Hille is Chief Executive Officer for the Mountain Association. After nine years as President, he became CEO in June 2024 to support the leadership transition prior to his retirement in April 2025. He joined Mountain Association’s board in 2003 and served as board treasurer and board chair before joining Mountain Association’s staff in 2012 as Executive Vice President, overseeing our programs in energy, forestry, lending and business support, as well as finance and operations. During his tenure, Peter has helped expand Mountain Association’s work in many ways, including in the clean energy sector through our New Energy Intern program and our solar financing that makes solar more accessible to businesses and organizations serving low-income communities. Previously, Peter was Director of the Brushy Fork Institute of Berea College, working in leadership and community development throughout Central Appalachia for 22 years. He also served as a consultant to regional and national organizations and implemented community development projects internationally in Russia and Slovakia. Peter currently chairs the board of the East Kentucky Leadership Foundation and previously served on the Berea Human Rights Commission. He was founding Board Chair of the Kentucky Environmental Foundation and served in that capacity for more than two decades, during which time he helped to lead a successful international effort to ensure safe disposal of chemical weapons in Kentucky and beyond. A graduate of Swarthmore College, his background includes experience in grassroots organizing, consulting, woodworking, construction and small business management. He lives with his wife in a solar home they designed and built in the midst of fifty acres of forest near Berea, Kentucky. He enjoys fishing, hiking, music, ongoing home improvement projects and family gatherings, particularly in his role as a grandfather.
Peter’s favorite activity in Eastern Kentucky is floating the Cumberland River.
