2013-2014 Luce Scholar

Placement: Green Leaf Foundation, Bangkok, Thailand



Will Leimenstoll grew up in the heart of Greensboro, North Carolina as the son of historic preservation architects. His unique childhood in a downtown storefront building helped him discover a passion for city planning at a young age. Beginning in middle school, he served on a community advisory team charged with redeveloping a brownfield adjacent to his childhood home. As downtown Greensboro revitalized, he was the sole voice for the under-thirty age group at countless vision meetings. Will graduated from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill majoring in Environmental Studies and minoring in Urban Studies & Planning. Through his academic pursuits at UNC-CH, he has conducted original research on recycling rates and taken graduate-level city planning courses. In the fall of 2011, Will participated in an Honors semester in Cape Town, South Africa where he interned with the city’s Social Development Office and conducted research on informal recycling practices. He acted as Student Body President of UNC-Chapel Hill, a role in which Will works with the university and town administrations and serves as a member of UNC-CH’s Board of Trustees. In this role, he has successfully advocated to sustain robust financial aid policies, reduce tuition increases on out-of-state students, and legalize gender non-specific housing on campus. Will managed a team of over 200 student leaders charged with carrying out an ambitious 40-page campaign platform. He hopes to eventually get a Masters in City Planning with a concentration in Urban Design and use his degree to construct environmentally friendly buildings and neighborhoods. In his free time, Will enjoys running, swimming, hiking, road trips, and relaxing with family and friends.

Will is placed with the Green Leaf Foundation in Bangkok, Thailand, working with the Foundation’s vice chair Dr. Chirapol Sintunawa. The Green Leaf Foundation was officially registered on 1998. The founding institutions consist of: the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Thai Hotels Association, the United Nations Environment Program, the Demand Side Management Office of the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, the Association for the Development of Environmental Quality, and the Metropolitan Water Works Authority. Among other objectives, the Foundation promotes environmental conservation and develops environmental quality standards in tourism.