Dan Waite
Economist, Large Head,
a Little Woody, a Little Hank

Dan is kind of like the Dr. Evil behind Growing Washington, except that he is not evil and he is not a doctor. From deep within his volcano compound spews the freshest, phattest, most shaking community building projects on the Richter Scale. When first deciding upon Growing Washington’s program areas, Dan insisted on a “Doing the Right Thing” program, so now he is tasked with constantly figuring out what is right and what is just. Dan is a big thinker, and he carries an enormous head on his shoulders. When Growing Washington locates the pieces to a project, Dan puts it all together (with help from the King County Horses and the King County Men).

Dan, like most of Growing Washington’s board members, spent his formative years high in the mountains of Colorado, where his family built their own home, raised their own vegetables, and aspired to self-sufficiency.  His experience there instilled in him a love for agriculture and rural life that led to his involvement with Growing Washington and that continues to inspire him daily.  Trained as an economist and untrained as a musician, Dan is a scholar by day and a country singer by night.  People often confuse him for Woody Guthrie or Hank Williams. He is just as good as those two behind a guitar, and even better than them in front of an equation. His current research interests include natural resources management, regional economic development, and non-governmental mechanisms to resolve and prevent conflict; his current songwriting interests include lost love, found love, and old dogs.  Dan attended The Evergreen State College, West Virginia University, and Colorado State University.  He currently resides in Olympia, where he follows our state government with keen interest, frequent amusement, and occasional bewilderment.