Peter Evans

Trusted Adviser to Legacy Families (United States)

Advisor, consultant, and speaker to legacy families and family offices, Peter Evans helps to create the conditions where affluent families have the greatest chance of flourishing. He has worked with and presented to hundreds of families on six continents. 

Peter’s primary engagements are long-term as a personne de confiance, helping legacy families sustain their family and business relationships for many generations.   This work is in six areas: growing the human capital of the family by investing in the personal development of each individual and generation...the goal being happy, joyful, productive, contributive members of society, rather than entitled beneficiaries; building intellectual capital - a robust governance system, clear succession plans and successful decision-making; investing in the organization’s social capital – building traditions of civic contribution, family philanthropy, and maintaining social and political connections; helping families live in sustainable relationship with the world’s natural capital; fostering the development of the family’s spiritual capital;  and finally, helping family members make choices to ensure wise stewardship of the financial capital  of their enterprise. 

For 26 years, Peter was involved in many facets of Laird Norton Company LLC, an 8th generation family enterprise. He concluded his tenure as President in 2003. His responsibilities at Laird Norton included the stewardship of the long-held values and traditions of 400+ family members’ financial, intellectual, social and human assets.  He remains a member of the family and company. 

Peter is currently advising several global legacy families and working on projects which support an expansion of consciousness in individuals and groups.  Peter is a Member and past Chapter Chairman of Young Presidents Organization -YPO/YPO Gold; recently serving as the Learning Officer for YPO’s Global Family Business Network – 5,800 leaders of family enterprises in 80 countries; and founding Chairman (now Emeritus) of the Collaboration for Family Flourishing, a network of cross-discipline practitioners supporting affluent families; Emeritus advisor to Arlington Family Offices.   Formerly, he was Chairman of the Learning Academy, an experiential learning program serving the needs of family members in multi-generational enterprises.  Executive Producer of the Emmy-Award winning documentary: John Muir in the New World, which premiered on PBS and BBC as their feature film for Earth Week 2011.  Peter has served as Trustee of several non-profit organizations including the James E. Hughes, Jr Foundation; Partners in Youth Empowerment; Prescott College; the American Sail Training Association; Founding President of Sound Experience, a marine science-environmental learning program aboard the 101’ schooner Adventuress; Explorer West School; Pathfinder School; Director of the Earth & Spirit Conference, Deva Foundation; and the Seattle Parks Foundation. Peter earned a Master of Science in Management from Antioch University, and a BA from Western Washington University in Physical Anthropology, with concentrations in Chemistry and Biology.  He has enjoyed a meditation practice for 50 years. 

A Seattle resident, Peter and his wife Melissa enjoy boating and exploring the beauty, majesty and wonder of the Pacific Northwest Coast.  Along with their adult children and grandchildren, they are a family of lifelong learners and avid world travelers.