Peter Goldmark for Lands Commissioner

Peter Goldmark began his education in a one-room schoolhouse at Duley Lake near Okanogan, Washington. He graduated from Okanogan High School in Okanogan and in 1967 received a degree from Haverford College near Philadelphia. After receiving his Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of California at Berkeley in 1971, he traveled to Harvard University for a postdoctoral fellowship in neurobiology. Following his marriage in 1972, he moved back to Okanogan with his wife, Georgia. Together, they raised their five children on the family ranch. Sadly, Georgia succumbed to cancer in 2003.

Goldmark has had a lifelong involvement with agriculture, science, education, and public service. Included among his public service positions are the following:

• Director of Agriculture for State of Washington, appointed by Governor Lowry in 1993
• Chairman of the Governor's Council on Agriculture and the Environment in 1994-1996
• Governor's Council for a Sustainable Washington in 2002-2003
• Governor's Council on Biodiversity in 2004-2005
• Founding board member and past Chairman of the Board of Farming and the Environment, a unique coalition of farmers, ranchers, and conservationists founded in 1999
• Board of Regents of Washington State University, 1996-2005; President of the Board in 1999-2000
• Board of the Washington State University-University of Washington Policy Consensus Center, 2003-2008
• Okanogan School Board, 1998-2005
• Wildland firefighter, Okanogan County, Fire District No. 8 - 30+ years
• Commissioner of Public Lands, 2009 to present

Goldmark maintains a small scientific research facility at his ranch and has published scientific articles in national and international journals. He currently maintains a wheat-breeding program at his facility and has recently released new varieties for Washington wheat farmers.

In 2008, Goldmark led a successful race for Commissioner of Public Lands in Washington State.  He is remarried and lives in Olympia with his wife, Wendy.