Most Influential People
Seattle magazine’s Most Influential People of 2021
These innovators took bold actions and big risks during a trying year. From the arts to civic engagement to business, here's a look at those who made a measurable difference across the state in 2021.
Linda Derschang; Black Coffee Northwest owners Erwin and Darnesha Weary; Jon Scholes; Michael Greer; Pallavi Mehta Wahi; Seena Mortazavi; Susanna Ryan; John Tomkowiak; Vivian Hua
Movers & Shakers: Seattle’s Most Influential People of the Year 2019
Meet this year’s class of our Most Influential People: 35 Seattleites who are altering the fabric of our city
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. We are the crane capital of the country, and that means we are still growing at an astonishing—and sometimes unnerving—rate. With exceptional growth come exceptional people, and we celebrate them here. These luminaries help elevate…
Seattle’s Most Influential People 2019: ‘Seattle Times’ Reporter, Dominic Gates
As a reporter on the aerospace beat, Gates extensively covers the Boeing 737 MAX crisis
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. Where were you when Boeing’s bad news—that the corporation had ignored flaws in its 737 Max system, which resulted in two international plane crashes in five months—broke this year? It’s likely that many of those…
Seattle’s Most Influential People 2019: Gov. Jay Inslee, US Rep. Pramila Jayapal, Judge James Robart, Ryan Vancil
From climate change to police accountability, these four public officials are bring important issues to the spotlight
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. As the first major presidential candidate from Washington state since Scoop Jackson ran in 1976, Governor Jay Inslee took his seat on the national stage, while the state basked in reflected glory. Although he dropped…
Seattle’s Most Influential People 2019: Recompose Founder, Katrina Spade
Spade's company will be doing the composting work once the Washington state human composting law goes into effect in May 2020
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. People across the country did a collective double take when Governor Jay Inslee signed legislation in May that would make Washington state the first in the country to allow human composting, effective starting in May…
Seattle’s Most Influential People 2019: Singer-songwriter, Brandi Carlile
On top of her Grammy wins, Carlile is the cofounder of the Looking Out Foundation, which funds humanitarian causes
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. The six Grammy nominations and three wins Brandi Carlile earned for 2018’s By the Way, I Forgive You proved that, finally, the rest of the country loves the Ravensdale native as much as we Washingtonians…
Seattle’s Most Influential People 2019: Arts Education Advocate, Lara Davis
The Creative Advantage has doubled the number of music and visual arts programs in Seattle elementary schools
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. Lara Davis, former Youth Arts Manager for Seattle’s Office of Arts & Culture (she left the position in August), has been the driving force behind The Creative Advantage, a citywide initiative between Seattle Public Schools,…
Seattle’s Most Influential People 2019: HistoryLink Executive Director and Cofounder, Marie McCaffrey
HistoryLink celebrated its 20th anniversary this year
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. HistoryLink, the first online encyclopedia of regional history, would have been a book if it wasn’t for executive director and cofounder Marie McCaffrey. McCaffrey founded the website covering Seattle and King County history with her…
Seattle’s Most Influential People 2019: Former General Director of the Seattle Opera, Aidan Lang
During his five-year tenure, Lang helped grow the opera's audience, especially with younger crowds
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. Aidan Lang served as Seattle Opera’s general director for just five years prior to joining the Welsh National Opera, but he left a legacy that promises to set the tone for generations of opera fans. During…
Seattle’s Most Influential People 2019: Common Ground Music Project Founder, Shontina Vernon
In addition, her Visionary Justice StoryLab earned Vernon a fellowship from the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. Three years ago, Shontina Vernon took 11 other Seattle artists—in dance, music, spoken word and other arts—to Cuba to meet, learn from and collaborate with artists in that country. That trip served as the launch…
Seattle’s Most Influential People 2019: Outgoing CEO and President of the Bullitt Foundation, Denis Hayes
Twenty-seven years after becoming a leader at the Bullitt Foundation, environmental activist Denis Hayes is stepping down
This article appears in print in the November 2019 issue, as part of the Most Influential People of the Year feature. Click here to subscribe. It only seemed natural for Denis Hayes, organizer of the first Earth Day in 1970, to take on a leadership role at the Bullitt Foundation 27 years ago. Under his direction, the environmental philanthropic nonprofit…
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