About

Simon Windell

Simon Windell grew up in Spokane, WA, and studied Physics at Seattle University. His undergraduate research in fluid dynamics shaped how he solves problems: start from first principles, experiment, and iterate toward practical solutions. He began his career as a software and systems engineer at a global consulting firm. He later moved into Corporate Operations, where he learned to run complex businesses and lead multidisciplinary teams across borders.

In 2019, reading Evicted sparked an interest in housing that became a calling. After moving to the Methow Valley in 2020, Simon left the corporate world to join the Methow Housing Trust, where he discovered the power of community ownership and the Community Land Trust model. His life changed again when he met the founders of the Lahaina Community Land Trust and joined their work. This experience deepened his understanding of history, stewardship, and community, and showed him how ʻāina, and our collective relationship with it, ties them together. When land is exploited and that relationship becomes purely transactional, everything built on top of it falls apart.

Today Simon is Director of Finance for the Lahaina Community Land Trust and CFO for both the Methow Housing Trust and the Olympic Housing Trust. He also advises CLTs, ROC affiliates, nonprofits, municipalities, and developers across the West. His work focuses on operational systems, financial models, and mechanisms for permanence, so that major investments in non-market housing deliver a lasting return to the community. He has served as a planning commissioner and in board leadership, and he is Treasurer of the Northwest Community Land Trust Coalition.