Eric Zimmerman directs WPC’s efforts to provide lawmakers and the public with data-driven, evidence-based policy solutions regarding intersecting crises in behavioral health, housing and public safety.

He was previously the project director and principal investigator for a groundbreaking 2024-2026 study, Homelessness in Washington State, producing the state’s first interdisciplinary, longitudinal study of the crisis.

In addition to his research background, Zimmerman serves as the Mayor and a Council Member for the City of Normandy Park. He also holds prominent regional leadership positions, including serving on the King County Law, Safety, and Justice Committee and the Executive Board of South King Homelessness and Housing Partners.

Zimmerman spent more than a decade in senior leadership and technical roles at World Vision, overseeing a multi-million-dollar global portfolio of public services programs. His extensive background in complex crisis management includes deploying to Sierra Leone to lead services design for its government during the 2014-2015 Ebola epidemic.

Eric holds a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership from Gonzaga University’s School of Leadership Studies.