Peter Colohan

Peter Colohan is the director of federal strategies at the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. He is an expert in interagency and international affairs who specializes in building initiatives and agreements that cross agencies, jurisdictions, boundaries, and sectors. He is a technical expert in environmental science and technology, with an emphasis on how climate, land, and water information services are developed and deployed for mitigation and resilience. From 2018 to 2023, Peter collaborated with a team of experts at Duke University to create the Internet of Water, a project he brought to the Lincoln Institute’s Center for Geospatial Solutions in 2021. From 2009 to 2018, Peter was a civil servant with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). During his time at NOAA, he served in multiple positions, including as a social scientist in NOAA’s Office of Water Prediction and as senior advisor to NOAA Chief Scientist Dr. Richard Spinrad. He also served as a member of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy staff for four years under President Barack Obama, including two years as an assistant director in the Environment and Energy Division. Prior to his federal service, Peter served as the executive officer of the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) in Geneva, Switzerland, an intergovernmental body dedicated to the global exchange of environmental data and information. He holds a BA in government from American University and an MA in international affairs from the College of William and Mary in Virginia.