The Steering Committee use this remembrance to nominate and honor our friend and colleague posthumously for the ICOET Legacy Award.
Remembering What Matters
Whether as a scientist, planner, or engineer, public servant, consultant, or non-government conservationist; if you are reading this, there’s a Joe Burns inside you. That inner voice looking forward to the day that transportation systems for humans coexist, maybe even harmoniously, with the natural systems that are vital to the quality and diversity of life on this planet; that’s the Joe Burns in you
The belief in you that, with enough good information and conviction, we can solve even very big problems with a little collaboration; that’s the Joe Burns in you. When you contribute your time and resources to the ecology and transportation community-of-practice, not simply because doing so fulfills a performance metric, but because you believe that – in so doing – the resulting relationships and achievements are worthy of sacrificed time and energy; that’s the Joe Burns in you. And if you ever have big ideas that you feverishly communicate in so-many, maybe too-many words, but your audience listens intently anyway, because your enthusiasm for working together on innovative ideas is simply infectious; that’s the Joe Burns in you. In late 2019 we lost Joseph A. Burns: a friend to many, a founding member of ICOET and the TRB Committee on Ecology and Transportation, and a ferocious advocate for collaborative conservation. Going forward, it will be in what we achieve – together – that the legacy for Joe’s loving and indefatigable passion and selfless accomplishments will endure. So, whether or not you are someone fortunate-enough to have known or worked with Joe, chances are – if you are reading this – there’s a Joe Burns in you, too.
