With more than 1,600 attendees, 80+ vendors/exhibitors, more than 130 students, 500+ first time attendees, the most technical tours ever, and the largest LeadershipITE alumni group, the energy and enthusiasm of the Joint ITE International and Western District Annual Meeting in Portland, OR, USA last month were contagious.
I want to extend a wholehearted thank you to the Western District for partnering with us to put together a great conference. Thanks for organizing a student track filled with career guidance, networking, and fun. Also, thanks for the great technical tours, including Multnomah Falls, which I was able to participate in.
During the Monday Opening Plenary, we had a conversation with Federal Highway (FHWA) Administrator Shaleen Bhatt in which he said “there has never been a more consequential time to be the FHWA Administrator and for us as transportation professionals to affect change. We may never have the opportunity again to have all the resources we currently have the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to transform our communities through transportation.” We also recognized and celebrated ITE’s newest Honorary Members: Alfred A. Guebert, P.Eng., PTOE (H), Ransford S. McCourt, P.E., PTOE (H), and Earl E. Newman, P.E., PTOE, PTP, RSP1 (H).
The Tuesday morning Plenary Panel Session, “Creating People Oriented Communities” with Susan Handy, Bas Govers, Jennifer Toole (M), and Odessa Phillip, gave the attendees local and global perspectives on focusing on transportation outcomes that benefit the user. If you want to hear more about this topic, I invite you to listen to the August ITE Talks Transportation podcast, in which Bas Govers talks about mobility planning in The Netherlands. Govers states that “The Netherlands was not always been pedestrian and bicycle friendly…we started pushing cars to the highway network and creating spaces in the city for other users: bicyclists and transit. It’s all about offering choices.” On Tuesday, we also celebrated the best and brightest in transportation during the Awards Luncheon.
On Wednesday, we closed the meeting with a Plenary Session with Michael Jung, Executive Director of the ICF Climate Center, who discussed climate events and how to create sustainable solutions for our communities. Finally, the Annual Meeting would not have been a success without the help of ITE staff. Thanks for all you do to make ITE a great organization for transportation professionals and putting together a wonderful meeting and experience for all of us. You are all appreciated.
This month marks 8 years of ITE under Jeff Paniati’s leadership and his retirement. I want to say a big THANKS one more time to Jeff for his leadership and for turning the ship around. ITE has thrived under Jeff ’s leadership, our membership is at an all-time high, our finances are strong, we had our highest Annual Meeting attendance in two decades, and we are delivering high value to our members. Happy Retirement Jeff!
This month, I will be visiting the MOVITE District at their Fall Meeting in Bentonville, AR, USA, and I will finish my District visits in my home District, Florida Puerto Rico. If you are going to be there, let me know. If you have any ideas on how we can improve our ITE Annual Meeting, please reach me by e-mail at rosana.correa@jacobs.com or on the ITE e-Community.