3 HDR Transportation YPs Honored for Commitment to Designing a Safe, Resilient and Sustainable Future
2025 Engineering News-Record Top Young Professionals Honored for their Expertise, Impact and Talent
Fulfilling a commitment to improve transportation mobility, safety, sustainability and resiliency in communities around the world, three of our transportation leaders were named Top Young Professionals for 2025 by ENR’s regional publications. Transportation Sustainability Leader Will Kirby was additionally honored with inclusion in the national group of 20 young professionals chosen as the best of the best. This is the fourth year in a row that one of our transportation professional has been among ENR’s national Top 20 Under 40.
The competitive program honors individuals under 40 years old who have shown extraordinary leadership and capability. Our transportation-focused honorees come from across the U.S. representing the Midwest, mountain states and Southwest regions. Two other employees, power alternative delivery director Jack Grauman and solid waste assistant project manager Emily Sisk, were also honored.
The group has shown a commitment to sustainability, resiliency and road user safety through the delivery of transformative transportation projects. Kirby and Rebecca ‘Becky’ Santiago, for example, are both certified Envision Sustainability Professionals and are experienced in the development of sustainable infrastructure for clients and communities across the U.S. Brett Kohring has led many road and street projects that improve safety for all road users, including drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists.
The transportation professionals have led projects that have impacted millions of people across the world while helping manage costs for clients and implement transformative solutions involving the latest transportation technology. Their expertise is recognized across the industry and sought out by peers for collaboration to overcome some of the most complex challenges facing our clients and the industry.
They were chosen for this latest honor by a diverse group of industry leaders and previous winners, following three primary criteria: industry experience and education, career and industry leadership, and community service and involvement.
Will Kirby, Transportation Sustainability Leader; Omaha, Nebraska; National Top 20 Under 40, ENR Midwest
Will’s career has long been focused on community and sustainability related projects. He got his start in the field during an Engineers in Action internship in La Paz, Bolivia, improving water quality and sanitation service for rural communities, in addition to other basic infrastructure-focused projects. That dedication is just as evident in his current transportation sustainability leadership role where he helps the freight rail industry and other transportation markets accelerate their goal toward decarbonization, electrification, sustainability and other resiliency-focused systems. His work includes supporting the development of the Omaha Climate Action Plan and a Sustainability Playbook for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, as well as serving as the lead Envision Sustainable Professional for our projects across multiple business sectors.
Committed to advancing the industry, Will is always seeking out training opportunities and ways to expand his knowledge of sustainability and resiliency to offer innovative solutions to clients, and he is a frequent contributor at industry events. He is also committed to the next generation of sustainability leaders. Throughout the year, Will has helped our interns and co-op students explore opportunities in sustainability and resiliency fields through special projects and research. He also has been a regular contributor to summer science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and sustainability events for K-12 students.
Rebecca ‘Becky’ Santiago, Transportation Planner II; Phoenix, Arizona; ENR Mountain States & Southwest
A respected emerging leader in her profession, Becky has earned a reputation as a trusted consultant for her technical abilities in transit corridor planning, regional system planning and sustainability planning. Along with traditional service planning projects across the U.S., her expertise includes service optimization, fare analyses, feasibility studies, regional mobility and transportation demand strategies, and supporting the implementation of bus rapid transit, streetcar, and light rail projects through FTA’s Capital Investment Grant program. Her leadership was crucial in navigating challenging construction conditions to reroute more than 20 bus routes for the Valley Metro Downtown Construction Reroute Plan.
In her spare time, Becky has a passion for supporting her community, which makes the “work” of volunteering hardly feel like work. Her involvement with local committees, including implementing multiple projects funded by HDR Foundation grants, has advanced local organizations and the overall betterment of her community. Additionally, Becky regularly walks, bikes or takes transit because it’s important to her to maintain a firsthand user experience of the systems and networks she works to improve.
Brett Kohring, Senior Traffic Engineer; Boise, Idaho; ENR Mountain States & Southwest
Brett has honed a broad skillset including traffic and safety analysis, transportation planning, interchange design, signal and lighting design, roundabout and intersection design, and bicycle/pedestrian facility design. He led the design of the innovative Linen Blocks on Grove Street project in Boise, Idaho, that reimagined how vehicles, pedestrians and bicyclists interacted in a busy downtown environment. His leadership was also instrumental in the Heyburn Interchange project in south central Idaho.
Brett’s passion for his profession extends to technical innovation and its impact on people. Amid an increased effort to further integrate safety into transportation projects, Brett has guided many projects to implement safety countermeasures that reduce speeds and increase awareness to improve road user safety.
Driven by his desire to connect with others in his field and advance his expertise, Brett has been heavily involved with the Idaho Section of the Institute of Transportation Engineers and regionally with the Intermountain Section and Mountain District.