Assistant Planner
Johnson County Planning and Zoning Department
Age: 35
Josh Busard likes being green.
Mr. Busard is so into being green, in fact, he’s encouraging much of Johnson County to think about being green too.
Through his work as an assistant planner for Johnson County, Mr. Busard advocates for green government initiatives and environmental sustainability. He started his job in 2007 and admits he bordered on being a pest when it came to pushing the issue, just when the idea of being green was really taking off for governmental organizations.
“I took every opportunity to talk about sustainability,” he said.
His work has paid off over the last five years. And today, he is proud of the fact that green government is an essential component of Johnson County strategic planning and decision
making process.
“Due to Josh’s diligence and talent for bringing solutions, not problems, to decision makers, Johnson County has made great strides toward being a trendsetter in environmentally-
sustainable government operations,” Planning & Zoning Administrator Rick Dvorak stated
in his nomination of Mr. Busard.
Mr. Busard is also a military veteran, serving as a captain in various domestic and foreign duty stations.
“My time in the army made me who I am today,” he said. He still lives with the mottos of “bring solutions, not problems” and “make sure you are always above and beyond reproach” that were passed on to him by a senior officer.
Mr. Busard received his bachelor of science degree in geology from the University Iowa
and went on to get his master of science degree in urban planning from the University of
Illinois. He is working on his MBA through the University of Iowa.
Originally from Fort Madison, Mr. Busard now lives in Iowa City with his wife Amy and
their 4-month-old daughter Anna.
-Katie Mills Giorgio
