John Burgess to receive 2021 Governor’s Awards in the Humanities on October 24. Additional recipients include Annette Gordon-Reed, Heather Cox Richardson, and Sonia Nieto

Mass Humanities announced John Burgess as one of the recipients of this year’s Governor’s Awards in the Humanities 2021 which recognizes individuals for their public actions, grounded in an appreciation of the humanities, to enhance civic life in the Commonwealth. Each year the Mass Humanities Board of Directors selects nominees who are confirmed by Governor Charlie Baker of Massachusetts. 

John Burgess practiced corporate and international law at the law firm of Wilmer Hale for more than three decades after attending Yale University and Harvard Law School. He currently teaches Law of the Sea at Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Burgess served for eight years on the Mass Humanities Board, including two years as its Chair in 2008-2010.  He is currently a member of the WBUR Board of Directors and is Chair of its Governance Committee. 

Throughout his career, Burgess has also served as a Trustee of the Roxbury Latin School and Audit Committee advisor to the Broad Institute. He has been a visiting Professor at the University of Iowa Law School, Peking School of International Law at Shenzhen and the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland.  As a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, Burgess has spent a year at the U.S. State Department during the START Treaty, which negotiated the largest and most complex arms control treaty in history.

John Burgess will be honored along with three other recipients, Annette Gordon-Reed, Heather Cox Richardson, and Sonia Nieto, on Sunday, October 24, 2021 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m at a virtual event. Proceeds from sponsorships, ticket sales, and direct donations will be put to use in the coming year to maintain and enhance the Clemente Course, Reading Frederick Douglass Together, and other humanities-based programming that reaches people throughout Massachusetts. 

To schedule an interview with John Burgess, please contact Sara Seng at sara@heardstrategy.com.