Prior to joining The Heartland Institute in 2014, Burnett worked at the National Center for Policy Analysis for 18 years, ending his tenure there as senior fellow in charge of environmental policy. He has held various positions in professional and public policy organizations, including serving as a member of the Environment and Natural Resources Task Force in the Texas Comptroller’s e-Texas commission. Burnett is a former board member and past president of the Dallas Woods and Water Conservation Club; a senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation; an academic advisor for Collegians for a Constructive Tomorrow; an advisory board member to the Cornwall Alliance; and an advisor for the Energy, Natural Resources and Agricultural Task Force at the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Burnett has an associate's degree in arts and sciences from Eastfield Community College (1984), a B.B.A. and a B.A. in cultural anthropology from Southern Methodist University (1986), and a M.A. (1991) and a Ph.D. (2001) in applied philosophy from Bowling Green State University with a specialization in environmental ethics.