Rachel White

Science Writer
Station Director Office
620 SW Main, Suite 502
Portland, OR 97205-3028
United States
Portland, OR 97205-3028
United States
Phone
971-334-3014
Research Interest
My job gives me the opportunity to learn about human interactions and how communication can help us better understand our world and each other. I am interested in communicating science in diverse ways, developing effective strategies to help programs run successfully, using plain language, and designing information products that are visually appealing and audience-appropriate.
"Plain language" is communication your audience will understand the first time they read it. Obama signed the Plain Writing Act in 2010, requiring federal agencies to use clear prose in communication with the public. Communicating science using plain language keeps your readers from falling asleep or walking out, and it does not require dumbing research down. Einstein said, "Most of the fundamental ideas of science are essentially simple, and may, as a rule, be expressed in a language comprehensible to everyone."
Education
- Portland State University, M.S., Professional writing, 2009
- Oberlin College, B.S., Biology and English, 1993
Professional Organizations
-
Member,
Federal Communicators Network,
2011 -
Current
Board member. In charge of speaker recruitment.
Featured Publications
- White, Rachel; McCaffrey, Sarah. 2007. Fuels planning: science synthesis and integration
- White, Rachel; Molina, Randy. 2006. The Pacific Northwest Research Station biodiversity initiative: scooping out the challenges in managing for biodiversity.
- Rainville, Robert; White, Rachel; Barbour, Jamie, tech. eds... 2008. Assessment of timber availability from forest restoration within the Blue Mountains of Oregon.
- Nelson, Peter; White, Rachel; Molina, Randy. 2006. The Pacific Northwest Research Station biodiversity initiative: collaborating for biodiversity management.
Other Publications
- Hessburg, Paul F.; Charnley, Susan ; Wendel, Kendra L.; White, Eric M.; Singleton, Peter H.; Peterson, David W.; Halofsky, Jessica E.; Gray, Andrew N.; Spies, Thomas A.; Flitcroft, Rebecca L.; White, Rachel. 2020. The 1994 Eastside Screens large-tree harvest limit: review of science relevant to forest planning 25 years later
- White, Rachel ; Prevey, Janet ; Hollingsworth, Teresa ; Andersen, Hans. 2019. Warming in the Cold North
- White, Rachel ; Johnson, Morris ; Vaillant, Nicole ; Fried, Jeremy. 2018. Fuel treatments: Are we doing enough
- White, Rachel; Hessburg, Paul; Larkin, Sim; Varner, Morgan. 2017. Smoke in a new era of fire
- White, Rachel; Charnley, Susan; Grant, Gordon; Rowland, Mary; Wisdom, Michael. 2016. Restoring rivers, sustaining communities
- White, Rachel; Nicholls, David; Brackley, Allen; Deering, Robert. 2015. Alaska s energy anxiety
- Meyer, Rachelle S.; Nicholls, David L.; Patterson, Trista M.; White, Rachel E.. 2013. Energy efficiency in U.S. Forest Service facilities: a multiregion review
- White, Rachel; Mazza, Rhonda. 2011. Landscape models: helping land managers think big