Rachel Cohen
Environment and Outdoors ReporterRachel Cohen was a reporter for Boise State Public Radio from 2019 through May 2024.
Expertise: Environment, public health and local government reporting
Education: Middlebury College
Highlights
- The best part of my job is that I get to learn something new almost every day
- I love skiing and hiking in the Idaho outdoors
- National Science-Health-Environment Reporting Fellow (SHERF)
Experience
I cover environmental issues, outdoor recreation and local news for Boise State Public Radio. Beyond reporting, I contribute to the station’s digital strategy efforts and enjoy thinking about how our work can best reach and serve our audience.
I joined Boise State Public Radio in 2019 as a Report for America corps member, focusing on south central Idaho. Before moving here, I lived in several New England states and produced interviews at New Hampshire Public Radio. I got my start in public radio as an intern on NPR’s Science Desk in Washington, D.C.
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Homeowners insurance is getting more expensive and harder to keep. Lawmakers in our region introduced more than a dozen policy proposals in response this year. -
Big conglomerates dominate ownership of America's ski resorts. When a Colorado ski hill went up for sale, a neighboring town launched a bid to buy it to preserve its relaxed culture and affordability.
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Utility companies have been sued to bankruptcy over downed power lines that caused deadly wildfires in Hawaii and California. A Colorado utility's power shutoff to prevent fire also caused problems.
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Schools are starting to ban student cell phones during classes. As one Colorado school tries it out — staff like the ban, but students not so much. (Story aired on ATC on 8/27/24.)
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More schools across the country are starting to ban students' cell phones during classes. As one Colorado school tries it out, staff like it, but students not so much.
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Colorado claims to have the longest-running gay rodeo in America. The Rocky Mountain Regional Rodeo is a place to challenge hyper-masculine expectations in country and western culture.
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The wind farm, located mostly on public lands in Jerome, Lincoln and Minidoka counties, could include up to 400 wind turbines, providing more than 1,000 megawatts of power. It's faced fierce opposition in Idaho. -
Have efforts to eradicate invasive mussels detected last fall in the Columbia River Basin been successful? Idaho officials are waiting to find out.
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One estimate says a quagga mussel infestation would cost the Pacific Northwest $500 million a year to deal with. -
The new project called EMBER — Embedding Molecular Biology in Ecosystem Research — was recently awarded a $15 million grant from the National Science Foundation.
