About Science Policy

Dr. Rachel Owen is the Government Relations Manager for the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America. Most recently, Rachel co-founded Missouri Science and Technology (MOST) Policy Initiative in 2016 and served as the executive director from 2019 to 2021. In 2021, Rachel co-founded SciTech Forefront, a Medium publication aimed to bring science policy writers together to share resources and articles. She now serves as the Co-Editor of Forefront. Rachel is also the Development Director of Engineers and Scientists Acting Locally (ESAL).

Dr. Owen received her Ph.D. in the University of Missouri School of Natural Resources, researching the impact of a changing climate on wetland ecosystems and landowner perceptions of climate and agricultural threats in the Great Plains. In 2018, Dr. Owen was awarded the Science-to-Action Fellowship through the U.S. Geological Survey which allowed her to work with landowners in the southern Great Plains to better understand climate change perceptions and wetland conservation priorities. Prior to moving to Missouri, she completed her B.S. in Agronomy and Global Resources Systems at Iowa State University and her M.S. in Plant Science from South Dakota State University. Her master’s thesis focused on better understanding field-scale spatial variability of saline and sodic soils in the northern Great Plains.

Dr. Owen was appointed as an adjunct faculty member in the School of Natural Resources and the Graduate School at the University of Missouri in 2021. Owen has published several soil science journal articles from her PhD research, MS research, and teaching experiences. Dr. Owen has served on various committees with the American Society of Agronomy and Soil Science Society of America, including as the graduate student representative to the Board of Directors of the Soil Science Society of America in 2018-2019.

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