It has been my honor and delight to work with Rachel in her capacity as editor for The Local Germany. Rachel brings to bear her own extensive background as a hard-hitting, award-winning journalist and instincts for powerful stories, and combines them with the invaluable human management skills that distinguish gifted and beloved editors. She possesses the ability to have a conversation with a writer, identify that person’s passions and areas of expertise, pair their gifts with her platform’s needs and the most relevant areas of breaking news for the audience, and use this focusing lens to turn pitches into sustained, conversation-building reporting series with real value for the medium and its readers. In short, she knows how to coax the best out of people.

Beyond the always-enjoyable process of collaborating with Rachel on reporting concepts, her editing is every writer’s dream. She’s fast, responsive, kind, empathetic, precise and unswervingly positive even when making or requesting edits and steering a piece towards its best final form. She has an immaculate eye for quality, structure and how to best flesh out story concepts.

I’ve worked with Rachel from the freelance side of the business, but even as a non-staffer, I can tell how committed and willing to go that extra mile she is for her colleagues at The Local. Whether accepting more responsibility to cover a coworker’s maternity leave and rising magnificently to the challenge as Acting Editor, or conceiving and spearheading the creation of a successful new podcast, she clearly gives 200 percent at all times and is an amazing asset for her team. Her drive and constant search for new ways to tell brilliant stories inspires me in my own journalism and makes me want to take my game to the next level.

Beyond her well-established role in the international journalism industry, she is a trusted and valued figure within the Berlin expat community. Her voice carries tremendous weight and shapes opinion and discourse on a broad range of current issues.