Rush, a recognized voice in contemporary environmental writing, was selected by Reed's senior class.
April 9, 2026
Press Release
Award-winning author Elizabeth Rush will deliver the keynote address to graduates at Reed College’s 112th Commencement on May 18, 2026.
Rush, whose work explores climate change, motherhood, and human relationships on a rapidly changing planet, is a 2006 Reed graduate.
Rush is the author of The Quickening: Motherhood, Antarctica, and Cultivating Hope in a Warming World and Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Her writing has appeared in leading publications including The New York Times, Orion, and Harper’s.
A widely recognized voice in contemporary environmental writing, Rush has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Science Foundation, National Geographic, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
“Elizabeth Rush brings a combination of literary artistry and scientific insight to some of the most urgent issues of our time,” said Reed College President Audrey Bilger. “We are delighted that she was chosen as the Commencement speaker for Reed’s class of 2026 and honored to welcome her back to campus.”
Rush began her career as a journalist covering global and environmental stories, including international assignments early in her career. She spent considerable time reporting from coastal and climate-impacted communities, which became the foundation for Rising, winner of the National Outdoor Book Award. Her work is often described as immersive or lyric reportage due to her combination of firsthand interviews, travel, and environmental observation.
Rush is an assistant professor at Brown University, where she teaches creative nonfiction. She is also affiliated with the Institute at Brown for Environment and Society. Her research and writing focus on climate change and sea level rise, frontline communities, and environmental storytelling and justice.
Rush earned her BA in English from Reed College in 2006 and an MFA in nonfiction at Southern New Hampshire University. She was selected as the Commencement speaker by Reed’s senior class.
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About Reed College
Founded in 1908 in southeast Portland, Oregon, Reed College is a coeducational, independent liberal arts and sciences college. Referred to as one of the most intellectual colleges in the country, Reed is known for its high standards of scholarly practice, creative thinking, and engaged citizenship.
Reed College is devoted to the intrinsic value of intellectual pursuit and is governed by the highest standards of scholarly practice, critical thought, and creativity. Its undergraduate program of study, leading to the degree of Bachelor of Arts, is demanding and intense and balances breadth of knowledge across the curriculum with depth of knowledge in a particular field of study. The goal of a Reed education is that students learn and demonstrate rigor and independence in their habits of thought, inquiry, and expression.