To assist in preparing research highlights, the DOE Office of Science has developed a succinct description of how to write a research summary for a nontechnical audience and what it should contain. It provides an example of the difference between an abstract from a scientific publication and a plain language research summary. This valuable two-page description could also be used by a PI to develop a verbal description of the work contained in their publication for a general audience.
Environmental System Science Program
U.S. Department of Energy | Office of Science | Biological and Environmental Research Program