Various U.S. federal agencies sent a 36-point survey to researchers abroad who receive U.S. funding, asking questions related to the Trump administration’s priorities. The questions cover topics such as “eradicating anti-Christian bias” and defending against “gender ideology,” and asked researchers to disclose ties to “entities associated with communist, socialist or totalitarian parties.”
Research & Developments
Brief updates on the effects of policy changes on science. These articles have no teaser and are not assigned a DOI.
Posted inResearch & Developments
NIH Cancels Climate and Health Research Grants
The Trump administration’s intentions toward addressing climate change are clear: Federal agencies purged mentions of the climate crisis from their websites and slashed funding for mitigation tools such as the Future Risk Index. Now, those intentions are extending to health research: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has begun to cancel funding for investigations into the health effects of climate change, and will not financially support new research on the subject, according to ProPublica and Nature.
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NASA Abandons Pledge to Put Women, Astronauts of Color on the Moon
NASA has dropped its commitment to land the first woman, the first person of color, and the first non-American astronaut on the Moon through the Artemis program.
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Hiring Freezes, Rescinded Funding, Cancelled Programs: How Federal Funding Cuts Are Affecting Universities
Universities across the United States are feeling the effects from a wave of policies the Trump administration and its Department of Government Efficiency say are aimed at making the government more productive.
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French Scientist, En Route to Conference, Denied U.S. Entry for Trump-Critical Messages
On 9 March, a French researcher traveling to a science conference near Houston, Texas, was denied entry to the United States and expelled back to France.
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Trump Administration Plans to Fire More Than 1,000 EPA Scientists
The Trump Administration plans to fire more than 1,000 scientists in the EPA’s research arm. The layoffs are part of a “reduction in force” that comes after the agency already fired hundreds of probationary workers. (A federal judge has since ordered that these employees be reinstated, and though the administration has complied, most of the workers have been placed on administrative leave.)
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Firings Reversed: Judge Says Some Federal Workers Must Be Reinstated
Today, a federal judge in San Francisco ordered the Trump administration to offer reinstatement to all probationary employees previously fired from the departments of Agriculture, Defense, Energy, Interior, Treasury and Veterans Affairs.
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EPA Moves to Rewrite Water Rules Following Sackett Decision
EPA administrator Lee Zeldin announced today that the agency would kick off a review of EPA rules and redefine “waters of the United States” to ensure that the agency aligns with the 2023 Supreme Court decision Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which limited the implementation of the Clean Water Act.
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United States and Ukraine Weigh Mineral Deal
When U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met to sign a minerals agreement on 28 February, their discussion devolved into a heated, and widely covered, exchange. The minerals agreement, if signed, would result in half of Ukraine’ future revenue from minerals and natural resources going to the United States, in exchange for U.S. military support.
Posted inResearch & Developments
EPA Plans to Close Environmental Justice Offices, Leaving Communities to Face Pollution Alone
Yesterday, news broke that a memo from Lee Zeldin, the new administrator of the EPA, directed the agency to eliminate all offices that focus on environmental justice.