The massive changes in US research brought about by the new administration of President Donald Trump are causing many scientists in the country to rethink their lives and careers. More than 1,200 scientists who responded to a Nature poll — three-quarters of the total respondents — are considering leaving the United States following the disruptions prompted by Trump. Europe and Canada were among the top choices for relocation.
The trend was particularly pronounced among early-career researchers. Of the 690 postgraduate researchers who responded, 548 were considering leaving; 255 of 340 PhD students said the same.
I have answered this poll myself; this is meant for scientists of all career-stages, so a lot of PhD students and postdocs along with faculty members.
I don’t think the article is paywalled, but let me know if it is.
The article was not paywalled, also I think the term we like to use for this phenomenon is “brain drain.”
The climate research community has been gutted by what’s happening with the US government. NOAA and NWS collected some of the most important and valuable data in the world for this and now that’s pretty much over. It will take decades to undo what has been done in only a few months and I’m being hopeful.
We dont have decades left to act on climate. Unfortunately, this could be our nail in the coffin on this iteration of society.
That ship may have already sailed before this administration took over, but my hope was that society could restructure itself in a way that would still sustain human life. At this point we may even be on an extinction track if nothing changes. The world is chaotic enough at 1.5C. I shutter to imagine a world at 4C.
But poor brown people suffer those consequences, so who cares? /s
At 4C we aren’t getting out of this hellhole. The resource wars already seem to be drawing their lines now.
Thank you, Trump!
Your brain drain is Europe’s gain.
Not your personal brain drain… that one happened during gestation.
I hope things improve here in the US, but at some point there’s really nothing else to do but leave. There’s a point where the US simply becomes a lost cause. I don’t know if we’re there yet, but I don’t feel like things are heading in the right direction.
Thanks.
~ Europe
Are Canada and EU countries opening their arms welcomely to science refugees?
Sadly, not quite: several countries want to, but they all have their own funding difficulties. They are trying to though, since these days American scientists might be seen as being offered at a steep discount
Will science for food and, if you can spare it, shelter.
