New directives under U.S. President Donald Trump have made it increasingly difficult for U.S. government scientists to engage in international meetings or virtual collaborations, particularly with Canadian counterparts. Aaron Fisk, a Canadian ecologist and Canada Research Chair at the University of Windsor, recently experienced this when a U.S. government scientist was denied access to a virtual meeting discussing fish sampling in the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes’ shared ecosystem between the U.S. and Canada makes such collaborations crucial, and the new restrictions have had profound effects on cross-border scientific efforts.
Fisk’s research, funded by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), has been significantly impacted, with over $700,000 U.S. in research funds frozen. Two major Great Lakes projects, including fish migration studies and climate change research on Lake Erie, are now on hold. Internal NOAA communications reveal new policies that limit international engagements, including virtual meetings on a wide range of topics like climate change, ocean mapping, and Arctic security.
Despite official denials from NOAA officials regarding any stop on international communications, many scientists, like Fisk, see these actions as detrimental to global scientific collaboration. With U.S. scientists increasingly isolated, experts worry about the long-term consequences of these policies on both U.S. and global research. The freeze on NOAA research funding is part of a larger trend of budget cuts and staffing reductions across multiple U.S. scientific agencies. Canadian scientists, including those in Quebec, are now faced with the possibility of drawing talent from U.S. institutions, as many researchers begin to question the future of U.S. scientific leadership.
Source: Swifteradio.com
