"When US President Donald Trump's administration started slashing science funding in January, Nicole Maphis wasn't especially worried about her research being affected. She studies the fundamental biology of Alzheimer's disease, which didn't strike her as a probable target. The change in leadership came at a pivotal time for Maphis: she was finishing her postdoctoral studies at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, and seeking a highly competitive grant from the US National Institutes of Health (NIH)."
"The trouble started in February. First, the funding opportunity to which she had applied disappeared. Then, a staff member at the NIH informed her that her proposal had been pulled from consideration. "I've never cried more as a scientist than in the last six months. To hear the NIH staff member say, 'I'm so sorry but your application has been moved', to what is essentially the trash, makes it seem that everything you're doing is worthless," Maphis says."
"She had become ensnared in Trump's war on anything with a connection to diversity, equity and inclusion. Maphis has been joined by thousands of other scientists who have been forced to halt their work as the administration continues to purge funding for science that doesn't align with its ideological road map. This includes research on climate change, COVID-19, RNA vaccines, the spread of misinformation and the health of women and people from sexual and gender minorities (LGBTQ+)."
Federal science funding cuts beginning in January removed grant opportunities and led to NIH proposals being pulled from consideration. A postdoctoral researcher seeking a diversity-focused NIH grant lost eligibility when the funding opportunity disappeared and was informed her application was moved to what staff described as essentially the trash. Thousands of scientists across fields have had work halted as funding for projects tied to diversity, climate, COVID-19, RNA vaccines, misinformation and LGBTQ+ and women's health is purged. Affected researchers are suing to reinstate grants, collecting records of budgetary impacts, and publicizing the damage.
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