In the wake of President-elect Donald Trump's impending return to office, a wave of apprehension has swept through the climate science community.
The fear stems from the potential for significant funding cuts to climate research, which could lead to job losses among scientists. This sentiment was palpable at the recent American Geophysical Union (AGU) meeting in Washington, D.C., where dozens of scientists voiced their concerns about the future of their field under the new administration.
According to The Post Millennial, the unease has been further fueled by the establishment of Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), co-chaired by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. Jill Brandenburger, climate security program manager at Pacific Northwest Laboratory, encapsulated the prevailing mood, stating, "Everybody at AGU is nervous. The unknown is what makes people nervous."
The second Trump administration is perceived as potentially more antagonistic towards research that forms the basis of federal regulations on environmental health and climate. Scientists from a range of government agencies, including NASA and NOAA, as well as the Energy Department's network of national laboratories, fear they may soon face circumstances that could threaten their work, obscure their research, or even lead to job losses. The consensus among these scientists is that they could become political targets.
The announcement of the DOGE, tasked with downsizing the government through funding cuts, has heightened these fears. There is a growing concern that federal climate science initiatives may be among the first to face the chopping block.
During Trump's first term, his administration proposed the elimination of NASA Earth observation research funding and the removal of climate information from federal websites. Furthermore, Trump appointed individuals who were openly critical of climate science to key positions within the White House and prominent agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Andrew Dessler, President of AGU's global environmental change section, expressed the fatigue felt by climate scientists who feel their research is under constant attack. "It's not so much that we people have evidence that it's going to be bad. It's just that if you look at what they say, that's clearly what they want to do," he said. As the Trump administration prepares to take the reins once more, the climate science community braces for what could be a challenging period ahead.
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