Trump’s cuts to climate research are derailing science and endangering long-term monitoring

The Trump administration’s decision to halt climate science funding and dismantle research infrastructure has already begun to upend major projects, forcing scientists to abandon long-term studies and scaling back the U.S. role in international climate assessments.

Scott Dance reports for The Washington Post.

In short:

• A $15 million federal grant to study biodiversity loss was canceled, stalling years of research on climate impacts on species and ecosystems.
• The administration has taken down key climate science websites, canceled contracts with scientific journals, and proposed eliminating climate research funding in the 2026 budget.
• Scientists are scaling back or ending long-term monitoring programs like the Keeling Curve due to funding threats, raising concerns about the loss of continuous climate data.

Key quote:

“We’re getting a message loud and clear from this administration: Climate and environmental research are not welcome in this country.”

— Jacquelyn Gill, professor of paleoecology and plant ecology, University of Maine

Why this matters:

Climate research depends on consistent funding and uninterrupted data collection, often over decades. Interruptions to programs like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's carbon monitoring or the Global Change Research Program mean critical gaps in understanding the pace and scope of climate change. The removal of public-facing resources like Climate.gov also restricts access to reliable information, affecting everyone from educators to emergency planners. At the same time, other countries are accelerating climate research and renewable investments, putting the U.S. at a global disadvantage. As the climate continues to warm — 2024 marked the hottest year on record — the decision to pull back from scientific inquiry and public transparency hampers the nation’s ability to prepare for rising seas, extreme weather, biodiversity collapse, and public health threats.

Read more: Major climate change reports vanish from US federal websites, raising transparency concerns