In the 1930s, the rise of the Nazi regime in Germany forced a large number of scientists, many of whom were of Jewish origin, into exile in the United States. Some of these scientists helped change the course of history, making the 20th century the “American century.” The prosperity of the US was partially built on the intellectual contributions of these immigrants, who thrived in a university system inspired by the German model.
With Donald Trump back in power, this system of knowledge production and transfer is now undermined. The ferocity and swiftness of his attacks against science initially left the academic world in a state of shock. In a context far less dramatic than a century ago, is it time for another crossing of the Atlantic, this time toward Europe?
In 2017, France launched an initiative to welcome scientific refugees to our country through the Pause program, which has already brought 694 researchers and artists to the country. However, the government decided to cut its funding by more than half for 2025, just when Trump’s offensive against research was launched, catching it off guard.
Following universities such as Aix-Marseille and organizations like the French National Center for Scientific Research that offered to attract scientists impeded by the Trump administration, the government decided to support these initiatives. The European Union reached the same conclusion: It is essential, in the face of the US and China, to make another voice heard regarding academic freedoms.
Emmanuel Macron and Ursula von der Leyen attend the “Choose Europe for Science” event in Paris on May 5, 2025. GONZALO FUENTES/REUTERS
This is the purpose of “Choose Europe for Science,” the conference organized on May 5 at the Sorbonne. French President Emmanuel Macron announced a budget of €100 million from the France 2030 investment program to support these hosting projects – apart from Pause. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed an additional €500 million to bolster European attractiveness, and not just for American scientists. Decisions to protect and/or replicate databases and research infrastructures as “global public goods” – in health or climate – should follow.
We can only welcome this signal of support for research and academic freedoms, especially when these freedoms were recently attacked by government members. However, there should be no illusions about the amounts involved compared to the damage inflicted by the US on its own research apparatus.
Moreover, these announcements come at a time when the French scientific community feels that the reforms undertaken since 2017 do not meet the challenge: €387 million in unallocated funds from the 2025 budget have just been canceled. Set 25 years ago in Lisbon, the goal of spending 3% of GDP on research and development is still not in sight – France was ranked 17th globally in 2022, at 2.2% compared to an EU average of 2.1% and the US at 3.6%.
“There’s no such thing as happy vassalage,” Macron emphasized on May 5, referring to Europe’s dependency on the US. Breaking free comes at a cost. Von der Leyen set the 2030 target at 3%. Upcoming European budgetary decisions will reveal the sincerity of the “Sorbonne appeal.”
Translation of an original article published in French on lemonde.fr; the publisher may only be liable for the French version.