The Trump administration has terminated National Science Foundation (NSF) grants funding more than 100 research projects related to climate change, severing tens of millions of dollars in support for studies already underway. This sweeping move, motivated by a broader campaign to dramatically reduce federal backing for climate science, affects initiatives developing cleaner energy, measuring greenhouse gases, and investigating environmental justice concerns. Affected grants span areas including heat wave impacts on marginalized communities and efforts supporting a more diverse scientific workforce. The cuts are a significant blow to the academic and scientific landscape, as the NSF represents one of the largest sources of funding for university-led research in the United States.
These terminations are not isolated—rather, they sit atop a growing stack of actions by the administration to slash research budgets and staff throughout federal science agencies. The White House is pushing to halt studies that assess climate and energy risks, while simultaneously raising financial burdens on universities. Daniel Schrag of Harvard University voiced concerns that these moves signal an intent to eliminate federal funding for climate science altogether, warning that the nation risks losing its leadership in scientific discovery. The NSF justified its decisions by claiming the affected grants didn´t align with agency goals, singling out projects focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), environmental justice, and the study of misinformation. However, the impacts extend well beyond those areas, with catalytic research and major climate models also imperiled.
Legal pushback is building. States including California and New York, along with leading universities like MIT and Harvard, have challenged the cuts, arguing Congress mandated investments in both scientific advancement and diversity. GrantWatch, a database tracking terminated funding, found the NSF canceled 118 climate-related projects—many mid-stream, some after substantial work had been completed. Reverberations are echoing through the scientific community: the abrupt cuts threaten long-standing observation programs, demoralize early-career researchers, and may drive top talent out of the field and the country. With the Trump administration proposing further sweeping cuts in the next federal budget, including near-elimination of climate, energy, and atmospheric research programs across multiple agencies, experts warn that the United States faces potentially catastrophic setbacks to climate science and its global leadership role.
