We live in very turbulent times that also affect scientific progress and the generation of knowledge. How do we confront future pandemics? How do we mitigate climate change? How do we search for new energy sources? The role of science is a subject of debate around the world precisely when global challenges demand joint responses based on scientific evidence. And, paradoxically, science and the scientific community are under severe attack.
This offensive manifests itself in various ways. In the United States of America (USA), it has seen a frontal assault on the academic world, with cuts in research investment and restrictions on what is known as academic freedom, which implies that there is no government interference in research conducted in a country. The objective in this case is to reduce critical thinking, clearly jeopardizing scientific and social progress. Public funding is not a whim; it is the guarantee of independent, solid, and stable research.
We cannot ignore the impact of the US administration's drift on global research. Historically, the US has been a magnet for global scientific and technological talent. They have recruited the best talent, funded researchers from around the world, and, thanks to the construction of this strong community, have clearly led the way in research. The cuts in funding for the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation are not just a domestic US problem. To give one example, the erosion of these programs threatens research into global diseases such as AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria, which cause more than 2.5 million deaths annually. Systematic attacks on academia not only weaken research in the US, but also do so on a global scale and affect us all.
Pressure against science is not exclusive to the US. In Europe, we also observe a worrying trend. The debate over funding for the European Union's future framework program for research and innovation (FP10) raises concerns about a possible shift in the model: a shift from support for research based on excellence and curiosity to research defined and conditioned by other interests. We must understand that there is no applied research without fundamental research, which is what leads to discoveries that challenge dogmas and what has enabled the great scientific and technological advances in our society. To think that only applied research is truly useful is to misunderstand how scientific and technological development works.
Faced with this scenario, several European institutions are mobilizing. The Milan Declaration, which we at UPF endorse, warns of the need to defend the role of science in global decision-making. The Warsaw Declaration also advocates for an FP10 focused on the pursuit of excellence, international collaboration, and the protection of strategic programs such as the European Research Council (ERC), which funds risky scientific projects based on their quality, or the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), which enable the best mobility in Europe. At Pompeu Fabra University, with our European alliances, especially The Guild, we are working to defend these ideas before the European Commission. With a clear conviction that has been repeated many times, but which we seem to refuse to fully believe: countries are rich because they invest in research; they don't invest in research because they are rich.
Europe can and must seize this moment to attract and retain talent and lead a science based on independent research. Our future depends on science's ability to offer solutions to the major challenges of the 21st century. But for this to be possible, we must protect it, strengthen it, and place it at the heart of political priorities. We cannot afford to let our liabilities slide or allow ourselves the luxury of failure. We must rise to the challenge before us.
