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   The first American ‘scientific refugees’ arrive in France   
   Aix-Marseille University is wooing researchers who feel targeted by the   
   Trump administration.   
   Free article usually reserved for subscribers   
   Safe place science   
   U.S. researcher Brian Sandberg applied for the “Safe Place for Science"   
   program. He said the U.S. research and education systems were "really   
   under attack." | Victor Goury-Laffont/POLITICO   
   July 1, 2025 4:22 am CET   
   By Victor Goury-Laffont   
   MARSEILLE, France — The first American academics fleeing Donald Trump's   
   America for France have arrived.   
   Aix-Marseille University last week introduced eight U.S.-based   
   researchers who were in the final stage of joining the institution's   
   “Safe Place for Science" program, which aims to woo researchers who have   
   experienced or fear funding cuts under the Trump administration. AMU   
   offers the promise of a brighter future in the sun-drenched   
   Mediterranean port city.   
   While both France and the European Union have launched multimillion-euro   
   plans to woo researchers across the pond since Trump assumed the U.S.   
   presidency in January, AMU's initiative was the first of its kind in the   
   country — meaning the eight researchers who were welcomed are the first   
   academic refugees planning to trade the United States for France.   
   Speaking from the university’s hilltop astrophysics lab, AMU President   
   Eric Berton likened the situation to that of European academics who fled   
   persecution by Nazi Germany both before and during World War II.   
   “What is at play here today is not unrelated to another dark period of   
   our history,” he said.   
   Berton and former French President François Hollande have pushed for the   
   creation of a "scientific refugee" status.   
   As most of the researchers who attended Berton’s speech had not yet   
   signed their contracts with AMU, they requested anonymity to protect   
   their stateside research positions if they ended up not being admitted   
   or declining the offer.   
   Among the applicants were James, a climate scientist at a reputable   
   research university, and his wife, who studies the intersection of   
   judicial systems and democracies. James said they had applied because   
   they were “working in areas which are targeted” and could be prone to   
   funding cuts.   
   While James, who didn't want his surname used, said he doesn't think of   
   himself and his fellow academics as "refugees," he voiced deep concern   
   about the future of academic research under Trump.   
   Brian Sandberg, a professor of history at Northern Illinois University   
   who researches climate change during the Little Ice Age period from   
   roughly the 16th to 19th centuries, had already been set to spend a year   
   in Marseille as a visiting professor. While taking part in a workshop in   
   the city in March, he learned of AMU’s program and decided to apply.   
   "The entire system of research and the entire education in the United   
   States is really under attack," Sandberg said.   
   AMU said 298 researchers from prestigious universities including   
   Stanford and Yale had applied, despite the university's lack of name   
   recognition outside France compared to some of its Parisian   
   counterparts. Berton said the high volume of applicants spoke to the   
   "urgency" of the situation across the Atlantic.   
   The university’s president insisted that participants in the “Safe Place   
   for Science” program would be paid the same wages as French researchers.   
   | Clement Mahoudeau/AFP via Getty Images   
   The school has already put up €15 million to pay for the program and is   
   lobbying the French government to match that figure, which would enable   
   it to nearly double its planned hires from 20 to 39.   
   Still, moving to a new country where English is not the official   
   language a big step. There's also the issue of salaries, which are lower   
   for academics in France than in the United States, and the fact there's   
   less money for research.   
   An early-career biological anthropologist said she was still awaiting   
   contract details from AMU before putting pen to paper because of salary   
   discrepancies, though she took comfort in the fact that the cost of   
   living is lower in France — especially considering that education for   
   her two children, who she said were eager to settle in Marseille, would   
   be free.   
   The university’s president insisted that participants in the “Safe Place   
   for Science” program would be paid the same wages as French researchers.   
   The statement sought to appease concerns within France’s academic   
   community that money would now be focused on drawing U.S. scientists   
   whereas local researchers have long complained of insufficient funding.   
   But the biological anthropologist said a more carefree life could   
   compensate for a lower salary. "There’ll be a lot less stress as a   
   whole, politically, academically," she reflected.   
      
      
   https://www.politico.eu/article/meet-first-academic-refugees-fleeing-us-   
   france-science-program/   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
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