Brain-drain to Paris: France courts US scientists unhappy with Trump

Anne-Laure Dufeal

As US researchers have voiced concerns over the direction of science and research policy under US President Donald Trump’s administration, France has positioned itself as a welcoming destination for those seeking “academic freedom”.

Philippe Baptiste, France’s Minister for Higher Education and Research, has urged the country’s academic institutions to prepare for an influx of scientists considering leaving the US.

On March 9, in a letter addressed to the French National Research Agency (ANR), organisations such as the French National Centre for Scientific Research is the French (CNRS) and Inserm, the country’s institute for health, as well as medical research and universities, Baptiste emphasised the potential for France to attract top-tier talent.

“Many well-known researchers are already wondering about their future in the United States,” he wrote. “We would naturally like to welcome a certain number of them.”

Baptiste called on higher education leaders to submit their “thoughts, alerts, analyses, and concrete proposals” on how best to facilitate this migration and the mechanisms necessary to support incoming scholars.

In an interview with La Tribune on March 9, Yasmine Belkaid, director general of the Institut Pasteur and a former immunology researcher in the US, described the situation as both a crisis and an opportunity.

“What we’re seeing is a strong desire for scientists from the United States to return to or leave for Europe,” she said.

“Every day I receive requests from people — French, Europeans, even Americans, who no longer feel able to conduct their research freely. You could call it a sad opportunity but it’s an opportunity all the same,” she added.

Aix-Marseille Université, one of France’s largest institutions, has already taken concrete steps, launching its “Safe Place for Science” programme on March 7.

The initiative aimed to welcome researchers currently working in the US, particularly those in fields such as climate science, environmental research, health and the humanities.

Eric Berton, the university’s president, said the institution expected to raise around €10 million to host approximately 15 researchers in collaboration with local institutions.

The announcement coincided with “Stand up for Science” protests across the US on March 7, as scientists, doctors, students and engineers demonstrated in major cities, including New York and Washington, against what they saw as an assault on scientific research in the Trump era.

Europeans also mobilised in solidarity through rallies in major European Union cities and universities.

Activists participate in the Stand Up for Science 2025 rally at the Lincoln Memorial on March 7, 2025 in Washington. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Since his return to the White House in January 2025, Trump has made changes affecting the scientific community in his country. These have included cuts to federal research funding, withdrawal from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and efforts to dismiss federal workers focused on health and climate research.

In October 2020, during his first term, the Trump administration introduced a strategy to focus on artificial intelligence, quantum computing and energy innovation, technologies critical for national security and economic dominance.

With his latest round of funding cuts, the President appeared to be doubling down, ensuring that taxpayer money fuelled research that directly benefited US citizens rather than subsidising what he saw “as ideological activism” disguised as science.

According to its website, the Stand Up for Science movement has been pushing back against what it saw as growing political interference in research.

It demanded the end of so-called censorship, the securing of more taxpayer funding for scientific projects and defended Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) and accessibility in the science field.

“Science is strongest when it includes everyone. Attacks on diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility are attacks on science itself,” the group declared on its website.

DEI policies in the US have been a target of Trump’s administration, which has made it clear that taxpayer-funded science should prioritise results over ideology.

During his electoral campaign, Trump vowed to purge “wokeness” from education and put an end “to left-wing indoctrination in academia”.

In an op-ed in Left-leaning French national media, Le Monde published on March 4, French Nobel Prize winners Esther Duflo and Anne L’Huillier and climatologist Christophe Cassou denounced “unprecedented attacks” in the US.

“Today, universities and research are the target of unprecedented attacks in the US, threatening one of the pillars of democracy,” they said.

Sensing an opportunity, France has been eager to present itself as a haven for researchers fleeing Trump’s policies.

Paris’ record on academic funding tells a different story, though.

In 2024, the French Government slashed €904 million from its higher education and research budget, with further cuts in 2025.

Energy research, sustainable mobility, and space programmes have been among the hardest hit, with the CNRS sufffering a €100 million reduction in funding.

Nevertheless, with the growing rift between the US and Europe, Paris could hope to position itself as a leader in scientific research.

“Fundamental research is the source of extraordinary economic power. Protecting research and science also means defending Europe and a certain idea of Europe, the continent of the Enlightenment,” argued Belkaid.