AGU Blogosphere

13 November 2025

Don’t Just Reopen Government. Recommit to Science.

The United States has just come through the longest government shutdown in its history—a period of deep uncertainty that exacerbated hardships for the nation. Some scientists still reported for duty, delivering life-saving forecasts and monitoring hazards without pay. But with labs closed and research halted, the critical work behind those services—modeling, maintenance, and long-term observations—was stalled, eroding the scientific foundation that helps protect lives, livelihoods, and the environment. The impacts …

6 October 2025

AGU Condemns Threatened Mass Firings of U.S. Federal Workforce During Shutdown

I write to you today outraged on behalf of everyone who depends on a functioning government. Last Wednesday, the U.S. government shut down. Now, the threat of mass firings looms over our federal workforce. Many of our members are hardworking U.S. federal scientists who have dedicated their careers to serving the public. When federal scientists are forced from government service, they often lose their life’s work—and the agencies they serve …

14 March 2025

A Continuing Resolution Is a Blow to U.S. Science — and the Public

The American public deserves better. Science drives progress, but it can’t do that with stopgap funding and political gridlock. It’s time to end the cycle. Science needs certainty and sustained financial growth – and the recognition by Congress that undermining science shortchanges American competitiveness in the world. Unfortunately, even the most thoughtfully crafted spending bill from Congress means little if the executive branch refuses to implement it in good faith. …

5 March 2025

The State of the Science Union

What You Didn’t Hear Last Night but Need to Know Last night, President Trump addressed a joint session of Congress. Titled “The Renewal of the American Dream,” there was heavy emphasis on the economy, border security, and foreign relations, but what you didn’t hear was the realities of a hollowing out of the federal workforce that has weakened critical scientific expertise, abdicated climate leadership, shrunk important research, and frozen global …