Thousands ‘Stand Up for Science’ in Bay Area to rally against Trump’s cuts

At rallies across the United States, including Berkeley, San Francisco, and Palo Alto, communities gathered to defend scientific research against proposed federal funding cuts by the Trump administration.

Speaking to ABC7 News, Professor Ted Miguel emphasized the fundamental role of science in daily life, stating, “Science isn’t just some abstract thing. It’s what makes us healthy, it’s what makes us rich, it’s what gives us technology – it gives us our iPhone. So, if we attack it, we’re really not going to live the same kind of lives we want to live and I think it’s really dangerous.”

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) faces substantial budget reductions, jeopardizing research into critical diseases like Alzheimer’s, cancer, and heart disease. Since January, grant funding has been threatened, and thousands of scientific employees have lost their jobs, raising concerns about the long-term consequences.

A federal judge has temporarily blocked the NIH budget reductions, but the battle over funding continues.

Hundreds march through campus, rally for science

The Stand Up For Science protest took place at UC Berkeley’s Sproul Plaza on Friday 7th March, with hundreds rallying before marching through campus. Part of a nationwide movement, the protest aimed to prevent political censorship in science, reinstate terminated federal employees, and restore research funding and DEI initiatives.

Ted Miguel joined the protest, standing in solidarity together with other students and faculty members from UC Berkeley. Speaking to The Daily Californian, Ted remarked, “First of all, we want to inform people. There have been such radical changes: firing government scientists, cutting government research grants — it’s been really devastating for scientific research and threatens the fact that our universities and scientific institutions are the best in the world.”

Other UC Berkeley speakers included Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna, Bryan Méndez and Rena Dorph who warned that funding cuts threaten their work and science education programs.

Co-sponsored by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), the protest featured chants like “save democracy, protect science.” Protesters argued that Trump’s policies undermine progress and economic growth, contradicting his promises of a “golden age of America.”

In a hot room, you’re told to play a vicious game. Will heat make you behave badly?

Here’s an experiment that seems excruciating to imagine in the midst of the current global heat wave: Starting six years ago, researchers began putting thousands of people in baking hot rooms to find out if high temperatures may make us more violent. The findings surprised even the scientists – and could have major implications for world peace.

Climate education for equitable future

As the adverse effects of the climate crisis become increasingly imminent, the call for equity in all spheres of life needs to be equated with the call for climate change education (CCE). It is imperative for the educational curriculum to incorporate climate education as an integral element of every discipline, from STEM courses to literature and the arts. The significance of a curriculum inclusive of climate education lies in its interdisciplinary potential to build students who can initiate cross-sectoral climate action. However, school curricula in India currently lack this focus on interdisciplinary climate studies.

Soaring temperatures and food prices threaten violent unrest

As the world warms, the link between heat and social disturbance is an increasingly important one and, this summer, an especially concerning one. Each upheaval has its own causes, but certain factors make disturbances more likely everywhere. Surging temperatures, rising food prices and cuts to public spending—three of the strongest predictors of turmoil—have driven estimates of the potential for unrest to unprecedented highs in recent months. These estimates will probably rise higher still this summer. Temperatures are unlikely to have peaked. Russia’s exit from the Black Sea Grain Initiative to export supplies from Ukraine and India’s recent ban on rice exports may raise the price of staples. Social unrest is already bubbling in Kenya, India, Israel and South Africa.

Experts Call on Governments to use available evidence to improve the lives of people

Evidence-informed policies are what Africa needs to improve people’s lives, experts meeting in Nairobi for the 11th Africa Evidence Summit on evidence-informed policy governance said.

According to experts at the meeting and drawn from worldwide, governments will begin setting the right development priorities, design cost-effective interventions, and enhance program implementation when using research evidence.

Experts urge Governments to Use Evidence for Improving People’s Lives Effectively

During the 11th Africa Evidence Summit held in Nairobi, experts emphasized the importance of evidence-informed policies for improving the lives of people in Africa. They highlighted that governments should prioritize research evidence to set development priorities, design cost-effective interventions, and enhance program implementation.