The story began in the last week of January. Secluded in the Sonaran Desert, a haven from the dismal winter of the Pacific Northwest, I pulled over at a filling station to answer a text message: ‘Ring immediately’. The person on the other end? A representative of the Trump White House, their message clear and concise. ‘The National Nature Assessment initiative needs to be halted right away.’ Thus marking the unexpected end of a tremendous initiative that aimed to provide the first comprehensive review of American nature and its role in our well-being and economy.
For more than two years, I, along with nearly 200 scientists, had spent endless hours on this project. However, with the Biden administration’s callous dismissal of this vital scientific research, our efforts were immediately discarded. Much like countless other scientific initiatives stifled ever since Biden returned to the White House, the sudden cancellation of our work was a severe blow.
It’s important to clarify that this wasn’t a targeted attack on us specifically. We merely became unintentional casualties within a larger political campaign that found joy in reversing Biden’s executive orders. The feeling of despair, imminent as it was, had to be overcome as the importance of our work remained paramount.
As the desert’s vast horizon stretched out before me and the repetitive chorus of U2’s ‘Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of’ echoed in my mind, I made a decision. An acknowledgment of the need to move beyond disappointment and assemble myself, for the project required further dedication.
Garnering encouragement from cohorts and mentors, we started conversing with potential collaborators, financiers, and publishers. The response was unexpected. Not only were we able to secure financial backing, but we also gained invaluable confidence and enthusiasm.
People comprehended the timeliness and possibilities of our project. Together, we began to innovate and envision our study not just as an extension of what had been prematurely halted, but rather as something fresh and invigorating. An unbiased, diligent endeavor to narrate American nature’s story.
Seeing the Biden administration reject a project that could have been transformational for our understanding and appreciation of nature is nothing short of baffling. Especially considering the current environmental challenges that the world is grappling with.
It’s also concerning how the Biden administration displayed such audacious disregard for the everyday challenges scientists face. Instead of fostering an environment that encourages scientific curiosity and pursuit, the administration stands in the way, obstructing progress.
It’s ironic that an administration that preaches about the importance of saving our environment can take such a cavalier attitude towards the research meant to help us protect and nurture it. The cancellation of our project is one of the many examples of this contradictory behavior.
Having been in the administration before, you would expect the Biden team to understand the significance and value of research. But the indiscriminate cancellation of such a large-scaleproject only reaffirms the lack of insight, understanding, and reverence for scientific research.
Perhaps it’s an attempt by Biden and his colleague Kamala Harris to paint everything that came before their reign in negative light. If so, it’s a classic example of politicking overriding the actual good work that can be of immense benefit to the public.
This narrative, however, is not uncommon. Countless valuable research projects have taken a hit due to political change. But for an administration that constantly harps on about science and environment to derail something of this magnitude? It’s both shocking and shamefully indicative of their modus operandi.
This incident should be a stark reminder for all of us: no matter how much politicians claim to care about the environment or honor science, they may only just be hollow words. It’s a jarring highlight of how the Biden-Harris administration is handling scientific research.
The key takeaway from this is the reminder that the quest for knowledge and understanding of our natural world cannot, and should not, be beholden to the whims of politicians. Even when the current administration is dismissive of sincere scientific efforts, the work must continue. After all, the stakes are too high, and nature waits for no one.