UW-Madison researcher loses Fulbright award for climate change project

Four days before Rick Lindroth planned to leave Madison and fly to Argentina, he received an email saying his Fulbright award had been rescinded.

“That was a head spinner,” said Lindroth, a professor emeritus in the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s entomology department.

Lindroth spent more than a year finalizing paperwork and securing approvals for his Fulbright Specialist Program award. Part of the larger Fulbright Program, the federal State Department established the specialist program in 2001. The competitive, short-term award pairs U.S. academics with institutions to share their expertise abroad.

Lindroth specializes in chemical ecology — how plant chemistry influences ecosystems — and the ecological consequences of climate change.

As his trip approached, Lindroth said, “I was getting a little nervous hearing about all these awards and grants that were suspended” under the Trump administration. Lindroth said he checked with the Fulbright Program a few weeks ago and his project appeared to still be on track. So, he booked his flights and lodging.

Lindroth was set to travel to Argentina March 1 and spend three weeks working in a lab at the University of Buenos Aires. He expected to help researchers set up experiments and studies examining the effects of climate change on plants in the Buenos Aires area.

Instead, Lindroth received an email from a program administrator Feb. 25 saying his project was canceled “due to a change in United States’ government priorities.” While he didn’t receive additional explanation, Lindroth said he thinks his project was canceled because the term “climate change” was in the title: “Integrating Chemical Ecology and Climate Change Research.”

Since President Donald Trump took office in January, the federal government has withdrawn from global programs and agreements aiming to address climate change. Federal agencies have removed references to “climate change” from websites or replaced the term with “climate resilience,” The Washington Post reported.

Lindroth isn’t alone in seeing his Fulbright award upended. Last month, Jason Slavick, the artistic director of a theater ensemble, learned his trip to Colombia was canceled, The Boston Globe reported. Slavick received the same explanation as Lindroth. However, Slavick’s project mentioned the words “diversity,” “equity” and “inclusion,” according to The Boston Globe.

Last week, Orla Flynn, president of Atlantic Technology University in Ireland, said she was “deeply disappointed” by the Trump administration’s decision to cancel a visiting Fulbright Specialist, who was expected to help the university address gender-based violence.

Lindroth said he spent thousands of dollars of his own money on flights and lodging in Argentina that he’s since had to cancel. He is unsure whether he’ll be refunded for all the expenses he paid upfront.

Cuts to federally funded research harms the United States’ reputation around the globe, Lindroth said. For decades, researchers at UW-Madison and other institutions have prided themselves in helping other nations develop scientific expertise in medicine, astronomy and other academic fields.

Hundreds of people gathered in the rotunda of the state Capitol Friday to participate in “Stand Up for Science” rallies organized across the country. Attendees were greeted by a marching band playing outside as snow fell on downtown Madison. People carried signs that said, “Cut billionaires, not science” and, “Saving lives is more important than saving money.”

Speakers emphasized how science performed in Wisconsin has wide-ranging economic and life-saving effects. They called on the Trump administration to restore federal funding for research.

For example, UW-Madison could lose roughly $65 million this year if a proposed cut to National Institutes of Health funding for some research expenses moves forward. The money is critical to keeping UW-Madison’s research labs up and running, Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin has said.

In his nearly four decades working for UW-Madison, Lindroth served as a faculty member and associate dean for research in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. He worked on research at the university that received funding from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other federal agencies.

“What’s being threatened, proposed, paused by the Trump administration is extraordinary and will be exceedingly damaging,” Lindroth said.