How these scientists are uniting the world around climate change (video)
As U.S. sheds mantle of scientific leadership, France becomes a magnet for climate scientists, with the rallying cry to 鈥淢ake Our Planet Great Again.鈥�
As U.S. sheds mantle of scientific leadership, France becomes a magnet for climate scientists, with the rallying cry to 鈥淢ake Our Planet Great Again.鈥�
James Clark arrived at the foot of the French Alps in the midst of a historic heat wave. It was a fitting welcome, given his work. The Duke University professor is one of 43 scientists who are relocating their climate research to France as part of the 鈥淢ake Our Planet Great Again鈥� initiative, or MOPGA.聽
Launched by France in response to America鈥檚 withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, MOPGA aims to draw top scientists from around the world to conduct climate-related research in French and German labs. But despite its name, MOPGA is about much more than politics. For participants like Professor Clark, it鈥檚 a chance to think long-term about Earth鈥檚 future with a level of support they have not felt in the United States. 鈥淵ou have very smart people all over the country who have almost no research budgets,鈥� he says. 鈥淭his is a trend that鈥檚 been going on for decades.鈥�
More than half of the incoming scientists, or MOPGA laureates, were previously based in the U.S. So far, the program is relatively small. But it鈥檚 meant to become something big. 鈥淲e are quite sure the program will have a snowball effect,鈥� says MOPGA scientific coordinator St茅phane Blanc. 鈥淎nd what鈥檚 put in place will lead to different programs.鈥澛�