Foundation

• Op 24 april 2026 heeft het Witte Huis alle 22 leden van de National Science Board ontslagen, het toezichthoudende orgaan van de Amerikaanse National Science Foundation die landelijk onderzoek financiert. • De NSF ondersteunt wetenschap en techniek in alle 50 staten en territoria, waarbij de raad onafhankelijke richtlijnen biedt voor subsidies ter waarde van miljarden per jaar. • De zuivering wekt zorgen op over de politisering van federale wetenschapsfinanciering, wat potentieel peer-reviewed onderzoek in de fysica, biologie en techniek kan verstoren dat de Amerikaanse innovatie aandrijft.

Positions ‘terminated, effective immediately’, says email to scientists sent on president’s behalf, in move labelled ‘dangerous attack’ on US innovationThe Trump administration has fired members of an independent board that oversees the National Science Foundation (NSF).Members of the National Science Board received an email on Friday sent from the Presidential Personnel Office “on behalf of President Donald J Trump” stating that their position was “terminated, effective immediately”. Continue reading...

Closure comes weeks after former Australian of the Year and advocate for abuse survivors says she lost speaking engagements because of a ‘smear campaign’ against herFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastChild sexual abuse survivor Grace Tame’s foundation has announced it is closing, citing challenges with long-term funding.The former Australian of the Year set up the foundation in 2021 – the year she carried the national honour for her advocacy for abuse survivors and for law reform. Continue reading...

• Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF), and the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation called on the US government to officially designate journalist Shelly Kittleson as a hostage and deploy all resources for her release. • Kittleson, a US freelance reporter covering Yemen, was abducted in Sanaa on March 20, 2026, amid escalating Houthi-US tensions linked to the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran. • The groups emphasized that formal hostage status would unlock specialized US diplomatic and intelligence efforts, critical amid reports of her deteriorating health in captivity.