Vienna: Austria’s science minister has announced a slew of measures this week to provide security and a free environment for researchers from the United States, as the academic freedom are at risk following the Trump administration’s restrictive immigration policies and dramatic research funding cuts.
Eva-Maria Holzleitner, minister of women, science and research, said in a video on her Instagram account that “we are working on programs to provide a safe haven for students and scientists at risk.”
Work has been done concerning easily accessible information, targeted programs and the legal framework, in order to make Austria attractive for U.S. scientists and students, said the Austrian newspaper Die Presse.
A platform called the Euraxess has been available online since Monday, where all job offers as well as funding and cooperation between Austrian research and scientific institutions can be accessed.
For students who come under political pressure in the U.S. or elsewhere in the world, there will be a program offering 50 scholarships in Austria with around 1,000 euros (1,137 U.S. dollars) per month each.
On the legislation aspect, an amendment to Austria’s law on university is also to be reviewed next week. The amendment allows universities to fill more professorial positions via “opportunity hiring,” which enables employment of exceptionally qualified staff even if they are not in the development plan of the universities, according to the Austrian newspaper Kleine Zeitung.
