Trump cuts research funding impacting seven Australian schools

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Seven Australian universities are facing large cuts to research funding from the Trump administration amid its broader cuts across the global university sector, the Department of Education has confirmed.

US government funding for the Australian National University, University of Technology Sydney, University of NSW, Monash University, Macquarie University, Darwin University, and University of Western Australia will be slashed, the department said, as part of the President’s ban on DEI (diversity, equality, and inclusion) projects, grants, and programs.

Education Minister Jason Clare said that although “the US will fund the research it wants to fund”, the department will continue to make the case for US-Australia collaborations as beneficial for both countries’ interests.

Australian National University, Canberra, Australia — Australian National University (ANU), Canberra is the only Australian university that has publicly stated it has lost grant funding from the US government. (Getty)

The cuts could total up to $600 million across universities, with the biggest losses to biomedical and clinical sciences, data obtained by AFR Weekend revealed.

Funding was paused last week after the Trump administration asked Australian academics engaged in joint-US research to explain how their projects align with its domestic and foreign policy aims in a 36-point questionnaire, raising concerns about foreign interference.

The US government stated that a wish to avoid “DEI, woke gender ideology, and the new green deal” was behind its decision to “temporarily pause” funding in a memo sent to an Australian university project published by Guardian Australia.

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 29: U.S. President Donald Trump signs the Laken Riley Act, the first piece of legislation passed during his second term in office, in the East Room of the White House on January 29, 2025 in Washington, DC. Jason Riley and Allyson Philips, the parents of 22-year-old Laken Riley, a University of Georgia nursing student who was murdered in 2024 by an undocumented immigrant, attended the signing ceremony. Among other measures, the law directs law enforcement authorities to d — Trump banned all DEI projects, programs, and grants as part of his first executive orders in office. (Getty)

The Australian National University (ANU) told staff on Tuesday that US funding to one of its grants had been cut – the only university among those affected to publicly do so, so far.

“We have had the first termination of funding from the United States,” Vice Chancellor Genevieve Bell said.

“We are committed to supporting our researchers and the work we do here, in all the ways we can.”

The US is Australia’s largest research partner, contributing $386 million to Australian research organisations in 2024 alone, according to the Australian Academy of Science.

The organisation is urging the Australian government to work with the US to mitigate the risks of funding cuts.

“Australia and United States research institutions have a long history of cooperation that has helped develop new technologies and solutions to global challenges,” Clare said.

“Australian universities punch above their weight in research,” he added.

“International partners want to work with our universities because they are the best.”