Now is THE moment to strengthen tech transfer and entrepreneurship within German academia and speed up administrative processes. These are overdue, but with a new government on the way (🤞), there’s real and important momentum to build on.

In my recent conversations, the most likely academic migration pattern isn’t a mass exodus of American scientists, but a “reverse brain drain” of talented European (& other international) researchers. For them, both the costs (+) and benefits (-) of working in the US are shifting more dramatically.

These restrictions—combined with widespread budget cuts—send a troubling signal to students and young researchers: Don’t go into science. To me, this is one of the saddest aspects and one that will cause lasting damage for years, if not generations.

The situation in U.S. science is, unfortunately, worse than many people in Europe realize. Academic freedom is being restricted in ways that are real and far-reaching.

Oh, and support print journalism!

We have a responsibility to advance science—one that also presents a significant opportunity for the German economy. Now is the time to enact meaningful change.

When Martin, Monika, and I drafted this editorial a few weeks ago, we wrote, "One can only hope that the expected funding cuts will not be as severe as feared." Sadly, the outlook continues to worsen by the day.

It remains uncertain how the situation in the U.S. will unfold. We are talking about the future of biomedicine, and it is no exaggeration to say that lives depend on it.

What do top researchers want? Beyond competitive salaries, they seek a high quality of life for their families, efficient administration, and engaged colleagues. Most importantly, we must meaningfully improve the landscape for tech transfer and entrepreneurship.

First and foremost, Germany—and all of Europe—should welcome scientists with open arms. Many European Scientists are interested in returning (indeed, I've spoken to some of them myself). So now, more than ever, is the time to implement long-overdue changes to Germany's academic infrastructure.

So what is to be done? @monika-schnitzer.com, @martin-watzinger.com and I have some thoughts in today's @faznet.bsky.social (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung):
zeitung.faz.net/faz/wirtscha...

I have spent years studying the economics of innovation and entrepreneurship and this much we know: excellent science drives growth and prosperity—in other words, good science policy has always been good economic policy.