Next week, some of the same leaders will gather for the world’s most prestigious awards — the Nobel Prizes — honoring extraordinary accomplishments in medicine, physics, chemistry, literature, peace and economics. Yet this event brings to light profound issues over academic freedom in the United States. As the awards approach, Ylva Engstrom, vice president of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, shares her worries. She’s especially concerned that recent changes to academic policy—most notably under the Trump administration—could make an outsized and lasting impact.
Alfred Nobel was a rich Swedish inventor famous for inventing dynamite. To recognize people and institutions who make outstanding advances for humankind, he instituted the Nobel Prizes. The prizes are considered by many to be the highest honors available in science. Each award includes a large cash component of 11 million Swedish crowns, which is about $1.2 million.
The 2024 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences has been awarded to British-born American economist Simon Johnson. Johnson was awarded this high honor for his sagacious research on the role that institutions play in fostering wealth around the world. His work has shone a deserved light on the erosion of broad-based institutional policies that undercut economic stability and growth.
It’s the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences that makes the awards in those first three fields — physics, chemistry, and economic sciences. The seven-day celebration will begin with the announcement of this year’s awards for medicine and physiology. Following the arts awards, the honorees in the other disciplines will be announced. Engstrom had strong words for how significant these announcements are, especially in light of the debates on academic freedom that continue to rage today.
Engstrom has written extensively on her concerns with the new policy direction taken by the Trump administration. She said that imposing such policies would have long-lasting detrimental impact on both academic research and job creation.
“I think in both the short and long term, it can have devastating effects,” – Ylva Engstrom
Moreover, she was quick to remind us that academic freedom is the bedrock of democracy.
“Academic freedom … is one of the pillars of the democratic system,” – Ylva Engstrom
Johnson had expressed similar concerns about the deterrent effect of these policies on research and innovation. He emphasized that they can be harmful to the environmental, labor, public health, and safety sectors.
“These policies are absolutely, unambiguously very negative and particularly for job creation,” – Simon Johnson
Engstrom in greater detail about why these developments will result in a reduced ability among American scientists to compete and thrive.
“For research, it’s going to be a big dip in what the American scientists can do and what they are allowed to do, what they can publish, what they can get money for,” – Ylva Engstrom
Specifically, she mentioned that all engineering and science-related activities would be greatly hampered by these prohibitions and would suffer greatly from their restrictions.
“All engineering and science-type activities, I think, are going to be affected,” – Ylva Engstrom
With Nobel Prize announcements just around the corner, Donald Trump is stealing the show. He unapologetically boasts to his fellow Russians about how he has earned his Nobel Peace Prize. This assertion has sparked further debate about the criteria for such recognitions and their implications in light of ongoing critiques of his administration’s policies.