Researchers say cuts to research funding are affecting science

Biologists Ivan Glaucchio Paulino Lima and Robins Duarte say that if there were cuts by professors, or resources for equipment or reagents and research grants in students’ time, they might have changed careers.

“Research is not present as a government priority. It is seen as an expense, not an investment. It is a completely distorted view. I hope in time we can reverse this situation. It’s not easy, but the result is what we feel on the skin to produce Covid-19 vaccines.” Lima says.

The CNPq (National Council for Scientific and Technological Development) will award scholarships only to 396 of the 3080 PhDs and Postdocs approved for 2021. This equates to 13% of research projects that have met all the prerequisites and would qualify.

Duarte notes that he has completed five years of graduation and two years of Masters at UEL. “UEL was the basis of my studies which allowed me to first succeed with a PhD at the University of São Paulo (University of São Paulo). I wanted to work with research in harsh environments and UEL did not offer a PhD in the area. There is no better example than talking about how satisfied I am and not I still have the opportunity to study with good teachers as was the case at UEL. I was a three-year scholarship holder at undergraduate and then masters as well. ”

Duarte says that had this not been provided in his school days, he would not have developed his career the way he did. “For the past few years, we have been trying to survive as much as possible.”