Macron really wants to 'Make Our Planet Great Again' with grants for U.S. scientists
French President Emmanuel Macron was actually serious about making our planet great again after President Trump withdrew America from the Paris Climate Agreement last week.
He launched a campaign Thursday to recruit and pay for scientists, researchers, entrepreneurs, businesses, and organizations to tackle climate change in France. A new site with the appropriate URL, makeourplanetgreatagain.fr, is a plea for teachers, researchers, business people, academics, and more to come to France.
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A quick form on the site asks about experience, motivations, and goals, and ends with a page explaining why you should come to France.
"France is at the forefront of future innovation and industry, notably green tech and green finance that will keep driving growth and meet the targets of the Paris Agreement," the site reads.
Once you proudly pledge your commitment to France, an overview of the grant program lays out what's on offer: 1.5 million Euros for a four-year grant for a senior researcher and a team of four. For other groups, like businesses, the site links out to resources and government programs available to make the move.
This effort didn't come out of nowhere. Right after Trump pulled the U.S. out of the policy treaty, Macron urged climate researchers and scientists to "come and work here with us." He said France was the place to "work together on concrete solutions for our climate, our environment."
France really wants anyone committed to studying climate change and urges people to follow-through with an application through the site.
"I can assure you France will not give up the fight," Macron said in his speech last week.
It seems like he means it.
Sasha is a news writer at Mashable's San Francisco office. She's an SF native who went to UC Davis and later received her master's from the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. She's been reporting out of her hometown over the years at Bay City News (news wire), SFGate (the San Francisco Chronicle website), and even made it out of California to write for the Chicago Tribune. She's been described as a bookworm and a gym rat.
