Canada is recruiting dozens of academics from US universities through a new research funding programme, as uncertainty over American research grants and political pressure on higher education encourages some scholars to leave. The move matters because it could strengthen Canadian universities in areas such as climate resilience and medicine while highlighting growing tensions in US–Canada relations.

Of the 64 professors moving to Canada from around the world, 48 are currently based in the US, supported by a C$504m (£268m) funding pool. Climate researcher Seth Guikema will receive C$8m over eight years at the University of Western Ontario, while former Harvard and Massachusetts General Hospital researcher Peter Caravan is joining the University of British Columbia. Critics and researchers cited cuts and politicisation of US grant funding, although US universities remain among the world’s highest ranked.