Cost savings of more than $ 30 million in the first year thanks to the stop of 91 studies
The office of the Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD (R & E)) abandons his social science research portfolio as part of a broader effort to ensure tax responsibility and prioritize critical mission activities. This initiative is to concentrate resources on essential technologies to maintain a strong national defense, to align with the administration’s commitment to an effective government and to ensure that taxpayers’ dollars are spent wisely.
The Department recognizes the value of university research but – in response to the executive decrees of President Trump and the priorities of secretary Hegseth in his memorandum of January 25, 2025, “message to force” and on January 29, 2025, the memorandum, “Restoring Force’s America” recognizes that funded research must meet the pressing needs to develop and in the field of advanced military capacities. Several studies are affected by this change, including those focused on global migration models, the impacts of climate change and social trends. Examples include:
- The link of climate urbanization and the pioneers of instability in Africa
- Social and institutional determinants of vulnerability and resilience to climate risks in the African Sahel
- Anticipate the mobility of costal populations: path to poor adaptation or socio -political stability
- Comparison of underlying engines of southern north migration in Central America and West Africa
- Quest for democracy
- The language of parasocial influence and the emergence of extremism
- Armed plots
- Beyond the clock: understand the intercultural temporal orientation of military officers
- Food fights: war stories and identity reproduction in evolving conflicts
- Future Fish Wars: Chasing Ocean Ecosystem Wealth
The ministry plans to see cost savings of more than $ 30 million in the first year thanks to the judgment of 91 studies, including the examples listed above.
Defense Secretary, Hegseth, stressed the importance of equipping the American army with the tools and capacities necessary to dissuade opponents and maintain a solid defense. This initiative directly supports this commitment by prioritizing investments in fields such as the development of hypersonic weapons, the AI systems for increased awareness of the battlefield and the strengthening of the national military industrial basis.
Realignment also reflects the ministry’s commitment to budgetary responsibility and ensure that each dollar invested in the defense generates the greatest possible return for the American people. By focusing on the most impactful technologies, the ministry ensures that the American army remains the most powerful and advanced combat force in the world.