Trump Administration Cut Funding for Nepal Natural Hazard Monitoring Program, Preceding Deadly Landslide
In January 2025, the Trump administration ceased funding for Project SERVIR-Hindu Kush Himalaya, a joint initiative by NASA, USAID, and ICIMOD, which focused on identifying and monitoring landslide hotspots in Nepal. This decision was partly influenced by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which dismantled USAID and canceled grants based on keyword searches, including 'climate.' Just over a year later, a massive glacier and rock landslide in the Himalayas triggered fast-moving floodwaters, resulting in over 1,100 fatalities in Nepal and China. Birendra Bajracharya, the project's former director, stated that the funding cut halted efforts to improve 'landslide situational awareness' related to extreme rainfall and prevented the completion of 'slope motion detection for landslide forecasts.' While the program might not have predicted the specific glacier breakup event, it aimed to identify vulnerable locations to better prepare downstream communities. Some data programs initiated by Project SERV... 
