Argentina’s scientific and technological system is facing its deepest crisis since the country’s return to democracy. The cause, say researchers, is the ultra-liberal administration of President Javier Milei, whose sweeping austerity measures, institutional dismantling, and forced expulsion of professionals are triggering a massive brain drain.

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Thousands of scientists, researchers, students, and academic workers took to the streets of Buenos Aires and more than ten other provinces in a nationwide protest against what they have called a “scientificicide” — a systematic dismantling of Argentina’s national science and technology infrastructure.

The demonstrations were centered at the Scientific and Technological Hub in Palermo, Buenos Aires, with simultaneous mobilizations in Bariloche, Córdoba, Tucumán, Rosario, Comodoro Rivadavia, General Roca, Santiago del Estero, and Ushuaia. Organized under the banner “No one is saved alone”, many protesters evoked the imagery of the iconic Argentine graphic novel El Eternauta, using the symbol of “toxic snow” to represent the consequences of extreme defunding.

The message was unambiguous: “No science without scientists, and no future without science”.

A statement read during the rally — convened by the Network of Directors of Science and Technology Institutes (RAICYT) — warned of a critical situation that may soon become irreversible if the current dismantling is not halted.

Since December 2023, Argentina’s National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) has lost more than 1,500 jobs due to mass layoffs, hiring freezes, and resignations prompted by deteriorating working conditions. The National Agency for the Promotion of Research, Technological Development and Innovation has been outright eliminated, effectively cutting off funding for scientific projects nationwide. Salaries in the sector have plummeted, leaving workers below the poverty line.

“The government has destroyed all opportunities for young people to enter the scientific system. Research teams are being dismantled. It’s total chaos,” said Jorge Geffner, physician and CONICET researcher.

Gonzalo Sanz Cerbino, deputy secretary of ATE-CONICET Capital, described the situation as an unprecedented brain drain. “Scientists are resigning in droves because they simply can’t keep working under these conditions. This is a massive wave of voluntary — but forced — departures,” he explained.

Former CONICET president Ana Franchi warned that the departure of trained professionals is a loss Argentina cannot afford. “We paid taxes to educate these scientists, and now we’re giving them away. Another pandemic or emergency could arise, and without a national scientific base, we won’t be ready,” she cautioned.

Renowned molecular biologist Alberto Kornblihtt added that the attacks on the scientific community are also ideological: “Critical thinking is uncomfortable for a model that rejects added value and innovation.”

Protesters stressed that Argentina’s scientific system has played a key role in public health, education, and national production, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, without basic supplies or active vaccine production, the country is increasingly exposed to new vulnerabilities. “What’s at stake is scientific sovereignty, autonomous development, and the hope for a dignified future,” RAICYT emphasized.

Despite the magnitude of the crisis, international organizations such as UNESCO, the United Nations, and the OAS have yet to issue formal responses. Argentina’s scientific community is calling on society at large to defend science as a public right — not a budgetary burden.

*A country cannot survive without science and technology*, concluded the demonstrators, demanding the immediate reinstatement of laid-off workers, restoration of funding, and respect for decades-long scientific careers.

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