One Health 101
What Is One Health?
The One Health concept—previously known as One Medicine, and later as One World, One Health—is not a new one. Dating back hundreds of years and evolving over time, there is no standard definition, but the concept generally highlights the interconnectedness of human health, animal health, and ecosystem (or environmental) health. It is based on the fact that all three are intricately and indelibly connected.
Focused on “consequences, responses, and actions at the animal–human–ecosystems interfaces,” One Health is concerned with areas such as:
Emerging and endemic zoonoses
Antimicrobial resistance
Food safety
Environmental and ecosystem health
International travel and trade
Land use
The One Health approach is embraced by organizations such as the WHO, the CDC, UNICEF, and more. It is an important, urgently needed framework that is essential for effectively understanding and addressing the problems of our world.
Changes in Human-Environment Interactions
Recent and rapidly increasing changes in human-environment interactions demonstrate a pressing need for a One Health approach to addressing concerning global patterns. These One Health issues include:
Habitat encroachment: Human developments spreading into natural habitat. As our population grows and our transportation, industrial, and residential zones further encroach on wilderness, human–animal interactions become more frequent, increasing the risk for the spread of zoonotic diseases. Habitat loss and degradation also negatively impact wildlife and ecosystem health, which has cascading effects on the health and safety of the overall region.
Deforestation: Unsustainable harvesting of trees creates many problems by reducing or removing the ecosystem services that trees provide. For example, deforested areas have drastically reduced soil integrity, increasing the risk of landslides and exacerbating soil erosion. Cutting down trees also reduces forests’ capacity for carbon sequestration, which is essential for mitigating climate change.
Global connectivity: The heightened interconnectedness of the modern world, while beneficial in some ways, has various negative consequences. One such consequence is the fast transport of organisms and/or diseases to far-flung parts of the world. Termed “intercontinental shuffling” by The Sixth Extinction author Elizabeth Kolbert, this quick and unprecedented exchange allows for the spread of invasive species and zoonotic disease.
Support IVO
At International Veterinary Outreach (IVO), we take a One Health approach to tackling the problems that affect human, animal, and environmental health. We’re working to improve the lives of people and animals worldwide, and you can help us do it! Support our international conservation efforts and animal health programs by donating today!
