https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth RSS feeds for One World - One Health 60 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18969/One-Health-Surveillance-in-Viet-Nam-Highlights-Hotspots-for-Viral-Disease-Emergence.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=18969 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=18969&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18969/One-Health-Surveillance-in-Viet-Nam-Highlights-Hotspots-for-Viral-Disease-Emergence.aspx HA NOI, Viet Nam (April 26, 2023) – A new study led by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) identified a viral hotspot in Viet Nam where bat roosting sites, bat guano harvesting, and pig farms are all in close proximity. The findings of this collaborative One Health study, described in the latest issue of the journal Viruses, have important implications for public health and wildlife conservation.  The authors say that the collection of guano – commonly used as a fertilizer – if not stopped entirely, should include the use of personal protective equipment for guano harvesters. The research team, which consisted of experts from animal health, public health, and the environment sector, collected over 1,600 animal and human samples from bat guano harvesting sites, natural bat roosts, and pig farming operations. They then tested for an array of viruses including coronaviruses, influenza viruses, filoviruses and others. They found significant viral diversity in bats, including CoVs closely related to ancestors of pig pathogens, at the human–animal interfaces targeted, as well as localized viral transmission among pig farms.  The zoonotic spillover potential of the bat viruses identified in this study remain mostly unknown, as these viruses have not been fully characterized and their ability to jump species barriers has not been assessed.  Human samples were also tested to detect antibodies against eight virus groups. Limited human sampling did not detect any known zoonotic bat viruses in human communities living close to a bat cave where bat guano is harvested, but our other tests showed possible previous exposure to Marburg virus, Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever virus, and others. In addition, the authors say the impact of bat guano harvesting on the conservation of bats and potential disruption of their critical role in the broader ecosystem must be assessed. Bats act as pollinators and consume pathogen-carrying arthropods and agricultural pests and play a critical role in the health of people, animals, and ecosystems. Said co-author Hoang Bich Thuy, and WCS Viet Nam Country Program Director: “This study shows the risks of bat guano collection to the public health, and the risk of viral spillover from wildlife into livestock and ultimately humans. Surveillance and early detection of viral hotspots are keys to preventing the next pandemic.”    This study represents one of the first attempts to implement One Health surveillance in Viet Nam which is located within a region characterized as a global hotspot for emerging infectious diseases. One Health is an integrated, unifying approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals and ecosystems. Key to the One Health approach is a recognition that the health of people, livestock, wildlife, and the broader environment are all interconnected. The authors point out the need to integrate wildlife expertise into future One Health surveillance planning and expand knowledge of wildlife systems (free range populations of wildlife, wildlife farming operations, and wildlife trade). Wildlife knowledge will be critical in the targeting of surveillance locations, interpretation of surveillance data, and development of interventions needed to prevent novel virus emergence as well as prepare for and respond effectively to the emergence of viruses with pandemic potential. Rosario, Joey Mon, 01 May 2023 14:10:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:18969 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18715/Diverse-Peruvian-Wildlife-Affected-By-Bird-Flu.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=18715 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=18715&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18715/Diverse-Peruvian-Wildlife-Affected-By-Bird-Flu.aspx “The characteristic of the influenza virus is that it has three ways of changing: it can mutate, adapt to the host or recombine with other viruses. It is already known that sea lions are affected by this virus and also dolphins. The risk lies in how much direct contact there is between these [different] species,” Paulo Colchao, a veterinarian specializing in wildlife health at WCS, explained to OJO Publico in: Peru Is The Country With The Most Animals Affected By Bird Flu Rosario, Joey Thu, 16 Feb 2023 21:37:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:18715 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18624/PANORAMA-Solutions-in-Focus-Wildlife-Health-and-Zoonotic-Disease-Risk-Reduction.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=18624 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=18624&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18624/PANORAMA-Solutions-in-Focus-Wildlife-Health-and-Zoonotic-Disease-Risk-Reduction.aspx The IUCN Panorama Solutions in Focus publication on Wildlife Health and Zoonotic Disease Risk Reduction aims to enhance Green Recovery from the COVID-19 crisis by providing case studies and guidance on positive lessons and approaches to integrated wildlife and human health approaches. The solutions provide a platform for dialogue, capacity development, and exchange for practitioners, legislators, and decision-makers at local, national, and global levels.  WCS provided multiple One Health and conservation solutions spanning three continents: A One Health Approach to Wildlife Trade and Policy in Viet Nam   Republic of Congo Wildlife Mortality Monitoring Supports Human and Wildlife Health  Integrated Livestock and Wildlife Disease Surveillance to Support Mongolian Saiga Health and Conservation WildHealthNet SeAsia: Operationalizing Wildlife Health Surveillance for One Health Intelligence   Integrated management of vicuñas that promotes the health, well-being and livelihoods of communities in the protected area of ​​Apolobamba (Spanish and English versions available)   LEARN MORE     Rosario, Joey Wed, 01 Feb 2023 18:39:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:18624 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18609/Fruit-Bat-Gets-a-Check-up-in-the-Republic-of-Congo.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=18609 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=18609&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18609/Fruit-Bat-Gets-a-Check-up-in-the-Republic-of-Congo.aspx WCS released an image of scientists taking a swab from a straw-colored fruit bat (Eidolon helvum) to test it for zoonotic diseases such as the Ebola virus. Through a new partnership with the Congolese Foundation for Medical Research (FCRM), blood samples and naso-oropharyngeal swabs will be safely collected from some 100 adult individuals associated with the bat trade to assess their potential disease exposure. LEARN MORE Rosario, Joey Thu, 26 Jan 2023 19:32:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:18609 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18617/World-Health-Summit.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=18617 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=18617&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/18617/World-Health-Summit.aspx WCS health and policy experts recently participated in the World Health Summit in Berlin, contributing to discussions on the importance of the One Health approach and the critical need to include ‘prevention at source’ in the new World Health Organization (WHO) instrument to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. Read more Rosario, Joey Sat, 05 Nov 2022 20:51:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:18617 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17471/Urgent-Actions-for-Human-and-Planetary-Health-World-Health-Day-2022.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=17471 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=17471&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17471/Urgent-Actions-for-Human-and-Planetary-Health-World-Health-Day-2022.aspx April 7th is WHO’s World Health Day. The WHO estimates that more than 13 million deaths a year are due to avoidable environmental causes and, for the first time, is using World Health Day to focus global attention on urgent actions needed to support human and planetary health.    From Dr. Chris Walzer, Wildlife Conservation Society’s Executive Director of Health:  “It is increasingly clear that planetary mismanagement has led to an escalation of infectious and non-infectious health threats at an unprecedented scale, with impacts from individuals to communities, across landscapes, to the entire globe. Climate change is altering the distribution, life cycle, and physiology of hosts, pathogens, and vectors, shifting infectious diseases' distribution, emergence, and ecology. From the most remote terrestrial wilderness to the deepest ocean, to the most densely populated cities, we are inexorably changing our planet." “The drivers of the biodiversity loss and climate change crises also drive the increase in pathogen spillover: deforestation; unsustainable and illegal exploitation of wildlife, timber, and other resources; ecosystem degradation; land-use change for agricultural intensification and other industrial expansion; wildlife trade (legal and illegal), wildlife farms, and wildlife markets. Recent research provides strengthened evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic originated from live wildlife in a market, and WCS research has highlighted high contact rates between wildlife and people in markets, potentially zoonotic pathogens circulating in traded wild animals in Viet Nam and Laos, and increasing prevalence along wildlife trade chains from the field to markets to restaurants."  His full statement can be read here Keatts, Lucy Thu, 07 Apr 2022 15:16:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:17471 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17378/SARS-CoV-2-Related-Coronaviruses-Found-in-Traded-Pangolins.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=17378 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=17378&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17378/SARS-CoV-2-Related-Coronaviruses-Found-in-Traded-Pangolins.aspx A new study in the journal Frontiers in Public Health, led by scientists from WCS, confirms that pangolins confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade in Viet Nam host SARS-CoV-2 related coronaviruses. The findings are further evidence that the transnational nature of the wildlife trade can facilitate coronavirus and other viral transmission and amplification along the trade chain. "Eliminating the trade in pangolins and other wild mammals and birds will eliminate this high-risk pathway for viral spillover and pathogen emergence,” said lead author Nguyen Thi Thanh Nga of WCS’s Viet Nam Program. LEARN MORE Keatts, Lucy Mon, 14 Mar 2022 18:16:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:17378 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17379/Theres-a-COVID-19-epidemic-in-deer-in-the-US.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=17379 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=17379&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17379/Theres-a-COVID-19-epidemic-in-deer-in-the-US.aspx The virus doesn't appear to make them very sick. Spread in new hosts could lead to new variants that cause trouble for people and wildlife later on, though. "We need wildlife surveillance,” says WCS's Sarah Olson. Read VOX story: "There’s a Covid-19 epidemic in deer. It could come back to haunt us." Photo Tim Lewthwaite Keatts, Lucy Thu, 10 Feb 2022 18:23:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:17379 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17013/An-International-Pandemic-Treaty-Must-Include-Prevention-at-Source.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=17013 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=17013&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17013/An-International-Pandemic-Treaty-Must-Include-Prevention-at-Source.aspx In a consensus decision aimed at protecting the world from future infectious diseases crises, a special session of the World Health Assembly agreed to launch a global process to draft and negotiate a convention, agreement or other international instrument under the Constitution of the World Health Organization to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. The following statement is from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Vice President for International Policy, Dr. Susan Lieberman: “WCS strongly supports the World Health Assembly’s announcement to launch a process to form an international pandemic treaty, and we welcome the inclusion of an equitable and strong science-based approach to pandemic prevention at the source including actions on commercial wildlife markets, forest degradation, and associated biodiversity loss. “Pandemic preparedness is critical; governments must also agree to significantly reduce the risk of pathogen spillover from animals to humans well before they become local outbreaks, epidemics, or global pandemics. “We need to change our relationship with nature and our uses of wildlife. We must protect ecosystems with high ecological integrity and function. And we must stop encroaching on nature and reduce points of contact with wildlife to limit consequential pathogen spillovers from wildlife to humans and their livestock. The commercial trade and sale of live wildlife for human consumption – both legal and illegal, particularly birds and mammals – constitute a significant, unacceptable risk. This trade and associated markets bring together domesticated and wild animals with their pathogens, facilitating cross-species transmission and the emergence of novel viruses. We urge the WHO/WHA to address these issues in the new treaty. “WCS looks forward to providing technical and scientific assistance to governments as they negotiate this new agreement. Treaties/agreements can be negotiated quickly if there is the political will—and the next virus-in-waiting makes it clear that the governments of the world must find a strong, equitable, nature-positive solution to preventing the next pandemic.” In this Medium piece, WCS's Susan Lieberman, Christian Walzer, and Arnaud Goessens write that pandemic preparedness is critical, but governments must ensure that this agreement addresses prevention at source to significantly reduce the risk of pathogen spillover from animals to humans well before they become local outbreaks, epidemics or global pandemics.  Keatts, Lucy Fri, 03 Dec 2021 17:55:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:17013 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17012/Scientists-Find-SARS-CoV-2-Related-Viruses-in-Cambodian-Bats.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=17012 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=17012&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17012/Scientists-Find-SARS-CoV-2-Related-Viruses-in-Cambodian-Bats.aspx The discovery by a team of scientists, including from WCS, along with the recent detection of the closest ancestors of SARS-CoV-2 known to date in cave-dwelling bats in Laos, indicates that SARS-CoV-2-related viruses that cause COVID-19 have a much wider geographic distribution than previously reported. It also further supports the hypothesis that the pandemic originated via spillover of a bat-borne virus. Said Dr. Lucy Keatts of the Wildlife Conservation Society’s (WCS) Health Program and a co-author of the study: “These findings underscore the importance of increased region-wide investment in bridging capacity for sustainable surveillance of pathogens in wildlife, through initiatives such as WildHealthNet. Southeast Asia hosts a high diversity of wildlife and an extensive wildlife trade that puts humans in direct contact with wild hosts of SARS-like coronaviruses. The region is undergoing dramatic land-use changes such as infrastructure development, urban development, and agricultural expansion that can increase contacts between bats, other wildlife, domestic animals and humans. Continued and expanded surveillance of bats and other key wild animals in Southeast Asia is a crucial component of future pandemic preparedness and prevention.” The scientific paper detailing the discovery was published in Nature Communications and is available here Photo: Rhinolophus Shameli, copyright Ben Hayes Keatts, Lucy Tue, 23 Nov 2021 17:42:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:17012 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17011/Our-Actions-Put-People-and-Wildlife-at-Risk-of-Disease.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=17011 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=17011&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17011/Our-Actions-Put-People-and-Wildlife-at-Risk-of-Disease.aspx The greatest danger of new pandemics often lies in disturbed landscapes, says WCS's Chris Walzer. When humans, their livestock, and dogs take up residence in previously wild places, this unnatural interface allows people and animals to swap new infectious pathogens. Read more in this Mongabay article: In harm’s way: Our actions put people and wildlife at risk of disease  Keatts, Lucy Wed, 20 Oct 2021 17:35:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:17011 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17010/Rethinking-Pandemic-Prevention-at-the-UNGA.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=17010 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=17010&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/17010/Rethinking-Pandemic-Prevention-at-the-UNGA.aspx "The COVID-19 pandemic is a real wake-up call for the world," said WCS's Christian Sampler at this week's United Nations General Assembly side event. These types of spillovers have been happening and their frequency is increasing. Watch the special session on "Healthy Ecosystems for People and Planet" here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbWp9Hz7S4A Keatts, Lucy Thu, 30 Sep 2021 17:23:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:17010 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16751/One-World-One-Health-Newsletter-Holistic-Benefits-of-Wildlife-Surveillance.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=16751 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=16751&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16751/One-World-One-Health-Newsletter-Holistic-Benefits-of-Wildlife-Surveillance.aspx WCS's WildHealthNet project is supporting the governments of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia to build sustainable wildlife surveillance platforms with a One Health approach. The networks have already facilitated the rapid detection and response to avian influenza and African swine fever outbreaks. Greater investment in wildlife health should accompany vital efforts to combat deforestation, forest degradation, and wildlife trade, and reverse the devastating trajectory of human-driven biological degradation that is driving the increased emergence of wildlife and human diseases. Read more about this and other WCS Health Programs news from investigating iguana die-offs to recusing wild condors and developments in wildlife forensics in our summer 2021 newsletter here. Keatts, Lucy Mon, 30 Aug 2021 17:15:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:16751 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16322/One-Health-Prioritized-by-G7.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=16322 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=16322&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16322/One-Health-Prioritized-by-G7.aspx  The G7 (Group of Seven) is an organisation of the world's seven largest so-called advanced economies. They are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the United States. Recently the leaders of these countries convened at the G-7 Summit in Cornwall, England where they made several important commitments addressing the interlinked existential crises facing our planet—climate change, biodiversity loss, and zoonotic pandemics. The renewed focus on nature by these nations is an essential step for the world to successfully tackle these crises.Whilst we applaud the G7 prioritization of a One Health approach to all aspects of future pandemic prevention, one key element is missing from the members' commitment. Although we appreciate the attention on preparedness and post-spillover responses, they missed the chance to make a commitment to take the critical actions needed to prevent the next spillover of zoonotic pathogens from wildlife and other animals to people.Read WCS' full statement on the G-7 summit announcement  Keatts, Lucy Tue, 22 Jun 2021 17:13:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:16322 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16170/In-Mongolia-One-Health-for-Wildlife-Livestock-and-People.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=16170 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=16170&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16170/In-Mongolia-One-Health-for-Wildlife-Livestock-and-People.aspx Veterinarian Dr Enkhtuvshin Shiilegdamba or "Enkee" is Director of WCS Mongolia's Country Program. For many years her work has recognized the interconnectedness between human, animal and environmental health and, as she tells PBS Nature in this blog, "We all understand now through COVID-19 that global pandemics can emerge at any time, and that the best prevention is based on a One Health approach that incorporates and protects health for the benefit of people, livestock, wildlife, and their ecosystems."  Learn more about Dr Enkee's work in Mongolia: In Mongolia, One Health for People, Livestock and Wildlife Keatts, Lucy Wed, 19 May 2021 13:34:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:16170 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16171/Protecting-Biodiversity-to-Protect-Your-Health.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=16171 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=16171&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16171/Protecting-Biodiversity-to-Protect-Your-Health.aspx Why is protecting biodiversity synonymous with protecting our own health? If spillover events themselves are inevitable, how can we limit the likelihood that they will become epidemics or pandemics? Where do commercial wildlife markets and subsistence hunting fit into the equation? Dr. Christian Walzer, Director of WCS' Health Program, spoke with "This PodCast will Kill You" to answer these and other questions on how biodiversity conservation reduces the risk of pandemics:COVID-19 Chapter 18: Conservation & Pandemics Keatts, Lucy Tue, 11 May 2021 13:47:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:16171 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16172/Coronavirus-Do-Cry-Over-Spillovers.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=16172 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=16172&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16172/Coronavirus-Do-Cry-Over-Spillovers.aspx "We have not co-evolved with these species," WCS's Dr. Christian Walzer tells podcast host Bill Nye regarding wildlife found in markets, "so we have not had thousands of years to acquire these diseases, build antibodies against them or make them uniquely our own." This gives such novel pathogens in humans greater pandemic potential. Combined with the co-mixing of multiple species and often stressful conditions along market trade chains, these unnatural interfaces between live wildlife, domestic animals and humans provide ideal conditions for spillover. Learn more on how spillover happens in Bill Nye's podcast with Dr Walzer:Coronavirus: Do Cry Over Spillovers Keatts, Lucy Tue, 13 Apr 2021 13:57:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:16172 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16173/Spring-Newsletter-Animals-Endure-Pandemics-Too.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=16173 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=16173&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/16173/Spring-Newsletter-Animals-Endure-Pandemics-Too.aspx In our Spring newsletter, the stories remind us that animal, human and environmental health are inextricably linked. Read more about animal pandemics impacting wildlife and livestock, protecting biodiversity for pandemic prevention, domestic dogs and conservation, molecular science discoveries and more:ONE WORLD - ONE HEALTH NEWS: Spring 2021Sign up for our quarterly newsletters here Keatts, Lucy Thu, 01 Apr 2021 14:22:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:16173 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15819/Climate-Change-Bats-and-COVID-19.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=15819 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=15819&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15819/Climate-Change-Bats-and-COVID-19.aspx "We’re altering environments in ways we don’t really understand or appreciate until we have an event like the COVID-19 pandemic that makes us reassess our relationship with nature." WCS Health Programs' Sarah Olson spoke with The Scientist: Are Climate-Driven Shifts in Bat Diversity to Blame for COVID-19?Image:  © ISTOCK, VONKARA1  Keatts, Lucy Wed, 17 Feb 2021 16:26:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:15819 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15818/One-Health-for-School-Students.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=15818 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=15818&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15818/One-Health-for-School-Students.aspx The WCS Education team recently created a Field Sight story with the WCS Health Program exploring the One World-One Health initiative, engaging students in how diseases spread in wild populations and from wildlife to humans, thinking about how we are interconnected with nature even in urban environments, and considering actions we can take at home to make a difference in global health. The curriculum even includes a "Spillover" game for students to understand how healthy intact ecosystems can protect global health and how ecological destruction increases risks for spillover of pathogens.Check out the curriculum and videos:   WCS Field Sight: Global Health Keatts, Lucy Wed, 17 Feb 2021 16:04:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:15818 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15680/One-World-One-Health-Winter-Newsletter-Protect-Wildlife-Protect-Us.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=15680 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=15680&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15680/One-World-One-Health-Winter-Newsletter-Protect-Wildlife-Protect-Us.aspx Zoonotic diseases occur when harmful germs, like viruses and bacteria, are spread from animals to people, causing illness that can range from mild to deadly. Commercial wildlife markets, at which wildlife are often sold freshly slaughtered, present a major risk for the development and spread of zoonotic diseases. Animal consumption-based food systems have been implicated in the emergence of zoonoses (including HIV, SARS, Ebola virus disease, avian influenza), and mounting evidence indicates substantial human health risks from the trade in live wildlife.WCS recently published research showing that prevalence of coronaviruses in wild rodents in Viet Nam increased along the food supply chain from field rats, to large markets, to restaurants, highlighting the risk of zoonotic spillover to people through the commercial wildlife trade. As the world contends with the devastating consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need to shut down this trade has never been more urgent.In our Winter Newsletter you can read more on our efforts to bring to light the health risks of commercial wildlife trade; our scientists discoveries on a groundbreaking Mount Everest expedition; our work to protect wild tigers from the devastating canine distemper virus; our wild shark studies; and the fascinating history of vets at the Bronx Zoo since the turn of the 20th Century:WCS One World, One Health News: Protect Wildlife, Protect UsRead our other newsletters here Keatts, Lucy Tue, 05 Jan 2021 14:52:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:15680 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15678/Preventing-the-Next-Pandemic.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=15678 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=15678&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15678/Preventing-the-Next-Pandemic.aspx If we continue the unabated incursion of humans on natural ecosystems, emerging infectious disease experts agree that it is a matter of when, not if, the next pandemic arises. What they fear most is that the next pathogen that spills over from wildlife to humans will cause a disease even more fatal, but with the same ease of asymptomatic human-to-human transmission as SARS-CoV-2. To make the drastic changes needed to avert the next pandemic, a multi-disciplinary One Health approach is essential and the cost of potential pandemics must be considered in development planning:“A road will facilitate a transport of goods and people and create economic incentive,” Dr Christian Walzer, of WCS tells Kaiser Health News “But it will also provide an interface where people interact and there’s a higher chance of spillover. These kinds of costs have never been considered in the past. And that needs to change.”Read the full story: Heading Off the Next Pandemic Keatts, Lucy Tue, 05 Jan 2021 14:23:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:15678 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15684/To-Prevent-Pandemics-We-Must-Prioritize-Biodiversity.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=15684 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=15684&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15684/To-Prevent-Pandemics-We-Must-Prioritize-Biodiversity.aspx WCS' Sue Lieberman and Chris Walzer write for Undark: "Planetary neglect and mismanagement helped pave the way for the Covid-19 pandemic. Our disruption of natural ecosystems has led to escalating health crises, including an increase in zoonotic diseases that arise when pathogens pass between animals and humans. There is no excuse for humanity to have allowed this to happen, and even less excuse for us to allow it to happen again. To prevent the next pandemic, and to address today’s many other health challenges, we must ensure the biological integrity of our planet for current and future generations." Read the full opinion piece:  To Prevent the Next Covid-19, We Must Prioritize Biodiversity Keatts, Lucy Tue, 15 Dec 2020 16:22:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:15684 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15518/New-WCS-Report-One-Health-in-Action.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=15518 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=15518&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15518/New-WCS-Report-One-Health-in-Action.aspx A One Health approach is a collaborative, dynamic, and transdisciplinary approach—working at the local, regional, national, and global levels—with the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes for all. Today, broad consensus exists that health encompasses more than parasites and pathogens; it must incorporate socio-economic, political, evolutionary, and environmental factors while also considering individual attributes and behaviors. On November 17, WCS issued a report on One Health in Action. You can read more and download the report here.   Keatts, Lucy Wed, 18 Nov 2020 15:42:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:15518 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15482/One-Planet-One-Health-One-Future.aspx#Comments 0 https://programs.wcs.org/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=15868&ModuleID=39835&ArticleID=15482 https://programs.wcs.org:443/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=15482&PortalID=173&TabID=15868 https://programs.wcs.org/oneworldonehealth/news/ID/15482/One-Planet-One-Health-One-Future.aspx On November 17-18 WCS and the German Federal Foreign Office will jointly host a virtual meeting on how to operationalize One Health across the globe. COVID-19 has shown us the exorbitant cost of inaction.  Global leaders in wildlife and human health are taking further active steps to ensure that governments, academia, and civil society break down barriers and form a united effort to prevent the emergence or resurgence of diseases, like COVID-19, that threaten people, wildlife, and livestock.Register for the Event Keatts, Lucy Fri, 13 Nov 2020 15:55:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:15482