Life on the planet is remarkably interconnected; humans, animals, we might even add plants, interact in delicate, mutually dependent associations. Presiding over all living things are the air and water — the environment that sustains us. WiRED International’s focus on health education has increasingly promoted the unifying perspective known as One Health — the intersection of human, animal and environmental health.
Many of WiRED’s board members, staff and volunteers live in California, and, as I write this essay, we are holed up in our homes, able to venture outside only for chores and obligations we cannot avoid. When I worked in Iraq and stayed in safe-houses, it was sometimes the same.
November 3, 2018, is One Health Day. One Health Day reminds us of the critical link among humans, animals and the environment we all share. It further reminds us that to address the health of human populations, we must also address the health of animals and of the planet that hosts all living things.
Spring is here. The flowers are blooming, the birds are singing — and the insects are spreading infections at an alarming pace. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that infectious diseases from mosquito, tick and flea bites more than tripled in the United States from 2004 to 2016.
Threats to the health of our planet — such as climate change, pollution, deforestation and species extinction — make this Earth Day, Sunday, April 22, a vital time to reflect and to act to protect our world.
The Medical Journal of Southern California Clinicians (MJSCC) recently published an article titled, “The Importance of a One Health Perspective in a Changing Environment.” The MJSCC article is co-authored by WiRED International Director Gary Selnow, Ph.D.; Western University professor and WiRED board member, Miriam Othman, M.D., M.P.H.; and Western University professor, Malika Kachani, Ph.D., D.V.M.
The ill effects of climate change are not about to disappear anytime soon. In fact, our period now is the warmest in the history of modern civilization, according to the Climate Science Special Report released in November 2017 by 13 U.S. federal agencies.