Dr. Roth focused mainly on our dependence on very few species, pigs, cattle and poultry for animal protein. This reliance on a few key species makes us vulnerable, and the dramatic rise in the human population has led to a dramatic rise in food animal production, increasing the risk of emerging infectious diseases. However, our large population means that without centralized large-scale agriculture we would struggle to produce the volume needed to feed our population. Particularly in our globalized world, large intensive agriculture – like many human activities – is contributing to environmental degradation and climate change which has further One Health implications. Globalization has led to movement of a great deal of diseases that pose a threat to food security such as African Swine Fever and avian influenza.

Dr. Dr. Teck Hock Toh presents his research about infection pathogens.

From the other side of the globe, Dr. Teck Hock Toh shared his experiences as a physician and researcher in Malaysia’s Sibu Hospital, nestled within the immense island of Borneo. He described his encounters with a menagerie of infectious pathogens – some of which we see in the United States, but others, such as leptospirosis and dengue, perhaps not so often. He was brought into the One Health research fold by Dr. Gray, now a long-time collaborator. Embracing one health has provided Dr. Toh with the epidemiologic tools to diagnose previously unidentified pneumonia, monitor sentinel animal species, and explore the relationship between his nation’s environment and its brewing zoonotic illnesses. Dr. Toh brought a unique perspective to the Symposium, one which contributes to a tapestry of research connecting us to our ecosystem. His work is advancing our knowledge of respiratory disease in a setting ripe with interspecies encounters.

Food Security Session

In a later session on Food Security, Dr. Laura Kahn, a cofounder of the One Health Initiative, suggested that just as antimicrobial resistance threatens modern medicine, climate change threatens agriculture and food security. She focused on the importance of managing animal and human waste to prevent loading our environment with pathogens. During the same Food Security session, Dr. Anabel Rodriguez spoke to what we have learned (and can continue to learn) from social determinants of health faced by agriculture workers. Rural areas have a host of issues that contribute to systemic barriers to health service access. These barriers pose a risk to the health of agricultural workers, and food security because of the social vulnerabilities like poverty and language barriers that agricultural workers experience. However, delivery of health services in health deserts has been proven feasible, particularly if done virtually. This is good news because the health of agricultural workers is vital for food security and by extension national security. While there is much to be done to address human driven disasters such as climate change, emerging infectious diseases and food security a roadmap of addressing these complex problems is signposted by collaboration across disciplines and nations because we are One Health and one world.