2. The One Health Paradigm: Key Concepts and Scientific Foundations
2.1 Defining One Health
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the One Health High-Level Expert Panel (OHHLEP), One Health is defined as:
“An integrated, unifying approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals and ecosystems.”
This definition emphasizes the ecological, biological, and socio-economic interdependence of health systems across species and environments.
2.2 Interconnected Systems Thinking
The One Health Triad consists of:
Human Health: Physical, mental, and social well-being, shaped by public health systems, individual behaviors, and social determinants.
Animal Health: Encompassing both livestock and wildlife, crucial for food security, livelihoods, and zoonotic disease surveillance.
Environmental (Planetary) Health: Quality and sustainability of ecosystems, climate regulation, air and water quality, and biodiversity.
These components form a complex adaptive system, in which perturbations in one domain can propagate across others—necessitating integrated modeling and governance approaches.
2.3 Scientific Imperatives for One Health
Zoonoses: Over 60% of known infectious diseases in humans are zoonotic; 75% of emerging infectious diseases originate in animals (Taylor et al., 2001).
Climate Change: Alters disease vectors, water and food availability, and habitat stability, intensifying health risks across the triad (Myers et al., 2017).
Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR): A growing global health crisis exacerbated by antibiotic misuse in both human medicine and animal agriculture (Robinson et al., 2016).
Biodiversity Loss: Decreases ecosystem resilience and increases the likelihood of pathogen spillover events (Daszak et al., 2020).
3. Implementation Challenges and Strategic Priorities
3.1 Gaps in Education and Institutional Frameworks
Despite scientific consensus, One Health is not yet fully embedded in most academic curricula. Human medicine, veterinary science, and environmental health still operate in silos, with limited coordination. The absence of One Health research institutes and dedicated innovation ecosystems is a critical bottleneck.
3.2 Governance and Policy Integration
Implementing One Health requires coordinated policymaking across:
Ministries of Health, Agriculture, and Environment
International bodies (e.g., WHO, FAO, OIE, UNEP)
Private sector and civil society
Current governance mechanisms are fragmented, reactive, and inadequately resourced for integrated action.
3.3 The Need for Transdisciplinary Innovation
Scientific innovation in One Health should focus on:
Planetary diagnostics: CO₂ and pollutant tracking in health metrics
Bioinformatics and surveillance tools for zoonotic pathogens
Precision public health strategies leveraging AI and Big Data
Sustainable infrastructure (e.g., zero-emission health facilities)
The creation of One Health Technology Parks and Academic-Industry Innovation Hubs is essential for bridging science, application, and entrepreneurship.
4. Summary and Conclusion
One Health offers a science-based, scalable response to the systemic health challenges of our time. By recognizing the inseparability of human, animal, and environmental health, it calls for a reorganization of health education, research, and policy into integrated, collaborative models. The implementation of this approach is not merely idealistic—it is scientifically necessary. As we face global threats such as zoonotic pandemics, AMR, biodiversity collapse, and climate instability, One Health provides a comprehensive framework for resilience, innovation, and equity.
To ensure its success, we must invest in One Health Education, build transdisciplinary knowledge networks, and support research-driven policy at local, national, and global scales. These are not theoretical ambitions—they are urgent scientific, societal, and ecological imperatives.
References
Taylor, L. H., Latham, S. M., & Woolhouse, M. E. (2001). Risk factors for human disease emergence. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences, 356(1411), 983–989. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2001.0888
Myers, S. S., & Frumkin, H. (2017). Planetary Health: Protecting Nature to Protect Ourselves. Island Press.
Daszak, P., Olival, K. J., & Li, H. (2020). A strategy to prevent future pandemics similar to the 2019-nCoV outbreak. Biosafety and Health, 2(1), 6–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bsheal.2020.01.003
Robinson, T. P., Bu, D. P., Carrique-Mas, J., et al. (2016). Antibiotic resistance is the quintessential One Health issue. Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 110(7), 377–380. https://doi.org/10.1093/trstmh/trw048
Mackenzie, J. S., & Jeggo, M. (2019). The One Health approach—why is it so important? Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease, 4(2), 88. https://doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed4020088
Frankson, R., et al. (2016). One Health core competency domains. Frontiers in Public Health, 4, 192. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2016.00192
Rabinowitz, P. M., et al. (2017). Incorporating One Health into medical education. BMC Medical Education, 17(1), 45. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-017-0883-6
Binot, A., et al. (2015). Participatory modeling to promote collective action in One Health. One Health, 1, 44–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.onehlt.2015.07.001
