A challenge to rise to: Importance of the One Health Approach in the Era of the Climate Change Debate | Biomedgrid

One Health recognizes that the health of people is connected to the health of animals and the environment. It encompasses a collaborative, cross-sectorial, and transdisciplinary approach to achieve the goal of optimal health for humans and animals thriving in a sustainable environment. Statistics indicate that 6 out of every 10 infectious diseases in humans are spread from animals. Recent outbreaks of zoonotic diseases such as SARS and ebola virus infection, as well as the threat of pandemic influenza [1] also serve to highlight the significance of the One Health approach in the infectious disease arena at a global level. The future of academic research, irrespective of biomedical or epidemiological fields, leans towards interdisciplinary collaboration, which forms the basis of the One Health approach. Interdisciplinary research (IDR) builds bridges between diverse ideas and methodologies thus providing a scope for novel discoveries leading to a competitive edge for securing external research funding. The establishment of dedicated multi/interdisciplinary research buildings in 2019/2020-2021 by several universities such as University of Texas El Paso, Saint Louis University and CalPoly is testament to the acknowledgement of role played by IDR in combating the manifold crisis faced by our world. While the interdependence of veterinary medicine, human medicine, public health and environmental health can be further illustrated in a variety of ways, nothing is more consequential than global warming in the current world scenario. The collective impact of this inconvenient truth upon human, animal, and environmental health is beginning to unfold at a rate much alarming than previously anticipated.