The health of people, animals and the natural world is inseparable. The quality of the environments in which we live, the health of wildlife and domestic animals, the spread of infectious diseases, the pollutants we release into the environment and our own physical and mental wellbeing are all connected in complex and often unexpected ways. Recognising these connections is at the heart of the One Health approach. The third event in the ZSL Wild Talks series explored this important idea, bringing together scientists and conservation professionals to examine how protecting nature can also protect human health for an evening titled Wild Health: People, Nature & One Health. Hosted by Professor Chris van Tulleken, the event brought together research from veterinary virology, wildlife health, marine pollution, conservation education and public engagement to demonstrate why environmental protection should not be considered separate from human healthcare or societal wellbeing. The evening highlighted an increasingly important message: looking after nature is not simply something we do for wildlife. It is something we do for ourselves. Through a combination of presentations, discussion and audience questions, the speakers explored some of the ways in which environmental change can influence disease, pollution can affect both wildlife and people, and meaningful connections with nature can contribute to healthier and more resilient communities.
What is One Health? One Health is an approach that recognises that the health of humans, animals and ecosystems are interconnected. Rather than treating human health, veterinary health and environmental health as separate disciplines, One Health encourages scientists, policymakers, conservationists, medical professionals, veterinarians and communities to work together. This perspective has become particularly important as the pressures placed upon the natural world continue to increase. Climate change, habitat destruction, biodiversity loss, pollution, intensive agriculture, urbanisation and globalisation can all alter relationships between people, animals and the environment. Infectious diseases provide a particularly clear example. Many diseases that affect people originate in animals, while changes to land use, wildlife populations and climate can influence opportunities for pathogens to move between species. Preventing disease therefore cannot be achieved solely by treating human patients after an outbreak has occurred. It also requires understanding the ecological conditions that allow diseases to emerge and spread. But One Health extends far beyond infectious disease. Chemical pollution can affect wildlife and enter food webs. Changes in marine ecosystems can affect fisheries and coastal communities. Loss of biodiversity can undermine ecosystem functions on which societies depend. At the same time, access to nature can influence people’s physical and psychological wellbeing. The Wild Talks event demonstrated these connections through three complementary perspectives.
The first presentation, “One Health: When nature’s health is our health”, was delivered by Dr Javier Sánchez Romano, Research Fellow in One Health at the Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London (ZSL). Javier is a veterinary virologist whose work focuses on the relationships between wildlife, domestic animals and human health. Following veterinary training in Spain, he completed an MSc and PhD in Infection Biology at UiT, The Arctic University of Norway. His research has taken him across Europe and Africa, investigating how environmental change influences infectious disease dynamics. A central theme of this work is the recognition that disease does not occur in isolation. Pathogens, hosts and environments interact within complex ecological systems, and changes to any one component can have consequences for the others. Climate change provides a particularly important example. As temperatures and rainfall patterns change, the distributions, abundance and behaviour of animals can also change. These shifts may alter interactions between wildlife, livestock and people and consequently influence the distribution and transmission of infectious diseases. Understanding these processes requires collaboration across traditional disciplinary boundaries. A veterinarian may understand animal disease, an epidemiologist may study transmission, an ecologist may understand host populations and habitats, while local communities possess essential knowledge about how environmental changes are affecting their livelihoods. One Health seeks to bring these perspectives together. Javier’s current work at ZSL illustrates this approach. His projects in Central Asia and the Western Congo Basin integrate biodiversity conservation, zoonotic disease prevention, community collaboration and practical conservation action. This is particularly important in regions where communities depend directly upon natural resources. Protecting biodiversity and reducing disease risks do not necessarily represent competing objectives. With appropriate approaches, conservation can help create healthier environments while supporting the people who depend upon them. The underlying message of Javier’s presentation was therefore both simple and profound: the health of nature is a component of our own health.
The second presentation, “Chemical Pollution, Marine Mammals and One Health”, was delivered by Dr Rosie Williams, Postdoctoral Research Assistant at the Institute of Zoology. Rosie has been working with ZSL since 2017, when she began her PhD with the Institute of Zoology and Brunel University. Her research now brings together expertise in wildlife health, marine biology and environmental pollution. Working in collaboration with the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme and the Ocean Predator Lab at the Institute of Zoology, Rosie investigates the health of marine predators and the effects of human-generated environmental pressures. Marine mammals occupy high positions in many marine food webs, making them valuable indicators of the condition of marine ecosystems. They can be exposed to pollutants through the food they consume, the water in which they live and the wider marine environment. Some contaminants can accumulate within tissues and become increasingly concentrated as they move through food webs. Chemical pollution therefore provides another clear illustration of the One Health concept. A chemical released into the environment may initially appear to be an environmental problem, but its effects can extend through ecosystems and ultimately influence people. The presentation considered the effects of anthropogenic stressors such as chemical pollution and noise. These pressures rarely occur independently. Wildlife may simultaneously experience habitat disturbance, chemical contamination, underwater noise, climate change, changing prey availability and other forms of human pressure. Understanding these cumulative impacts is consequently one of the major challenges facing modern conservation science. Rosie’s research explores new methods for assessing wildlife health and understanding the consequences of chemical pollution. This work is important not only for understanding the condition of marine mammals themselves but also for understanding the state of the ecosystems in which they live. Marine predators can act as sentinels of environmental change. Their health can provide clues about problems occurring elsewhere within marine ecosystems, potentially helping scientists identify threats before they become even more widespread. The One Health perspective adds another dimension. If pollutants can move through ecosystems and food webs, then protecting wildlife from contamination is also part of protecting the environments upon which people depend.
The final presentation, “Connecting people and nature: The mutual benefit this brings for people and the environment,” was delivered by Cat Hickey, Head of Conservation Education at ZSL. Cat’s contribution broadened the One Health discussion beyond disease and environmental contamination to consider a question that is sometimes overlooked: what does contact with nature mean for human wellbeing? As Head of Conservation Education, Cat works to introduce children and young people to wildlife and the natural world. Her experience demonstrates the transformative potential of meaningful encounters with nature. For many people, particularly children, opportunities to spend time outdoors can shape lifelong attitudes towards wildlife and conservation. A child who encounters an amphibian in a pond, watches birds in a garden or explores a woodland is not simply learning facts about biodiversity. They are developing a relationship with the natural world. That relationship can have important consequences for wellbeing. Time spent in nature has been associated with benefits for mental health, physical activity, social connection and a sense of place. Nature can provide opportunities to explore, learn, play and recover from the pressures of everyday life. Cat’s work also highlights the importance of ensuring that access to nature is equitable. Opportunities to engage with wildlife and conservation are not equally distributed across society. Social, economic, geographical and cultural barriers can all influence who gets to experience nature and who is able to pursue a career in conservation. Addressing these inequalities is therefore part of the One Health challenge. If nature contributes to wellbeing, then access to nature should not be regarded simply as a luxury. Green spaces, wildlife-rich environments and opportunities for environmental education can contribute to healthier communities. At the same time, greater engagement with nature can benefit conservation. People who develop meaningful connections with wildlife are more likely to understand why biodiversity matters and may become advocates for its protection. This creates a positive feedback loop: healthy environments can support healthier people, while healthier relationships between people and nature can help create healthier environments.
One of the most important themes running through the event was the need to translate scientific understanding into practical action. Scientific research can reveal how pathogens move between hosts, how pollutants accumulate in wildlife, how environmental changes affect ecosystems and how contact with nature influences people. However, research alone cannot solve these problems. Effective One Health approaches require collaboration between researchers, governments, conservation organisations, healthcare professionals, communities, businesses and the public. They also require us to reconsider what we mean by prevention. In human medicine, prevention often means reducing exposure to a risk before illness occurs. The same principle can be applied at an ecological scale. Preventing habitat destruction, reducing pollution, protecting biodiversity and maintaining healthy ecosystems can reduce some of the conditions that contribute to environmental and health problems. Conservation can therefore be understood as a form of preventative health. This does not mean that every conservation intervention automatically improves human health, or that ecological problems can be reduced to their consequences for people. Wildlife and ecosystems have value in their own right. Rather, One Health demonstrates that there are additional, practical reasons why societies should protect the natural world. The discussions during the Wild Talks event reinforced the idea that the boundaries between environmental, animal and human health are artificial. Viruses do not recognise disciplinary boundaries. Pollutants do not remain neatly within political jurisdictions. Climate change affects ecosystems, wildlife and communities simultaneously. Nor can the psychological and cultural benefits of nature be separated entirely from the condition of the environments in which people live. The challenges facing the planet are therefore interconnected, and our responses need to be interconnected too. From the study of infectious diseases in wildlife, to monitoring pollutants in marine predators, to providing children with opportunities to experience nature, the work presented at the event demonstrated the breadth of the One Health approach. Javier Sánchez Romano’s work illustrated how wildlife disease, environmental change and human health can be addressed together. Rosie Williams demonstrated how understanding the health of marine predators can reveal the consequences of human pollution and cumulative environmental pressures. Cat Hickey showed that the relationship between people and nature is itself an important component of wellbeing and conservation. Together, these perspectives tell a powerful story. Healthy people need healthy environments.
Healthy environments support healthy wildlife, and healthy wildlife populations and functioning ecosystems contribute to resilient societies. The One Health approach does not suggest that there is a simple solution to the environmental and health challenges facing the world. Instead, it provides a framework for understanding those challenges in all their complexity. Perhaps most importantly, it encourages us to think about prevention rather than simply responding to crises after they occur. Protecting wetlands, forests, oceans and other ecosystems can help preserve biodiversity while maintaining the ecological processes on which people depend. Monitoring wildlife health can provide early warning of emerging threats. Reducing pollution can improve the condition of ecosystems while reducing exposure to harmful contaminants. Providing opportunities for children and adults to experience nature can strengthen wellbeing and foster the next generation of conservationists. Ultimately, the message of the third Wild Talks event was one of interdependence. Nature is not somewhere ‘out there’, separate from human society. We live within ecosystems, depend upon their functions and influence them every day. The health of wildlife, the condition of our rivers and oceans, the quality of the air we breathe, the food we eat and the green spaces around our communities are all part of a much larger system. Recognising those connections is the first step towards protecting them. The One Health perspective therefore offers both a scientific framework and a broader philosophy: if we want healthier people and more resilient societies, we must also invest in the health of the natural world. Caring for nature is, ultimately, an investment in ourselves. If you’d like to watch the evening’s talks, you can do so in the YouTube video below and hopefully I’ll see you at a future Wild Talks event!
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