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Box 1. One Health definition and key underlying principles
Definition
One Health is an integrated, unifying approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals, and ecosystems. It recognizes the health of humans, domestic and wild animals, plants, and the wider environment (including ecosystems) are closely linked and interdependent.
The approach mobilizes multiple sectors, disciplines, and communities at varying levels of society to work together to foster well-being and tackle threats to health and ecosystems, while addressing the collective need for healthy food, water, energy, and air, taking action on climate change and contributing to sustainable development.
Key underlying principles including
- equity between sectors and disciplines;
- sociopolitical and multicultural parity (the doctrine that all people are equal and deserve equal rights and opportunities) and inclusion and engagement of communities and marginalized voices;
- socioecological equilibrium that seeks a harmonious balance between human–animal–environment interaction and acknowledging the importance of biodiversity, access to sufficient natural space and resources, and the intrinsic value of all living things within the ecosystem;
- stewardship and the responsibility of humans to change behavior and adopt sustainable solutions that recognize the importance of animal welfare and the integrity of the whole ecosystem, thus securing the well-being of current and future generations; and
- transdisciplinarity and multisectoral collaboration, which includes all relevant disciplines, both modern and traditional forms of knowledge and a broad representative array of perspectives.
SEE: One Health: A new definition for a sustainable and healthy future - PMC
Quick Links
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Please see MONOGRAPH in Veterinaria Italiana
“One Health – One Medicine”: linking human, animal and environmental health
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History of the One Health Initiative team and website (April 2006 through September 2015) and the One Health Initiative website since October 1, 2008 … revised to June 2020 and again to date February 2021
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Vaccines for zoonoses: a One Health paradigm
SciTech Europa Quarterly (March 2018) – Issue 26
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Pan European Networks SciTech Europa Quarterly
SciTech Europa Vaccines for zoonoses: a one Health paradigm – Pages 227-229 (Read PDF) “One of the One Health Initiative team’s co-founders and leaders is an internationally-recognized eminent physician…
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