News

ONE HEALTH DAY 2018 STUDENT EVENT COMPETITION WINNERS -

ROSS U AND FEDERAL U of RIO de JANEIRO

One Health Day is celebrated internationally on the 3rd of November every year through  One Health educational events held around the world. The 2018 Third Annual global One Health Day generated over 119 events in over 30 countries. Officially launched in 2016 by three leading international One Health groups, the One Health Commission, the One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono Team and the One Health Platform Foundation, this initiative has grown into a global platform for One Health advocates to educate about One Health and One Health topics. Anyone, from academic to private to corporate to governmental agencies can lead One Health Day events and are urged to register them to get on the One Health Day map. 

Students are especially encouraged to envision and implement One Health Day events, and, if desired, to enter them into an annual competition for cash prizes for the best student-led initiatives in each of four global regions. While One Health events happening anywhere and anytime of the year can be registered to celebrate One Health Day, in order to compete student-led events must take place between 1 September and November 30th. These student-led events  reflect not only how the One Health message is spreading across the world, but also how students are able to cross disciplinary boundaries and work together towards a common goal. 

Accordingly, it is with great excitement that the One Health Day Coordinating Team announces the winning student teams for 2018.  Awards of $2,000 each will go to the student teams at Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine (RUSVM), St. Kitts, West Indies and the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro, Seropédica, Brazil. The team from RUSVM organised a week-long series of workshops, lectures and special events focused on promoting the One Health concept. The team from Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro organised a well-attended University-wide event that encouraged professionals from distinct areas to adopt One Health approaches in their professional activities and in their research projects. Additionally, a Special Recognition Award of $500 will go to a team from the University of Rwanda whose ‘Rapid Response to Rift Valley Fever Outbreak’ Project promoted the use of vaccines and hygiene by taking a One Health Approach. Student teams wishing to compete are urged to closely follow competition instructions for their events to qualify.

One Health Day 2019 and its parallel student competitions are already under way. Watch for up-coming communications further promoting and encouraging creation of One Health Day 2019 events and for updated student competition criteria.

About One Health Day

One Health Day answers the urgent need for a One Health trans-disciplinary approach towards solving today’s critical global health challenges. It is a timely initiative that gives scientists and advocates a powerful voice for moving beyond current provincial approaches to emerging zoonotic infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, climate change, environmental pollution, food safety, comparative/ translational medicine and many other problems, to a holistic default way of doing business.

About One Health

One Health is a movement to forge co-equal, all-inclusive collaborations, in both research and applied sciences, between animal, environmental and human health arenas including chemical, engineering and social scientists, dentists, nurses, agriculturalists and food producers, wildlife and environmental health specialists and many other related disciplines. As early as 2010 the World Bank recognized and published documentary evidence supporting benefits of a One Health approach in disease prevention, public health and global security. Today, the One Health approach is being increasingly accepted by numerous major international organizations such as the World Medical Association (WMA), the World Veterinary Association (WVA), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Chatham House and the Interaction Council. Many other supporting organizations can be found at http://www.onehealthinitiative.com/supporters.php.