One Health – a strategy for resilience in a changing arctic

• Published in: International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Main Authors: Bruce A. Ruscio, Michael Brubaker, Joshua Glasser, Will Hueston, Thomas W. Hennessy
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2015
• Subjects: Arctic; circumpolar; One Health; infectious disease; climate change; policy; health policy; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Circumpolar Health; Climate change; Human health; International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3402/ijch.v74.27913; https://doaj.org/article/1abd3cd670ff4e89b6e372a4bb806ac2

The circumpolar north is uniquely vulnerable to the health impacts of climate change. While international Arctic collaboration on health has enhanced partnerships and advanced the health of inhabitants, significant challenges lie ahead. One Health is an approach that considers the connections between the environment, plant, animal and human health. Understanding this is increasingly critical in assessing the impact of global climate change on the health of Arctic inhabitants. The effects of climate change are complex and difficult to predict with certainty. Health risks include changes in the distribution of infectious disease, expansion of zoonotic diseases and vectors, changing migration patterns, impacts on food security and changes in water availability and quality, among others. A regional network of diverse stakeholder and transdisciplinary specialists from circumpolar nations and Indigenous groups can advance the understanding of complex climate-driven health risks and provide community-based strategies for early identification, prevention and adaption of health risks in human, animals and environment. We propose a regional One Health approach for assessing interactions at the Arctic human–animal–environment interface to enhance the understanding of, and response to, the complexities of climate change on the health of the Arctic inhabitants.