How One Health connects animals, earth observations and human health

"One Health" is a collaborative, multi-sector approach to achieving better public health outcomes. Every year on 3 November, One Health Day is used to raise awareness of the approach and champion the work of those at the forefront of protecting the health of people, animals and the environment. Throughout November, the GEO Health Community of Practice will publish blogs to explore the links between environmental change, animal health and human wellbeing, and the role Earth observations play in understanding them.

Some of the earliest warnings of emerging health threats are not found in hospitals but in changing landscapes, wildlife populations and environmental conditions.

Changes in temperature, rainfall, vegetation and land use shape animals' health, distribution and contact with people, and understanding these links is central to One Health, which recognises the interconnected health of humans, animals, plants and ecosystems.

Understanding animal–environment interactions is essential for anticipating new health risks. A 2026 perspective on hantaviruses emphasises how environmental change, rodent reservoir ecology and human exposure interact to influence opportunities for disease spillover. Rather than focusing exclusively on human cases, the research underscores the importance of recognising ecological conditions that may signal changing risk.

These relationships extend beyond infectious diseases. Environmental stressors such as extreme heat, drought, habitat fragmentation and changing water conditions affect livestock productivity, wildlife survival, aquatic animal health and biodiversity, with consequences for food security and ecosystem resilience.

Earth observation data help us monitor environmental changes. Their greatest value comes when they are combined with animal health information to better understand patterns and identify emerging threats.

One example is the US Geological Survey’s National Wildlife Disease Database, developed by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The platform integrates wildlife health surveillance information from multiple sources and incorporates Earth observations and other environmental data into analytical dashboards. By examining wildlife disease activity alongside environmental conditions, the system can identify patterns and recognise unusual events.

This illustrates how integrating environmental and animal health information can advance surveillance and support decisions that protect wildlife, agriculture, ecosystems and human health.

The GEO Health Community of Practice’s Animal Health Work Group brings together experts in veterinary medicine, ecology, Earth science, epidemiology and public health to help turn Earth observation data into practical animal health applications.

One Health Day is a reminder that connecting environmental observations with animal health information helps us move from seeing health threats to anticipating risks and taking action.