Earth system sience partnerchip. ESSP

The Challenge

Human activities increasingly affect the structure and functioning of ecosystems. In turn, these changes can influence the entire chain of factors involved in the infectious disease cycle: pathogens, vectors, reservoir species and human populations. Seemingly unrelated human activities can thus have serious consequences for human diseases, both infectious and non-infectious. The scientific community recognises the growing need to better understand the multi-faceted and complex linkages between global environmental change (including climate change, land and sea use change, global biodiversity loss and change, global socio-economic change) and human health. However, as yet, little systematic research has been undertaken on the many important aspects of this topic. Nor has there been any sustained attempt to establish an international research community.