Towards integrated ecology governance and One Health in the context of the polycrises (climate, biodiversity, pollution, protection, and environmental health).
Date : April 8th, 2026
Location: Geneve, Switzerland
The event is organized in the framework of the One Health Festival and the One Health High-Level Summit organized for World Health Day. The initiative aims to bring together scientists, policymakers, international organizations, civil society representatives, and youth to discuss how the principles of Integral Ecology and One Health can be translated into concrete policies and actions to address the current environmental polycrises.
The aim of the event is to offer a space to discuss how the principles of integral ecology and One Health can translate into concrete actions that address today’s environmental polycrises (climate, biodiversity, pollution, and land degradation), covered by GEO7 (UNEP, 2025). Inspired by the position paper from the 4th International One Health Conference, this event will provide a space for interdisciplinary dialogue, bringing together scientists, policymakers, civil society representatives, field practitioners, and youth.
The event will feature a panel discussion structured around key pillars: (1) the interlinkages between ecosystems’ degradation and the emergence or distribution change of animal and plant pathogens, vector-borne and zoonotic diseases, epidemics, plagues, and the proliferation of invasive species, among others; (2) antimicrobial and pesticide resistance associated with increased risks of animal and plant diseases and increased need for health management in intensive agri-food systems and livestock production along with the impacts of increasing temperatures on the effectiveness of animal and plant health management chemotherapeutants and pesticides; and (3) sustainable and diverse agro-ecological food systems and environmental justice.
Through international case studies (urban areas, rural territories, coastal regions, and countries of the Global South), the event will highlight integrated One Health solutions, including cross-sectoral governance, ethical scientific innovation, agroecological transition, ecosystem restoration, citizen participation, and the crucial role of youth.
The goal is twofold: to improve our understanding of how all living systems depend on each other and to create practical policy suggestions that match international goals (like COP30, SDGs, and WHO-FAO-UN). The event will thus contribute to positioning the One Health Festival as a catalyst for transformation toward a global, just, and sustainable One Health vision.
Organizers : International One-Health Conference, University of Catania, Metabolism of Cities Living Lab -San Diego State University, Institute for Ecosystem and Related Research Barcelona, SHE Foundation, UNEP GEO7, Chemicals and Health (TBC).
English