Influence of Global Environmental Change on Infectious Disease Dynamics. Workshop Summary. Held in Washington, DC on September 24-25, 2013

摘要

Understanding how environmental factors directly and indirectly affect the emergence and spread of infectious disease has assumed global importance for life on this planet. While the causal links between environmental change and disease emergence are complex, progress in understanding these links, as well as how their impacts may vary across space and time, will require transdisciplinary, transnational, collaborative research. This research may draw on the expertise, tools, and approaches from a variety of disciplines. Such research may inform improvements in global readiness and capacity for surveillance, detection, and response to emerging microbial threats to plant, animal, and human health. Progress in understanding and addressing the complex causal links between environmental change and disease emergence will require collaborative research that draws on expertise, tools, and approaches from a variety of disciplines. The Forum on Microbial Threats hosted a public workshop on September 24 and 25, 2013, to explore the scientific and policy implications of the impacts of global environmental change on infectious disease emergence, establishment, and spread. Participants examined and discussed the observed and potential influence of environmental factors, acting both individually and in synergy, on infectious disease dynamics, and considered a range of approaches to improve global readiness and capacity for surveillance, detection, and response to emerging microbial threats to plant, animal, and human health in the face of ongoing global environmental change.