News — In an era of increasingly interconnected health, environmental and social crises, a fragmented, piecemeal approach to addressing these crises is no longer sufficient to ensure the long-term health and well-being of humans, animals and ecosystems.
The One Health approach is essential for tackling current and future challenges such as the spread of zoonotic diseases, antibiotic resistance, food insecurity, climate change and biodiversity loss.
In Canada, awareness and understanding of the interdependence of human, animal and environmental health has been growing since the early 2000s. Today, this principle is embraced by a wide range of stakeholders in research, education, government, industry and civil society.
Université de Montréal is strongly committed to One Health and is applying its world-class expertise in research, education and innovation to support it.
Strong institutional support
The intersectoral and inclusive One Health concept has been a driving force behind the research, teaching and partnership decisions of members of the UdeM community for years. This commitment is shared by the research teams and the university bodies that support them.
“We cannot achieve individual or collective health if we don’t take care of the environment we share with animals and plants,” said , UdeM’s vice-rector of research, discovery, creation and innovation. “At the university, we have created a virtuous circle in which we benefit from the expertise and dynamic energy of our many research teams. We do our part by creating opportunities for exchange and providing the structures they need to achieve their most ambitious goals.”
“Our researchers, who understand the importance of joining forces to respond and act on major health issues, are strongly aligned with our One Health initiative, which seeks to facilitate intersectoral dialogue,” added , assistant vice-rector of research and co-director of UdeM’s One Health Initiative with , assistant vice-rector of graduate and postgraduate studies.
The two vice-rectors and their teams are responsible for implementing the mechanisms needed to foster exchange, collaboration and data sharing across sectors. And their efforts are paying off.
A host of initiatives
More than an abstract concept, One Health has spawned a series of concrete initiatives such as the healthy parks project, led by UdeM professor Cécile Aenishaenslin and supported by a large network of partners. Its goal is to protect both human health, particularly against the spread of the ticks that cause Lyme disease, and ecosystem health in peri-urban nature parks in the Montreal, the Montérégie and the Eastern Townships.
Another initiative is , a research network focused on preparing for emerging threats to human health. Funded by the Fonds de recherche du Québec, Précrisa is a collaboration between UdeM, Université du Québec à Rimouski, and civil-society partners.
UdeM also has two Canada Excellence Research Chairs (CERCs) related to One Health: , led by professor Evelyne De Leeuw, explores governance mechanisms and power issues in urban projects, and , led by professor Frédérique Le Roux, develops innovative solutions to tackle the rise of antibiotic resistance.
Another One Health initiative, ELUZO, is mobilizing African women and girl farmers as key players in the fight against zoonoses in rural communities in Senegal and Burkina Faso. Funded by Foreign Affairs Canada, the project is backed by a large UdeM-led consortium of partners in Canada and West Africa.
Other research groups and centres at Université de Montréal that are applying One Health include the and the .
The commitment to One Health is also strong in UdeM’s student community. Created by and for students, the has helped launch a number of important initiatives, including the , which mobilizes the next generation around projects to support the socio-ecological transition, based on One Health principles.
“One of the greatest strengths of UdeM’s One Health Initiative is its ability to leverage expertise from across our faculties,” said Stafford. “This diversity allows us to create the unique synergies essential to meeting multidimensional challenges and developing innovative, interdisciplinary solutions that expand the reach of each project.”
Leadership beyond UdeM
Hébert and Stafford agree that translating One Health into reality means involving all disciplines and breaking down institutional barriers.
“The playing field is much bigger than Université de Montréal,” said Hébert. “If we want to have an impact globally, we have to be willing to venture outside our own walls.”
With this in mind, Stafford and his team are working to forge links between UdeM and other Canadian universities, in particular in Calgary, Guelph and Saskatchewan, in partnership with government bodies such as the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the Public Health Agency of Canada.
The goal is to build a national One Health strategy to create the tools needed to coordinate stakeholders in developing a One Health approach rooted in Canadian realities.
With its world-class expertise in areas such as zoonoses, antibiotic resistance, emerging contaminants, food systems, ethics, landscape architecture and AI, Université de Montréal has a unique and vibrant One Health ecosystem.
This concentration of knowledge will support many more projects in the future, including a One Health doctoral program involving eight faculties that will be launched soon – a first, not only for UdeM, but for Canada.
One Health principles are even being integrated into the design of physical spaces on campus to create sustainable, inclusive spaces that promote people’s well-being and to preserve biodiversity.
“Université de Montréal is showing strong leadership on One Health, but this is only the beginning of a movement,” concluded Hébert.
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