Building support for protected areas using a "One Health" perspective

Issues affecting the interplay among wildlife health, the health of domestic animals, and human health are receiving inadequate attention from protected area managers. This chapter encourages an innovative framework, called the "One Health Paradigm", by taking a broad ecological definition of health that brings together many disciplines that too often have remained isolated from each other. This ecosystem approach to health issues is especially pertinent in the parts of the world where domestic animals often interact with the wild species of greatest interest to protected area managers. Steve Osofsky and his colleagues also provide a perspective on the many relationships between the health of wildlife and the health of people living in the often-remote areas adjacent to protected areas, where human health care is often in short supply. Building a more appropriate response to the problems of disease transmission across the interface between wildlife and domestic animals can also lead to improvements in the health status of the people living around protected areas, thereby building a more positive attitude towards the protected area and conservation authorities. This chapter also emphasizes the highly dynamic relationship between people, domestic animals, and wildlife, calling for significant investments in training, monitoring and research in order to ensure a healthy outcome for all concerned. The elements in the "One Health" paradigm provide a solid basis for building support for protected areas from those living near them and those working on human and animal health.