Efforts to improve food security and nutrition have contributed to dramatic declines in forest and other natural ecosystems and rapid increases in contact rates between human and wild and domestic animals. Since 1940, agricultural drivers were associated with more than one quarter of all infectious diseases—and more than half of all zoonotic infectious diseases—that emerged in humans. Current risks of infectious diseases are particularly high in Asia, but projections suggest that infectious disease risk will grow fastest in Africa south of the Sahara, as crop area and livestock populations expand.

This policy seminar will discuss the agriculture-ecosystem health interface that was magnified by COVID-19, and will consider cross-sectoral solutions that could reduce such risk and enhance human and ecosystem health with a focus on the contributions that One CGIAR can make.

Speakers

• John E. Fa, Senior Research Associate at CIFOR and Professor of Biodiversity and Human Development at Manchester Metropolitan University (Presentation)
• Katharine Kreis, Director of Strategic Initiatives and Lead for Nutrition Innovation, PATH & Bridge Collaborative Secretariat Member (Presentation)
• Ricky Robertson, Research Fellow, IFPRI (Presentation)
• Christian Walzer, Executive Director of Wildlife Health, Wildlife Conservation Society (Presentation)

Discussants

• Josh Goldstein, Director, Bridge Collaborative, The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
• Izabella Koziell, Program Director, CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE)
• Eva Ohlsson, Senior Research Advisor, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA)

Moderator

• Claudia Ringler, Deputy Division Director, Environment and Production Technology Division, IFPRI; CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystem Flagship co-lead and Bridge Collaborative Secretariat member