In the official G7 Summit Communique released following its conclusion (held June 11 to 13, 2021 in Cornwall, UK), the G7 leaders endorsed the G7 Health Ministers’ Communique, and the concrete actions outlined in it.

In Section 16, they place emphasis on "improving integration, by strengthening a 'One Health' approach across all aspects of pandemic prevention and preparedness, recognising the critical links between human and animal health and the environment."

They officially recognized that the One Health approach is an important tool required "to ensure all countries are better equipped to prevent, detect, respond to and recover from health crises."

This is an important step forward for One Health.

The One Health Student Committee planned a series of events and activities to help students learn about One Health and its applications.

Between May 17-30, the Exploring One Health (EOH) organizing committee launched One Health learning modules that engaged with students from around the world.

Over 120 undergraduate and graduate students from 18 countries registered for the event and 57 students from nine countries; Canada, Brazil, China, Greece, India, Nepal, South Korea, Turkey and the United States, completed all five modules and earned their OHSC Exploring One Health certificate!

While the bulk of the participants were undergraduate students, one quarter of the certificate earners were graduate students with a small number of participants being recent graduates or those currently in-between programs.

Five learning modules made up the bulk of the Exploring One Health series. Most were asynchronous and could be completed at the student's own pace.

The modules included: 1. One Health Foundations, an introduction to One Health comprised of ten introductory videos on ten One Health themes, 2. One Health Illustrated, an opportunity for participants to provide photos, drawings or videos of where they see One Health around them, 3. One Health Case Studies, 'Animal Disaster Response using One Health' and 'Climate Change', 4. One Health Q & A Panel, five speakers and an interactive panel discussion, and 5. One Health and You, an opportunity for participants to talk about how they might use One Health in their dream career.

In total, 17 One Health professionals and 5 OHSC students shared their varied experiences and perspectives on One Health with the participants.​​​​​​

After the completion of each module, participants completed surveys and answered questions based on the material that they had just learned.​​​​

One of the most interesting outcomes of the Exploring One Health series came out of the final One Health and You module. The word cloud to the right lists the broad range of career aspirations expressed by the Exploring One Health series participants. They included careers as diverse as Climate Resilience Planner, Dietitian, Teacher, Rheumatologist and Animal Welfare One Health Specialist.

Additionally, a follow-up survey found that while only 9% of participants considered themselves 'extremely' or 'very' knowledgeable about One Health before participating in Exploring One Health, a whopping 75% of participants completed their certificate with the same affirmation!

Graduate Filmmaker Sheds Light on Inuit-Caribou Relations

When the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador placed a total hunting ban on caribou in 2013 (in order to restore the population), the Inuit of Labrador’s Nunatsiavut and NunatuKavut regions expressed a need to use visual media to communicate Inuit experiences and stories related to the declining caribou populations.

David Borish jumped at the chance to join this project as a filmmaker and researcher, leading the film process, conducting and analyzing qualitative research data, and blending those processes together.

Read about how One Health is related to his research here.

The One Health Commission recognizes that there is an emerging need for a better understanding of what One Health is all about.

Therefore, in partnership with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine and the Wilson Center and the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, they are hosting a 'One Health in the U.S.' webinar series.

The first webinar: 'One Health 101: what is all the fuss about?' will take place June 30, noon to 1:00 pm and will answer the questions: 1. What do I need to know about One Health?, 2. Why do I need to know it?, 3. Why is it so important?, and 4. What can I do about it?

More information and registration details available here.

All Canadians have a responsibility to learn about indigenous history and the intergenerational effects of residential schools. We must continue to work toward reconciliation and decolonization.

To celebrate National Indigenous History Month, a collection of novels, children's literature, research and scholarly texts, and memoirs have been curated for the McLaughlin Library by Indigenous Initiatives and the Indigenous Student Centre to highlight Indigenous writers, content and research frameworks.

This month is an opportunity to honour and celebrate the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, two-spirit, intersex, asexual and many other identities that fall outside of heterosexual and cisgender paradigms.

The University of Guelph has events and resources available to the LGBTQ2IA+ community.​​​​

Are you a University of Guelph faculty member who conducts research that is One Health-related?

Please check out our One Health affiliated faculty list for a list of campus faculty who have self-identified as One Health researchers.

We are currently updating this list and if you would like to be added, please send a photo along with your research interests to onehealth@uoguelph.ca.

If you like to be removed from this list, or if there are faculty on this list who are no longer at the University of Guelph, we would like to know that too. Thank you!

The OVC Graduate Student Research Symposium will take place on Tuesday, June 22, 10:00 to 3:00. The Symposium showcases the fantastic work that graduate students are doing across the college to continue to advance scientific research in animal, human, and environmental health.

There will be a speaker panel on One Health Informatics followed by concurrent sessions of graduate students giving three- or seven-minute presentations on their research.

​​​​​​Canadian Veterinary Medicine Association hybrid conference is July 22 to 25, 2021, in Calgary, Alberta. Register for access to 80 hours of continuing education, and a virtual exhibit hall & social programs.

American Veterinary Medical Association hybrid convention is July 29 to August 1, 2021​​​, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

One Welfare World first annual conference is September 15-16, 2021. This virtual conference will highlight the One Welfare Framework, and how One Welfare is relevant in the context of the COVID Pandemic. 

Global Conference on Climate Change is September 16 to 18, in person in London, UK. This conference will address the multidimensional aspects of the climate change problem and present solutions.