Zoos and public health: A partnership on the One Health frontier

Abstract

Today, accredited zoos are not just places for entertainment, they are actively involved in research for conservation and health. During recent decades in which the challenges for biodiversity conservation and public health have escalated, zoos have made significant changes to address these difficulties. Zoos increasingly have four key areas of focus: education, recreation, conservation, and research. These key areas are important in addressing an interrelated global conservation (i.e. habitat and wildlife loss) and public health crisis. Zoo and public health professionals working together within a One Health framework represent a powerful alliance to address current and future conservation and public health problems around the world. For researchers, practitioners, and students, the collaboration between zoos and public health institutions offers the opportunity to both teach and operationalize this transdisciplinary approach. Using examples from our programs, we give a template for moving forward with collaborative initiatives and sustainable solutions involving partners in both zoos and public health institutions. We provide examples of cooperative programs and suggest a model for consideration in the development of further activities in this area.

Changes in human health parameters associated with an immersive exhibit experience at a zoological institution

“…Studies such as ours provide evidence that zoos provide physiological and psychological human health benefits to visitors from all backgrounds. This reinforces the role of zoos within the growing One Health movement as zoos often blend environmental, human and animal health [18,19,20,21].…”

“…An individual's exposure to nature and the resulting human health benefits may provide positive public health outcomes [9,10,11]. The existence of human health benefits derived from experience in nature is one facet of the growing understanding of how environmental, human and animal health are inter-connected within a framework of One Health [18,19,20,21].…”

“…One Health is an initiative based on the understanding that the health of all life is inextricably linked and involves multi-disciplinary collaboration to optimize the health of people, animals, and the environment [19,20,22]. In the last decade, many Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) institutions have been participants in this initiative [21,23,24]. For instance, numerous zoos focus on the conservation of animal species and wildlife habitats, both important for ecosystem health and resilience, through their efforts both with collection animals as well as in situ with animals throughout the world [21,23,25,26].…”

“…In the last decade, many Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) institutions have been participants in this initiative [21,23,24]. For instance, numerous zoos focus on the conservation of animal species and wildlife habitats, both important for ecosystem health and resilience, through their efforts both with collection animals as well as in situ with animals throughout the world [21,23,25,26]. Additionally, naturalistic exhibits of animals and well-maintained natural green spaces on zoo campuses may provide health benefits for zoo visitors as has been demonstrated previously [27,28].…”

La Salud Pública en los Zoológicos de Colombia. Un desafío para la Medicina Veterinaria

“…Con lo anterior se puede apreciar que la salud pública en términos generales desde el punto de vista formativo, está muy limitada y mucho más cuando de la práctica en la vida real se trata, en este caso en los zoológicos. No obstante, se han realizado esfuerzos en los últimos años por reclamar la importancia que merece la salud pública en la medicina veterinaria y así mismo abrir sus campos de acción, estableciendo que la salud pública veterinaria tendrá un mayor número de actividades enfocadas por un lado a la comprensión y detección de procesos o eventos que perjudican la salud de las poblaciones humanas y animales, y en la identificación y prevención de situaciones de riesgo (11)(12)(13).…”