Environmental health and ecosystem health are closely connected fields within the broader concept of One Health. Environmental conditions influence the health of people, animals, plants, and ecosystems, while healthy ecosystems provide essential services that support life, including clean water, climate regulation, nutrient cycling, food production, and recreational opportunities. As scientific understanding evolves, researchers increasingly recognize that environmental degradation affects both ecological systems and public health, making integrated approaches essential for long-term sustainability.

​

Within veterinary medicine, environmental health extends beyond pollution or habitat conservation alone. Domestic animals, livestock, wildlife, and humans all depend on functioning ecosystems that maintain biodiversity, regulate environmental hazards, and support natural resources. Environmental changes—including pollution, land-use intensification, urbanization, and climate-related disturbances—can alter disease risks, reduce ecosystem resilience, and diminish the services that ecosystems provide to society (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022; Wu et al., 2023).

​

This major pillar introduces the scientific foundations of environmental health and ecosystem health while connecting readers to the three supporting topics that explore these concepts in greater depth:

​

• Water Health

• Environmental Contamination

• Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

 

These interconnected areas illustrate how environmental quality influences animal health, ecosystem function, and human well-being within the CountryVetMom Veterinary Knowledge System.

​

What This Major Pillar Covers

 

Environmental health examines how physical, chemical, biological, and ecological factors influence health across human and animal populations. It encompasses environmental exposures such as polluted air, contaminated water, hazardous chemicals, excessive noise, radiation, changing temperatures, and altered landscapes. Modern environmental health research increasingly considers how multiple exposures interact throughout life rather than evaluating individual hazards in isolation (Rojas-Rueda et al., 2021; Baccarelli et al., 2023).

​

Ecosystem health, meanwhile, focuses on the condition and functioning of ecological systems. Healthy ecosystems maintain their organization, resilience, biodiversity, and capacity to provide ecosystem services despite natural disturbances and environmental pressures. Rather than viewing ecosystems as static environments, researchers describe them as dynamic systems capable of adapting while continuing to support life and ecological processes (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022).

​

Together, these disciplines help explain how environmental changes influence both individual health and the broader systems that sustain communities. Pollution, habitat degradation, biodiversity loss, and unsustainable land management affect ecological integrity while simultaneously increasing risks for humans and animals. Conversely, ecosystem restoration, environmental stewardship, and sustainable resource management often produce benefits across multiple sectors by supporting healthier environments and more resilient ecosystems (Mori et al., 2017; Weiskopf et al., 2022).

​

This pillar provides an overview of:

​

• Environmental factors affecting human and animal health

• The relationship between environmental health and ecosystem health

• The ecological importance of biodiversity and ecosystem services

• How One Health integrates environmental, animal, and human health

• Emerging research on sustainable environmental management and ecosystem resilience

 

Readers seeking more detailed discussions are encouraged to explore the dedicated child pages covering:

​

• Water Health

• Environmental Contamination

• Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

​​

Why This Area Matters

 

Environmental conditions shape health long before disease develops. Air quality, water quality, soil conditions, biodiversity, and land management influence daily environmental exposures experienced by people, livestock, companion animals, and wildlife. Research consistently identifies environmental exposures as major contributors to global disease burden, with pollution representing one of the most significant preventable environmental challenges (Rojas-Rueda et al., 2021; Wu et al., 2023).

​

Air pollution has been associated with respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease, stroke, cancer, and increased mortality across diverse populations. Water and soil contamination likewise contribute to infectious disease, heavy metal exposure, endocrine disruption, and developmental effects, demonstrating that environmental quality directly influences public health (Manisalidis et al., 2020; Xu et al., 2022).

​

Animals experience many of these environmental pressures alongside humans. Livestock depend on reliable water resources, healthy soils, and productive ecosystems. Wildlife relies on intact habitats that support feeding, breeding, migration, and population stability. Companion animals also share many environmental exposures found within human households and communities. Consequently, veterinary environmental health contributes important insights into how environmental conditions influence multiple species simultaneously.

​

At the ecosystem level, biodiversity strengthens many ecological processes that support ecosystem services. Forests, wetlands, rivers, coastal habitats, and grasslands regulate water flow, cycle nutrients, store carbon, support pollinators, and provide recreational and cultural benefits. Reviews examining hundreds of biodiversity studies generally report positive relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem services, particularly for regulating services, pollination, water-related functions, and cultural values (Harrison et al., 2014; Brockerhoff et al., 2017).

​

Understanding how environmental health affects animal health therefore requires examining both direct environmental exposures and the broader ecological systems that sustain life. Rather than treating environmental health and ecosystem health as separate disciplines, current research increasingly views them as interconnected components of sustainable health systems.

​

How This Major Pillar Relates to One Health & Public Health Overview

 

This major pillar belongs within the One Health & Public Health Overview system because environmental conditions influence the health of humans, animals, and ecosystems simultaneously.

​

The One Health framework recognizes that the health of people, animals, and the environment is interconnected. Environmental degradation rarely affects only one component of this system. Instead, pollution, habitat loss, biodiversity decline, urban expansion, and changing land use often produce cascading effects that influence ecosystem function, wildlife populations, domestic animals, food production, and human communities.

​

For example, environmental pollution affects exposure pathways across multiple species, while degraded ecosystems often provide fewer regulating services such as water purification, flood mitigation, and climate regulation. Conversely, ecosystem restoration and environmental stewardship have the potential to generate co-benefits by improving ecological integrity alongside public and animal health outcomes (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022; Weiskopf et al., 2022).

​

Current research also emphasizes that land use, urbanization, and environmental management influence ecosystem resilience. Urban expansion and intensive land use can reduce biodiversity and weaken the relationships between ecosystem functioning and ecosystem services, whereas sustainable management approaches seek to balance ecological integrity with human needs (Felipe-Lucia et al., 2020; Pan et al., 2021).

​

Within the CountryVetMom Veterinary Knowledge System, this pillar serves as the environmental foundation supporting broader discussions of public health, wildlife health, veterinary environmental health, and ecosystem-based approaches to health.

​

Key Concepts Within This Pillar

 

Several foundational concepts help explain the relationship between environmental health and ecosystem health.

​

Environmental health focuses on environmental factors that influence health outcomes. Modern research evaluates multiple environmental exposures—including air pollution, water quality, chemical contaminants, physical hazards, and built environments—across the lifespan because cumulative exposures often determine health risks more accurately than isolated hazards (Baccarelli et al., 2023; Sundas et al., 2024).

​

Ecosystem health refers to the ability of ecosystems to maintain ecological organization, resilience, and functioning over time while continuing to deliver ecosystem services that support both nature and society (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022).

​

Biodiversity describes the variety of life across genes, species, and ecosystems. Higher biodiversity is frequently associated with stronger ecosystem functioning and more stable ecosystem services, although the strength of these relationships varies across ecological contexts (Harrison et al., 2014; Brockerhoff et al., 2017).

​

Ecosystem services are the benefits people obtain from ecosystems. These include provisioning services such as food and freshwater; regulating services such as climate regulation and water purification; supporting ecological processes; and cultural services that contribute to recreation, education, and well-being. Maintaining healthy ecosystems helps sustain these services over time (Grizzetti et al., 2019; Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022).

​

Environmental stewardship involves managing natural resources in ways that support long-term ecosystem function while reducing environmental risk factors. Current management frameworks increasingly emphasize resilience, restoration, sustainable land use, environmental monitoring, and integrated decision-making that considers both ecological integrity and public health (Mori et al., 2017; Weiskopf et al., 2022).

​

Together, these concepts provide the scientific foundation for understanding animal health and the environment, ecosystem health and public health, and the broader relationship between environmental sustainability and One Health. The following sections explore the three core topics of this pillar in greater depth: Water Health, Environmental Contamination, and Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services.

​

Water Health

 

Water is one of the most fundamental resources supporting life, making water health a cornerstone of both environmental health and ecosystem health. Freshwater ecosystems—including rivers, lakes, wetlands, groundwater, and streams—provide drinking water, sustain agriculture, support aquatic biodiversity, regulate nutrient cycling, and contribute to countless ecosystem services that benefit both animals and people. Because water connects terrestrial, aquatic, and atmospheric systems, changes in water quality often have far-reaching ecological and public health consequences.

​

Within the One Health framework, water represents a shared environmental resource. Humans, companion animals, livestock, wildlife, and aquatic organisms all depend on clean, functioning freshwater systems. As a result, protecting water quality supports not only environmental sustainability but also animal welfare, food production, biodiversity conservation, and community health.

Learn more in our dedicated guide to Water Health.

​

Water Health as an Indicator of Environmental Quality

 

Water systems integrate influences from the surrounding landscape. Rainfall, land use, agriculture, urban development, industrial activities, and natural ecological processes all affect the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of freshwater environments. Because contaminants and nutrients frequently move through watersheds, changes in water quality often reflect broader environmental conditions.

 

Healthy freshwater ecosystems perform numerous ecological functions that extend well beyond supplying water itself. Rivers and wetlands regulate flooding, filter sediments, recycle nutrients, support fisheries, maintain aquatic habitats, and contribute to climate regulation through interactions with surrounding ecosystems. These functions illustrate why water health is considered an essential component of ecosystem services.

​

Research evaluating European rivers, lakes, and coastal waters found that ecosystems in better ecological condition generally provide stronger regulating and cultural ecosystem services. However, activities that increase provisioning services, such as intensive resource extraction or land-use modification, can also create environmental pressures that reduce ecological quality (Grizzetti et al., 2019). These findings demonstrate that sustainable management requires balancing human use with the long-term health of aquatic ecosystems.

​

Water Quality and Environmental Exposures

 

Water quality directly influences environmental exposure pathways for humans and animals. Freshwater can transport microorganisms, nutrients, sediments, heavy metals, agricultural chemicals, industrial pollutants, and naturally occurring substances throughout ecosystems. Environmental exposure depends not only on the presence of contaminants but also on the timing, duration, concentration, and combination of multiple environmental factors.

​

Scientific evidence consistently identifies contaminated water as an important environmental determinant of health. Water pollution has been associated with infectious diseases, diarrheal illness, toxic metal exposure, endocrine disruption, developmental effects, and other adverse health outcomes across human populations (Xu et al., 2022). These findings highlight the importance of understanding water quality within broader environmental systems rather than considering individual contaminants in isolation.

​

Modern environmental health research increasingly adopts a multipollutant perspective. Instead of evaluating single exposures independently, researchers recognize that multiple contaminants frequently occur together, interacting with individual susceptibility and cumulative lifetime exposures to influence health outcomes (Baccarelli et al., 2023; Sundas et al., 2024). This systems-based perspective aligns closely with One Health by acknowledging that environmental exposures affect interconnected biological and ecological systems.

​

Water Health and Animal Populations

 

Healthy freshwater ecosystems support a wide variety of animal species. Aquatic habitats provide breeding areas, migration corridors, feeding grounds, and shelter for fish, amphibians, aquatic invertebrates, birds, mammals, and countless microorganisms. Terrestrial wildlife also depends on freshwater resources throughout their life cycles, while livestock and companion animals require reliable access to safe water for health and welfare.

​

Changes in water quality can alter habitat conditions, food availability, and ecological interactions throughout entire ecosystems. Nutrient imbalances, pollution, habitat modification, and altered hydrology influence aquatic biodiversity and may affect ecosystem resilience over time. Because water systems connect upstream and downstream environments, localized environmental changes often extend well beyond their original source.

​

Freshwater biodiversity itself has become an increasing focus of conservation research. Scientists emphasize that freshwater species contribute to ecosystem functioning, nutrient cycling, food webs, and many ecosystem services that benefit society, while simultaneously serving as indicators of broader environmental change (Lynch et al., 2023).

​

Water Health Within One Health

 

From a One Health perspective, protecting water health supports multiple interconnected objectives. Healthy aquatic ecosystems contribute to environmental resilience, sustain biodiversity, maintain ecosystem services, and reduce environmental risks affecting both animals and humans. Conversely, degraded freshwater systems illustrate how environmental pressures can influence ecological integrity and public health simultaneously.

​

Current environmental management increasingly recognizes that freshwater conservation extends beyond maintaining water quantity alone. Integrated watershed management, environmental monitoring, ecosystem restoration, and sustainable land-use planning all seek to preserve the ecological processes that maintain water quality and support healthy ecosystems over time (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022; Weiskopf et al., 2022).

​

Understanding protecting water quality for animal health therefore involves more than evaluating individual contaminants. It requires considering how freshwater ecosystems function within larger landscapes, how environmental changes influence biodiversity and ecosystem services, and how integrated environmental stewardship supports resilient ecosystems that benefit people, animals, and the environment alike. This systems-based perspective forms the foundation for the broader discussions of environmental contamination and biodiversity presented in the following sections.

​

Environmental Contamination

 

Environmental contamination refers to the introduction or accumulation of physical, chemical, or biological substances that alter environmental quality and affect the health of ecosystems, animals, and people. Contaminants can enter air, water, soil, and food webs through industrial processes, agriculture, transportation, urban development, waste disposal, and natural events. Because environmental systems are interconnected, contaminants often move across ecosystem boundaries, creating complex exposure pathways that extend beyond their original source.

​

Within the One Health framework, environmental contamination is recognized as a shared challenge affecting public health, veterinary medicine, wildlife conservation, agriculture, and ecosystem management. Rather than considering contamination solely as a human health issue, researchers increasingly examine how pollutants influence multiple species, ecological processes, and ecosystem services simultaneously.

​

Learn more in our dedicated guide to Environmental Contamination.

​

Environmental Contaminants and Exposure Pathways

 

Environmental contaminants encompass a wide range of substances with different sources and behaviors. Common categories include airborne particulate matter, toxic gases, heavy metals, industrial chemicals, pesticides, endocrine-disrupting compounds, persistent organic pollutants, and emerging contaminants such as microplastics. These substances may enter ecosystems directly through emissions or indirectly through runoff, wastewater, atmospheric deposition, or food chains.

​

Exposure occurs through multiple environmental pathways. Humans and animals can encounter contaminants by breathing polluted air, drinking contaminated water, consuming affected food, contacting polluted soil, or living within degraded environments. Modern environmental health research emphasizes that these exposures rarely occur in isolation. Instead, individuals experience mixtures of environmental stressors throughout life, making cumulative exposure an important area of scientific investigation (Baccarelli et al., 2023; Sundas et al., 2024).

​

This broader perspective has shifted environmental health research away from evaluating single pollutants independently toward understanding the combined effects of multiple environmental exposures, life-stage susceptibility, and interactions between environmental and biological factors.

​

Environmental Pollution and Health

 

Scientific evidence consistently identifies environmental pollution as a major contributor to global disease burden. Environmental exposures encompass air pollution, contaminated water, hazardous chemicals, metals, radiation, excessive noise, temperature extremes, and characteristics of the built environment, all of which influence health through diverse biological mechanisms (Rojas-Rueda et al., 2021; Wu et al., 2023).

​

Among these exposures, air pollution remains one of the most extensively studied. Research links polluted air with respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease, stroke, cancer, and increased mortality across populations (Manisalidis et al., 2020; Xu et al., 2022). Water and soil contamination likewise contribute to infectious diseases, heavy metal toxicity, endocrine disruption, developmental effects, and other health concerns that illustrate the broad impacts of environmental degradation.

​

Recent advances in environmental exposure science also recognize that environmental risk is shaped by individual susceptibility, genetics, developmental stage, and the timing and duration of exposure. This "lifecourse" perspective acknowledges that environmental influences accumulate over time and that early-life exposures may affect health many years later (Baccarelli et al., 2023; Sundas et al., 2024).

​

Environmental Contamination and Animal Health

 

Animals share many of the same environmental exposures experienced by humans. Companion animals often inhabit the same indoor and outdoor environments as their owners, livestock depend on healthy soil, water, and forage, and wildlife interacts directly with natural ecosystems where contaminants accumulate.

​

Environmental contamination can influence wildlife habitats, aquatic ecosystems, and terrestrial food webs. Pollutants introduced into one environmental compartment may move through ecological networks, affecting organisms across multiple trophic levels. For example, contaminants entering waterways can influence aquatic species directly while also affecting birds, mammals, and other wildlife that depend on those ecosystems.

​

Within veterinary environmental health, understanding environmental contaminants affecting animals requires evaluating both ecological context and exposure pathways. Veterinary researchers increasingly recognize that environmental monitoring contributes not only to wildlife conservation but also to broader surveillance of ecosystem conditions and potential risks shared across species.

​

This interconnected perspective reinforces the concept that animal health and environmental quality cannot be considered independently. Instead, environmental contamination represents one of the mechanisms through which ecological degradation influences the health of people, domestic animals, wildlife, and ecosystems simultaneously.

​

Environmental Contamination and Ecosystem Health

 

Environmental contamination affects more than individual organisms; it can also alter ecosystem processes and ecological resilience. Pollutants may influence biodiversity, nutrient cycling, habitat quality, species interactions, and the capacity of ecosystems to provide essential services over time.

​

Healthy ecosystems possess varying degrees of resilience, allowing them to recover from natural disturbances while maintaining ecological functions. However, persistent environmental pollution, combined with land-use change and habitat fragmentation, can reduce this resilience and weaken ecosystem functioning. Such changes may diminish regulating services—including water purification, climate regulation, and nutrient cycling—that support both ecological integrity and human well-being (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022).

​

Environmental contamination therefore represents both an ecological and public health concern. Rather than viewing pollution only through the lens of toxicology, contemporary environmental science increasingly evaluates its influence on ecosystem services, biodiversity, and long-term sustainability.

​

Environmental Stewardship and Integrated Management

 

Growing recognition of the links between environmental pollution and ecosystem health has influenced environmental management strategies worldwide. Rather than focusing solely on pollution control after contamination occurs, many contemporary frameworks emphasize integrated environmental stewardship that considers ecosystem condition, land use, resilience, and sustainable resource management together.

​

Research increasingly supports environmental monitoring systems that combine ecological indicators, biodiversity assessments, and environmental exposure data to better understand changing environmental conditions (Weiskopf et al., 2022). Such approaches align closely with One Health by recognizing that environmental quality influences multiple interconnected systems rather than isolated sectors.

Urbanization provides an example of this systems perspective. Studies have found that areas experiencing ecosystem service deficits associated with intensive urban development often exhibit poorer ecosystem health, illustrating how land-use decisions influence ecological integrity and environmental quality simultaneously (Pan et al., 2021).

​

As research continues to evolve, environmental contamination is increasingly understood not simply as the presence of pollutants but as one component of broader environmental systems that connect environmental health, ecosystem health, wildlife health, and public health and the environment. This integrated understanding provides an important foundation for examining how biodiversity and ecosystem services contribute to resilient ecosystems in the next section.

​

Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

 

Biodiversity and ecosystem services are central concepts in understanding ecosystem health. Biodiversity encompasses the variety of life across genes, species, and ecosystems, while ecosystem services describe the benefits that functioning ecosystems provide to people and animals. Together, these concepts help explain why healthy ecosystems support environmental sustainability, resilience, and long-term well-being within the One Health framework.

​

Rather than existing independently, biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and ecosystem services interact through complex ecological relationships. Diverse ecosystems often support more stable ecological processes, enabling them to better withstand environmental disturbances while continuing to provide essential services such as water purification, nutrient cycling, pollination, climate regulation, and recreational opportunities. Although these relationships vary among ecosystems and services, scientific evidence generally supports positive associations between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning.

​

Learn more in our dedicated guide to Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services.

​

Biodiversity as the Foundation of Healthy Ecosystems

 

Healthy ecosystems are characterized not only by the number of species they contain but also by their ecological organization, resilience, and ability to maintain essential functions over time. Biodiversity contributes to these characteristics by supporting interactions among plants, animals, microorganisms, and their physical environment.

​

Research across forest ecosystems indicates that biodiversity generally enhances ecosystem functioning while supporting a broader range of ecosystem services, although the strength of evidence varies depending on the specific service being evaluated (Brockerhoff et al., 2017). Similar findings have been reported across diverse ecological systems, where biodiversity often contributes to greater ecological stability, productivity, and resilience.

​

A systematic review of more than 530 studies found that most biodiversity–ecosystem service relationships were positive, particularly for regulating services, pollination, water-related functions, and cultural values (Harrison et al., 2014). While not every ecosystem service responds equally to increasing biodiversity, these findings reinforce the importance of conserving biological diversity as part of sustainable environmental management.

​

Within veterinary environmental health, biodiversity also influences habitat quality, food availability, disease ecology, and ecosystem resilience. These ecological relationships highlight why understanding biodiversity's impact on animal health extends beyond conservation alone; biodiversity supports the environmental conditions upon which both wildlife and domestic animals depend.

​

Understanding Ecosystem Services

 

Ecosystem services represent the many ways ecosystems contribute to human societies and natural systems. These services are commonly grouped into several broad categories:

​

• Provisioning services, including food, freshwater, timber, and other natural resources.

• Regulating services, such as climate regulation, flood mitigation, water purification, erosion control, and pollination.

• Supporting ecological processes, including nutrient cycling, soil formation, and habitat maintenance.

• Cultural services, encompassing recreation, education, aesthetic appreciation, and cultural identity.

 

Healthy ecosystems continuously generate these services through natural ecological processes. Because many ecosystem services operate simultaneously, changes affecting biodiversity or ecosystem integrity often influence multiple services at once.

​

Research evaluating aquatic ecosystems demonstrates this interconnectedness. European rivers, lakes, and coastal waters with stronger ecological conditions generally provide more robust regulating and cultural services, whereas intensive provisioning activities sometimes create pressures that reduce ecological quality (Grizzetti et al., 2019). These observations illustrate that balancing ecosystem use with ecosystem conservation remains an important challenge for sustainable environmental management.

​

Ecosystem Health, Resilience, and Human Well-Being

 

Modern ecosystem health frameworks increasingly emphasize resilience rather than simply the absence of environmental disturbance. Resilient ecosystems retain their capacity to function despite environmental pressures, adapt to changing conditions, and continue providing ecosystem services over time.

​

Researchers generally describe ecosystem health as the ability of ecological systems to maintain organization, autonomy, and resilience while supporting the well-being of both nature and society (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022). This perspective recognizes that ecosystem health benefits extend beyond environmental conservation to include human health, animal welfare, economic activities, and community resilience.

​

Numerous ecosystem services contribute directly or indirectly to health. Clean water, productive agricultural systems, stable climate regulation, pollination, and opportunities for recreation all depend on functioning ecosystems. Consequently, degradation of ecosystem integrity may reduce the availability or reliability of these services, affecting environmental quality and long-term sustainability.

​

This understanding has encouraged greater integration of ecological science into environmental policy, public health planning, and veterinary research. Rather than treating ecosystem conservation as separate from human well-being, contemporary research increasingly considers ecosystem services and human health as interconnected outcomes of healthy environmental systems.

​

Land Use, Biodiversity, and Ecosystem Function

 

Land-use decisions strongly influence ecosystem health. Agriculture, forestry, urban expansion, transportation infrastructure, and industrial development alter habitats, modify ecological processes, and affect biodiversity across landscapes.

​

Research shows that increasing land-use intensity often enhances short-term provisioning outputs, such as agricultural production, while weakening the ecological relationships that support biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and long-term ecosystem services (Felipe-Lucia et al., 2020). Similarly, urbanization has been associated with ecosystem service deficits and declining ecosystem health where natural ecological processes become increasingly fragmented (Pan et al., 2021).

​

These findings illustrate that environmental sustainability depends not only on conserving individual species but also on maintaining ecological processes across entire landscapes. Integrated land management seeks to balance ecological integrity with agricultural productivity, urban development, and other societal needs while recognizing potential trade-offs among different ecosystem services.

​

Biodiversity Within the One Health Framework

 

One Health provides an important framework for understanding the relationships among biodiversity, ecosystem services, and health. Human, animal, and environmental health are interconnected through shared ecosystems, environmental resources, and ecological processes. As biodiversity changes, ecosystem functioning and environmental conditions may also change, influencing multiple species simultaneously.

​

Current scientific research increasingly supports ecosystem-based approaches that integrate biodiversity conservation, ecological restoration, environmental monitoring, and sustainable stewardship into broader health strategies (Weiskopf et al., 2022). These approaches acknowledge that maintaining healthy ecosystems for healthy communities requires consideration of ecological resilience, ecosystem services, and long-term environmental sustainability.

​

Rather than viewing biodiversity conservation solely as an environmental objective, contemporary research recognizes its broader contribution to animal health and the environment, ecosystem resilience, and public health. This system's perspective reinforces the central principle of One Health: the health of people, animals, and ecosystems is fundamentally interconnected.

​

Current Research Themes

 

Environmental health and ecosystem health continue to evolve as highly interdisciplinary fields spanning veterinary medicine, ecology, environmental science, public health, and sustainability research. While many foundational principles are well established, current research increasingly focuses on understanding environmental systems as interconnected networks rather than isolated components.

​

One major research theme is the shift from studying individual pollutants toward evaluating the cumulative effects of multiple environmental exposures throughout life. Scientists increasingly recognize that combinations of pollutants, together with genetic, developmental, and social factors, shape environmental health risks more accurately than single-exposure models (Baccarelli et al., 2023; Wu et al., 2023).

​

Another area of active investigation examines how environmental health and ecosystem health can be managed as a coupled system. Rather than addressing pollution, biodiversity, land use, or climate independently, researchers increasingly evaluate how these drivers interact to influence ecological integrity, ecosystem resilience, and public health simultaneously (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022).

​

Environmental monitoring is also becoming more comprehensive. Advances in ecological indicators, biodiversity assessment, environmental exposure science, and ecosystem modeling enable researchers to evaluate ecosystem condition more holistically and support evidence-based environmental decision-making (Weiskopf et al., 2022).

​

Land-use planning and urban ecology remain prominent research areas as scientists investigate how urbanization, agricultural intensification, and habitat modification influence biodiversity, ecosystem services, and environmental quality. Evidence suggests that sustainable land management, ecological restoration, and green infrastructure can help maintain ecosystem resilience while supporting healthier environments for both people and animals (Felipe-Lucia et al., 2020; Pan et al., 2021; Münzel et al., 2025).

​

Collectively, these research directions reflect an increasingly integrated understanding of environmental health in animals, ecosystem health and public health, and the role of biodiversity, ecosystem services, and environmental stewardship in promoting resilient natural and human systems. The continued integration of veterinary science, ecology, and public health remains central to advancing One Health research and supporting informed environmental decision-making.

​

Frequently Asked Questions

 

What is environmental health?

 

Environmental health is the study of how physical, chemical, biological, and ecological factors in the environment influence the health of people and animals. It examines environmental exposures such as air pollution, water quality, chemicals, climate, land use, and other environmental conditions that affect health outcomes throughout life (Rojas-Rueda et al., 2021; Baccarelli et al., 2023).

 

What is ecosystem health?

 

Ecosystem health describes the ability of an ecosystem to maintain its organization, resilience, ecological functions, and capacity to provide ecosystem services over time. Healthy ecosystems continue supporting biodiversity while delivering benefits that contribute to environmental sustainability and human well-being (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022).

 

How are environmental health and ecosystem health connected?

 

Environmental health and ecosystem health are closely linked because environmental conditions influence both ecological integrity and the health of humans and animals. Pollution, habitat degradation, and unsustainable land use can reduce ecosystem resilience while increasing environmental exposures. Likewise, ecosystem conservation and restoration often provide benefits for biodiversity, environmental quality, and public health simultaneously (Hernández-Blanco et al., 2022; Weiskopf et al., 2022).

 

Why is biodiversity important for ecosystem health?

 

Biodiversity supports ecological interactions that contribute to ecosystem functioning, resilience, and the delivery of ecosystem services. Research generally finds positive relationships between biodiversity and regulating services such as pollination, water regulation, and cultural ecosystem benefits, although the strength of these relationships varies among ecosystems (Harrison et al., 2014; Brockerhoff et al., 2017).

 

What are ecosystem services?

 

Ecosystem services are the benefits that people obtain from healthy ecosystems. These include provisioning services such as food and freshwater, regulating services such as climate regulation and water purification, supporting ecological processes, and cultural services including recreation, education, and aesthetic value (Grizzetti et al., 2019).

 

Why is water health important in One Health?

 

Water health is fundamental to One Health because freshwater ecosystems support humans, domestic animals, wildlife, agriculture, and natural ecosystems simultaneously. Healthy aquatic environments contribute to biodiversity, ecosystem resilience, water quality, and numerous ecosystem services that benefit multiple species.

 

How does environmental contamination affect animals?

 

Animals encounter environmental contaminants through air, water, soil, food, and habitat. Companion animals, livestock, and wildlife often share environmental exposures with humans, making veterinary environmental health an important component of understanding environmental risks across species.

 

Why is environmental stewardship important?

 

Environmental stewardship promotes the sustainable management of natural resources and ecosystems. Contemporary research emphasizes stewardship approaches that integrate biodiversity conservation, ecosystem restoration, environmental monitoring, and resilience to support long-term environmental, animal, and public health (Mori et al., 2017; Weiskopf et al., 2022).

​​

Explore Related Topics

 

Continue exploring the One Health & Public Health Overview knowledge system through these related educational resources:

​

• One Health & Public Health Overview

• Water Health

• Environmental Contamination

• Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services