How does the program operate?
Through this platform, highly competent personnel capable of excellence in health research on emerging zoonoses will be trained with a One Health approach. Training will be given via a program that focuses both on specific skill gaps and anchors all trainees in a shared and equitable vision for the health and wellbeing of humans, animals, and ecosystems, thus facilitating the potential to create a cohesive and collaborative workforce that is ready to act to protect humans, animals and ecosystems in Canada and globally from the next zoonotic threats. More specifically, training will entail increased access to existing One Health and Emerging Zoonoses training opportunities, including new training modules and workshops, experiential learning opportunities and networking opportunities, while ensuring that the principles of equity, diversity and inclusion are infused across the program and activities. Most importantly, the COHTPEZ is guided by an Indigenous Advisory Committee and supported by a bilingual virtual hub that provides open access to online resources, serves as a repository of key materials for workshops, classes, and courses, and supports ongoing dialogue and discussion.
COHTPEZ will support training and development of capacities in three priority areas:
Priority 1 – Health, Sustainability and Resilience: Development and implementation of sustainable and resilient solutions in coherence with a One Health approach that translate into practices, policies and programs at various scales (local to international) to promote and maintain human, animal and ecosystem health and reduce the impacts of emerging zoonoses.
Priority 2 – Disease Prevention: Training in infection dynamics in natural hosts and environment, pathogen ecology, anthropogenic drivers of disease emergence and equity-related socio-demographic risk factors, integrated surveillance, artificial intelligence and modelling, and community involvement will contribute to better prevention of emerging zoonoses.
Priority 3 – Disease Preparedness and Response: Capacity in pathogen risk assessment and biocontainment, laboratory diagnostics and genomics, pharmaceutical (vaccines and therapeutics) and non-pharmaceutical countermeasures, biomanufacturing, and management of short- and long-term impacts of zoonotic diseases in human and animal populations and the ecosystems they share will better prepare Canada and the world for future pandemics.
