Women-led, One Health Solutions in Tanzania

Greetings, 

It's been a winter of reflection as we consider all that has been accomplished over the past two years under the Women's EARTH Project umbrella. From strengthening food security and animal health to promoting human-wildlife coexistence, the community women of Mboliboli and Itonya have been steadfast in their committment to community education and training. Their impacts are evident as they produce tangible results leading toward greater community resilience in the face of environmental change. Part of their success lies in the One Health approach - a framework they've adopted to address the intersectional health and environmental issues they face. As their activities have expanded, the term, One Health, has become part of the lexicon among school children and farmers in these Southern Highland communities.

What is One Health? One Health is an approach that recognizes vital connections between species-wide health, environmental health, and global development. One Health is rooted in collaboration and relies on cross-sectoral partnerships to implement actionable strategies and programs to address the complex and interconnected challenges of biodiversity loss, climate change, zoonotic pandemics, and social inequities. One Health is endorsed by the World Health Organization, the United Nations, the Food and Agriculture Organization, and the World Organization for Animal Health. 

As Partner organizations, FOECOE and EcoVet Global are incredibly proud of launching the Women's Earth Project which provides community women in the Southern Highlands with One Health training. The approach makes sense in communities like these that are so closely connected to nature. They have experienced the effects of biodiversity loss and climate change firsthand and understand the cascade of parallel impacts these shifts have on human and animal health. Positioned thusly, the women have so much knowledge to share as well as hope in the holistic solutions they're implementing through the One Health approach. Here's to a hopeful future with expansion of programs such as this one. 

As always, we extend our gratitude for your continued support. 

Warmly, 

Kate and the EcoVet Global / FOECOE Teams