T Ie
'
raditionalapproachestothedevelopmentofhealthstrategiesand
environmentalprotectionofferlimitedsolutionstoincreasinglycomplexchallenges.Wearestartingtoseeaconnectionbetweenecosystemhealth,
humanhealth,andanimalhealthwiththegreaterunderstandingofglobalclimate
change,andthewide-ranginginfluenceofhumaneffectsontheplanet.Oneout
offivehumanhealthconcernshasanenvironmentalcause.Withaneverincreasinghumanpopulationputtingpressureontheplanet'sresources,andincreasingglobalizationoftheworld'seconomy,theecologyoftheearthisexperiencingdramaticchanges,manifestedbynovelandpotentiallycatastrophichealth
consequences.
Thisbookprovidesabroadsurveyoftheintersectionofecologyandhealth
sciencesasitappliestoachievingamoresustainablefutureforourspeciesand
others.Itexaminesecologicalhealthissuesfromvariousstandpoints,includin g
theemergence,reemergence,andresurgenceofinfectiousdiseases;theincreasing
biologicaleffectsoftoxicchemicalsandhazardoussubstances;andthehealth
implicationsofecologicalalterations,suchashabitatfragmentationanddegradation,lossofbiodiversityandecosystemservices,andglobalclimateandatmosphericchanges.Thethesisofthisbookisthathealthconnectsallspecieson
theplanet.Ecologyteachesusabouttheinterdependenceofspecies,andhealth
isafundamentalaspectofthistenet.