Grant: Applied Public Health Chair - LOI

Never before seen human infectious diseases are appearing faster now than ever before and are posing new threats to global health, security, and prosperity. Humans are increasingly exposed to animal microbes as wildlife ecosystems are disrupted and livestock consumption surges to meet the world's growing food demands. The 2003 global SARS outbreak, causing over 8000 cases and inflicting $50 billion in damages, resulted from a bat coronavirus infecting humans. The recent outbreak of avian H7N9 influenza in China highlighted how easily viruses in poultry can spread to humans, potentially triggering a global pandemic. Growing global use and misuse of antibiotics in both humans and animals are producing dangerous drug resistant microbes, which can then spread globally. Climate change is expanding the range of many diseases transmitted by insects. In 1999, West Nile virus spread into North America, permanently establishing its presence and profound continental health and economic consequences. Today, half of the world's seven billion people live in cities, where contagious diseases can rapidly spread. Mass gatherings of millions are increasingly common, with the potential to disseminate dangerous microbes around the globe. Today, front line medical providers and public health officials worldwide are on heightened alert as pilgrims return from this year's Hajj, where an epidemic of a deadly coronavirus (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) simmers. The scale of mass gatherings is increasing as commercial air travel, which transports 2.5 billion travellers every year, continues to expand. Canada is one of the most ethnically diverse and globally interconnected societies. This connectivity offers tremendous benefits but also creates ties to global threats. Hence, there is an urgent need for Canada to leverage cutting edge scientific knowledge and technological innovation to protect itself from future epidemics that will inevitably threaten its health, security, and economy.