New Eklipse evidence report released: “Biodiversity and pandemics: Interdisciplinary research and action priorities.”
The final knowledge synthesis report from the Eklipse Expert Working Group (EWG) working on biodiversity and pandemics has now been released. This report outlines science policy recommendations regarding biodiversity and pandemics that need to be implemented in order to develop broader transformative policies for human, animal, and ecosystem health. In particular, we focus on policies to support and promote research needed to prevent and manage spillover events in which pathogens originating in wildlife cause disease outbreaks or even pandemics in humans or large-scale disease events in domesticated animals (panzootics).
The report comes from a request (knowledge need) put forward to Eklipse by the European Commission services, followed by a cross-sectoral consortium of requesters. The European Commission granted additional funding to Eklipse, under the H2020 Green Deal Call, as part of the EU response to the COVID-19 pandemic in order to answer policy-relevant needs for evidence related to biodiversity and pandemics. The policy needs behind this request was identified through an online cross-sectoral workshop co-organised in May 2021 by Eklipse and the European Commission – Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity (EC-KCBD). The workshop brought representatives from a range of European Commission services together with experienced scientists to identify challenges and evidence needs related to the links between biodiversity and human health, including zoonotic and other infectious diseases. This workshop was then followed by an online Focus Group inviting key stakeholders to narrow down the request to be processed by an independent Eklipse Expert Working Group (EWG).
The agreed aim of the request was to enhance our comprehension and utilization of sciences to optimise coordination and coherence across policy sectors, building better resilience and response strategies (proactive and reactive approaches) in the context of the interface between Biodiversity and Pandemics.
The Eklipse Expert Working Group (EWG), active from July 2022 to November 2023 and composed of scientists with relevant expertise in the natural, biomedical, and social sciences, undertook a combination of literature and people-based knowledge synthesis methods. Using existing research and literature, the EWG formulated recommendations for shaping a strategic research agenda on biodiversity and pandemics. These recommendations address the critical interlinkages between relevant sectors and stakeholders via targeted transdisciplinary research to make future actions more effective and offer a number of suggestions to bring about transformative change to how research is carried out, organised, and financed.
