Special Sessions

Silvia Alonso

A brief description of the session theme and objectives 

Research expands the knowledge horizon of humanity – every discovery opens a new and wider space of inquiry. One question leads to another, and most research concludes with a plea for further investigation. But, ultimately, science aspires to provide answers and bring about change. Research should guide, among others, countries’ practices and policies. Research findings should be used to guide policy decisions and research should be ready to respond to

policy questions. However, the science to policy pathway is not always straightforward. Science and policy engagement is often a lengthy and twisted process for various reasons: research may not be addressing relevant policy questions; the research cycle does not always align with the faster-paced policy processes; policy decision making is a trade-off art where evidence does not always win. This reality discourages scientists, who hesitate to step into the

policy space. This special session will shine a light on the dos and don’ts of science engaging in policy processes, by listening and reflecting upon real life experiences from scientists throughout the world. If you are a scientist wanting to influence policy or looking for advice on how to improve your engagement in policy, this special session is for you.

List of potential speakers or contributors and webpages describing them

• Hung Nguyen (Vietnam), International Livestock Research Institute
• Siobhan Mor (Australia) University of Liverpool
• Silvia Alonso (Spain) International Livestock Research Institute
• Kebede Amenu (Ethiopia), International Livestock Research Institute
• Salome Durr (Switzerland) Veterinary Public health Institute
• Florence Mutua (Kenya) International Livestock Research Institute
• Delia Grace (Ireland) Natural Resource Institute

Proposed format and schedule for the session

Speakers will have 10 minutes to briefly present one concrete example of their research that influenced policy or that is currently engaging with the policy process. Presentations will place emphasis on the aspects that were critical to the success or failure of the process, with the aim of collating a list of dos and don’ts, for scientists to enhance the success of their engagement in policy or increase the likelihood of their science to inform policy. The session will provide insights to scientists who are findings themselves wanting for their science to enter the policy space.

Session chairs

Professor Joerg Henning- University of Queensland.
Professor Mark Stevenson- University of Melbourne

A brief description of the session theme and objectives 

Citizen science describes the formalized public participation in scientific inquiry and research. Citizen science has flourished in recent years due the public’s increased interest in participatory science and a better access to communication and data collection technology, while data collection by members of the public is also being encouraged by researchers due to their need for large-scale datasets. Thus, citizen science projects are increasing in numbers, but volunteer participation in scientific research poses considerable challenges, such as quality assurance, selection and misclassification biases. Citizen science data is being used across disciplines of veterinary research, for example to determine the distribution or the health status of wildlife species, to study the behaviours of dogs, to estimate the abundance of stray cats or to conduct vector surveillance associated with animal hosts.

The objectives of this session are to:

• To provide an overview of applications of citizen science in veterinary research, including opportunities and challenges in collecting, analysing and interpreting such data
• To discuss approaches and methodologies to address biases associated with citizen science data

List of keynote speakers

The session chairs will open this special session on citizen science by providing an overview of the history and use of the citizen science in animal health and veterinary research. Distinguished speakers will then present their research using citizen science data.

Professor Michelle Power from the School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, investigates the ecology and evolution of host – pathogen interactions, and the dissemination of human-derived microorganisms to wildlife within a One Health framework. She used citizen science approaches to study antibiotic resistance in wildlife populations.

Dr Mia Cobb is a Chaser Innovation Research Fellow (Canine Welfare Science) in the Animal Welfare Science Centre of the Melbourne Veterinary School. Her work focusses on the use of citizen science approaches in behavioural and welfare animal research.

Associate Professor Andrew Peters, from the School of Agricultural, Environmental and Veterinary Sciences, Charles Sturt University, researches protistology and pathology in wild bird populations. He incorporated citizen science approaches in the development of wildlife health surveillance systems.

Professor David Warton from UNSW Sydney. His research interests include the development of new methodologies for data analysis in ecological research. He has extensive experience in ecological statistics and in analysing citizen science data.

Format for this session 

The format of this session will include an introductory address to the field of citizen science by the session chairs for about 30 minutes. This will be followed by four presentations for 30 minutes by expert researchers in the field of citizen science. Finally, a panel discussion will be conducted to conclude this session.

Mieghan Bruce- Murdoch University

Jonathan Rushton- Liverpool University

Chairs: Mieghan Bruce (Murdoch University) and Jonathan Rushton (University of Liverpool)

A consistent and comparative estimation of the burden of diseases and injuries is an important basis for animal health decision-making and planning processes. A framework for integrating, validating, analysing and disseminating such information is required. The Global Burden of Animal Diseases has proposed such a framework and now it is time to critique and refine the approach, with some tricky problems open for debate.

First, animals are kept in different systems, making comparisons challenging without a well-defined method for valuing them. Animal health economists typically use monetary value to enable comparisons between diseases and to choose between interventions. But prices are dynamic, so how do we compare through time and over geographies?

Second, the disability-adjusted life year for humans is well established; the concept of ‘perfect health’ equates to a disability weight of 0, but we do not have an equivalent for production animals. What defines health in production animals and is ‘ideal health’ necessary or achievable?

In this session invited speakers will present ‘spoken essays’ on these issues; an Oxford-style debate follows before we open the floor to hear from others. It is anticipated that the finest scientists will air their ideas; unlikely a consensus will be reached but we will all learn a lot.

Introduction

Jonathan Rushton (University of Liverpool) will open the session and provide an update on the Global Burden of Animal Diseases programme.

PART 1: Are all animals equal or are some more equal than others – do prices reflect their true value?

The session continues with ‘spoken essays’ presenting big ideas on tricky concepts in the economics of animal health.

Peggy Schrobback (CSIRO) “The value of livestock and the role of prices”

Girma Asteraye (University of Liverpool) “The hidden value of working equids in Ethiopia”

Emma-Jane Murray (University College Dublin) “Cows versus badgers in tuberculosis control, they are not all black and white”

PART 2: Debating the motion “All animals need ideal health”.

The second part of the session is an Oxford-style debate. The debate is introduced by Anne Meyer (Episystemic) and the audience will be asked to vote for or against the motion.

Four speakers Paul Torgerson (University of Zürich), Wudu Temesgen (ILRI), Mieghan Bruce (Murdoch University), and Mark Schipp (World Veterinary Association) and President of WOAH] will debate the motion after which the audience will have a chance to ask questions or request clarification.

The chairperson will then close the session, giving the audience an opportunity to recast their votes!

Bouda Vosough Ahmadi
Thanawat Tiensin1, Madhur Dhingra1, Damian Tagopacheco, Melissa McLaws and Andriy Rozstalnyy1

A brief description of the session theme and objectives

• Rationale
• Effective decision-making is vital for controlling animal diseases, enhancing animal health, and optimizing animal production. This special session aims to explore the role of advocacy and decision-support tools in achieving these critical objectives. Particular focus will be given the tools developed and utilized by the food and agriculture organization of the United Nations (FAO).

Description

The session will provide a platform for experts, researchers, and practitioners to present and have an in-depth discussion on advocacy decision-support tools that have proven successful in the field of veterinary epidemiology and economics. These tools encompass a range of approaches, including socioeconomic decision-support tools and models, impact-assessment models, simulation models, risk assessment and policy analysis frameworks, all tailored to the challenges of controlling animal diseases and improving animal health and production.

List of potential speakers or contributors and webpages describing them

• Dr Thanawat THIENSIN (NSA Director, FAO) will be the chair of the session and will provide the opening remarks.
• Mr Madhur DHINGRA (Senior Animal Health Officer, FAO)
• Mr Damian TAGO (Economist, FAO)
• Mr Bouda VOSOUGH AHMADI (GF-TADs coordinator, FAO)
• Dr Melissa MCLAWS (Veterinary Epidemiologist, Co-chair of the GF-TADs FMD Working Group, FAO)
• Dr Andriy ROZSTALNYY (Senior Animal Health Officer, FAO)

More information about the presenter team can be found in the webpage below:

https://www.fao.org/agriculture/animal-production-and-health/en 

Proposed format and schedule for the session

The meeting starts with the opening remarks by the chair Dr Tiensin who will provide a background to this session, the importance, and the roles of decision-support tools for advocacy purpose of control of animal diseases. This will be followed by four thematic presentations.

• Introduction and opening remarks (15 minutes)
• Damian TAGO: “Socioeconomic & Impact-Assessment tools for Disease Control, e.g.,

  OutCost” (20’)

• Bouda AHMADI and Andriy ROZSTALNYY: “Advocacy and Policy Analysis: e.g.,

  of compensation Mechanisms” (20’)

• Coffee Break and Networking (15 minutes)
• Melissa MCLAWS: “Risk Assessment and Mitigation” (20’)
• Madhur DHINGRA: “Success Stories in Disease Control Advocacy” (20’)
• Panel Discussion, Q&A Session and conclusios (30 minutes

Theresa Bernardo
Casey Cazer, Kurtis Sobkowich, Petra Muellner and Uli Muellner

A brief description of the session theme and objectives

Antimicrobial resistant bacteria are a quintessential One Health problem. Veterinarians and epidemiologists can use antimicrobial resistance surveillance systems to gather vital information on the prevalence of resistance in key pathogens, identify emerging pathogens, and evaluate the impact of antimicrobial stewardship systems on resistance. Understanding temporal and geospatial trends in resistance will help epidemiologists and veterinarians respond to resistant pathogen threats. Significant challenges remain in collecting, analyzing, and presenting resistance data including data interoperability among laboratories, creating user-friendly visualizations, metadata generation, use of AI, and data sharing and privacy. These challenges are relevant to antimicrobial resistance surveillance for humans, livestock, companion animals and the environment. The ultimate goal is an integrated One Health surveillance system incorporating all of these elements. This special session will provide an overview of the status of antimicrobial resistance surveillance, with a special focus on companion animals, stimulating discussion on how to develop and strengthen surveillance systems. Barriers will be identified, as well as steps that can be taken towards achieving an integrated surveillance system.

List of potential speakers or contributors and webpages describing them

• Casey Cazer, Cornell,USA: https://www.vet.cornell.edu/research/faculty/casey-cazerdvm-phd
•  Theresa Bernardo, Guelph, Canada: https://www.linkedin.com/in/theresa-bernardo4563397/?originalSubdomain=ca
•  Kurtis Sobkowich, Guelph, Canada: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtissobkowich?originalSubdomain=ca
•  Petra/Uli Muellner Epi-Interactive, NZ (Tentative): https://www.epiinteractive.com/work/who-glass-dashboard

Proposed format and schedule for the session 

We propose a 1.5-2-hour interactive session depending on the number of relevant abstracts submitted, beginning with four 15-minute keynote presentations followed by a 15-minute guided discussion. The keynotes will provide an overview of antimicrobial resistance in companion animals, drawing on the organizers’ research and expertise in AMR, data science, and data visualizations. We will invite oral presentations (15 minutes each) of relevant abstracts on AMR surveillance and visualization, according to the time allotted to the special session. The session will end with a 30-minute moderated panel discussion, including the keynote and abstract presenters, featuring audience engagement through questions/polling.

 Thang Nguyen-Tien

A brief description of the session\\’s theme and objectives 

Information communication technologies (ICTs) have significantly contributed to the development of innovative approaches, including disease surveillance and response systems. In the situation of limited capacity or absence of animal health services in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), ICTs can boost not only agricultural productivity, but also facilitate the reduction the risks of one health issues including zoonoses, food safety and AMR. The Animal and Human Health program (AHH) at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), with the assistance of ICT applications, aims to manage effectively or eliminate the above one health issues that matter in particular to poor people through generation and utilization of new knowledge, technologies and products.

Objectives:

• Review the current situation of regional ICT works to reduce the burden of zoonoses, animal diseases, food safety and AMR
• Discuss the extension of ICT applications to control and mitigate the burden of animal, zoonotic diseases, food safety, and AMR
• List of potential speakers or contributors and title

1. Fred Unger: One Health implementation from ASEAN country perspectives with emphasizes on ICT applications
2. Bernard Bett: A web-based decision-support tool for prevention and control of Rift Valley fever outbreaks in Kenya
3. Terdsak Yano: PODD surveillance system: The evolution of digital tool in One-health surveillance in Thailand.
4. Annie Cook: Using mobile syndromic surveillance at slaughter to understand the incidence and distribution of important animal and zoonotic diseases in Kenya and Uganda.
5. Thang Nguyen: Development and use of mobile application for transboundary animal and emerging zoonotic diseases surveillance in Vietnam.
6. Florence Mutua: Management of animal diseases and antimicrobial use by information and communication technology to control AMR in East Africa.

Panel discussion

Moderator: Dr. Hung Nguyen-Viet

Possible contributors/panelists:

Lee Hu Suk (Professor at Chungnam National University, Korea)

Terdsak Yano (Assistant Professor at Chiang Mai University, Thailand)

Expert from Epi-interactive or Ausvet (Australia)

Bernard Bett/Annie Cook: Senior Scientist at ILRI

We can also extract some alternative options from list of attendees.

• Scientists (1-2), but not only, and across PH and AH
• Private sector (1), if attending
  • Donor (1), e.g. Anny Okello ACIAR
  • WOAH (region)
  • Policy (1)
• Proposed format and schedule for the session (maximum 100 words)

The session will have 6 presentations. The chairperson is from ILRI program level.  Each presentation will have 12 minutes to talk and 3 minutes for Q&A. After the presentations, we will organize a 30-minute panel discussion about “Using Information Communication Technology as one of solution to mitigate the burden of one health problems”. Panelist will consist of experts on the field of using ICT to deal with Emerging Infectious Zoonoses, One Health, AMR from academia, international organizations, policy and private sector.