We are pleased to announce that the One Sustainable Health for All Foundation (OSH4A) signed a partnership with the Geneva Health Forum to strengthen dialogue and collaboration among One Health stakeholders and to support the development of operational projects.
The Geneva Health Forum 2025 took place from 20 to 23 May in Geneva, alongside the World Health Assembly. This year’s edition focused on four key themes:
– Migration, Health and Equity
– Nutrition
– Climate Change and Health
– Geneva Digital Health Day
We co-organised the session “Scaling Impact: Climate & Health Solutions That Drive Change” (May 21, 2025 ) and a closed-door session (May 20, 2025) “Together for One Global Health”.
SCALING IMPACT: CLIMATE & HEALTH SOLUTIONS THAT DRIVE CHANGE
At the Geneva Health Forum, Benoît Miribel highlighted the growing momentum of the One Sustainable Health (OSH) Forum, which now includes over 150 committed organisations. The President of the One Sustainable Health for All (OSH4A) Foundation announced the upcoming 3rd World One Sustainable Health Conference, to be held from November 2 to 5, 2025, in Lyon, as well as the launch of the OSH Factory—an initiative designed to advance the operationalisation of the One Health approach. He also welcomed the announcement of a forthcoming One Health Summit, to be hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron in Lyon at the same time, underscoring the importance of cross-sectoral collaboration and the need to strengthen cooperation between public and private stakeholders. He praised the Geneva Health Forum as a key partner in advancing this agenda.
Miribel also underlined the importance of addressing the nexus between health, environment, and social issues: “If we want to succeed with health and climate issues, we need to tackle the social issues,” he stressed, emphasizing the need for societal adaptation.
During the same session, Rafael Ruiz de Castañeda from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) spoke on Challenge 1: Humanitarian Action in the Planetary Crisis. As a member of IWG9 “One Health in Humanitarian Settings,” he presented the group’s recently published policy brief, which advocates for a comprehensive approach to global health and environmental challenges by integrating the One Health and Planetary Health frameworks.
© Photo Flore Pratolini
TOGETHER FOR ONE GLOBAL HEALTH
On May 20, 2025, a closed-door session was held during the Geneva Health Forum, on the occasion of the 78th World Health Assembly. The aim was to initiate a high-level dialogue, spark fresh ideas, and kick off a series of strategic discussions that will unfold over the next 18 months—leading up to major international milestones, including the World One Health Summit, announced for November 3rd in Lyon.
Bringing together a diverse group of global health leaders, researchers, institutional representatives, and advocates, the session gathered the following participants:
- Benoît Miribel, President, One Sustainable Health for All Foundation
- Brian B. Rudkin, Head of the OSH Forum & Strategic Initiatives, One Sustainable Health for All Foundation
- Rachel Vetterhoeffer, Head of Partnerships, One Sustainable Health for All Foundation
- Marie Dauphin, Assistant Project Officer, One Sustainable Health for All Foundation
- Keith Martin, Executive Director, Consortium of Universities for Global Health (Washington)
- Roland Göhde, Co-Founder & CEO, Virchow Foundation; Chair, GHA – German Health Alliance
- Sébastien Cognat, Executive Officer, WHO Academy
- Agnès Soucat, Head of Health and Welfare Division, Agence Française de Développement (AFD)
- Andrea Sylvia Winkler and Dr. John Amuasi, Co-Chairs, Lancet One Health Commission (remote)
- Pamela Das, Editor, The Lancet
- Flore Ganon, Advocacy Lead for Rights and Essential Services, Action Against Hunger
- Charlotte Schmidt and Dr. J. Johanna Sanchez, Climate & Health Leads, Grand Challenges Canada
- Catherine Bilger, One Sustainable Health for All Foundation
- Kathleen Victoir, Senior Scientific Officer, Institut Pasteur
- Yann Illiaquer, Advocacy and Policy Coordinator, Global Health Action
- Papa Serigne Seck, President of the General Assembly, PREZODE Initiative
- Davide Ziveri, PhD, Humanity & Inclusion / Handicap International, Brussels, Belgium (remote)
- Andre Jestin, Feam Board Member French Veterinary Academy (remote)
- Helene Delisle (remote)
- Chiara Gotarelli, Medical Intern, DES de Santé Publique, Lyon, France (remote)
- Tieble Traore, Technical Officer Emergency Preparedness, World Health Organization (remote)
The session marked a key moment of convergence, aiming to move One Health beyond theory and terminology—towards an actionable, collaborative, and intersectoral global framework.
The session opened with an exclusive preview of the forthcoming Lancet One Health Commission report, presented by co-chairs Andrea Winkler and John Amuasi. This new publication aims to redefine One Health in the post-COVID-19 era, expanding its scope beyond infectious disease to include food systems, environmental health, and implementation science. The report emphasizes systems thinking, equity, and resilience, and will be launched officially starting in July through a series of international events.
The announcement was followed by a significant political development: President Emmanuel Macron’s declaration of a World One Health Summit, to be hosted in Lyon on November 3rd, One Health Day, in connection with the One Sustainable Health for All initiative. This event will serve as a key milestone in building political momentum for One Health globally.
WHO Academy: Rethinking Learning to Match Global Needs
In response to ongoing structural and financial constraints, the World Health Organization is undergoing a substantial reorganization, consolidating its operations into three major technical divisions: disease, health systems, and health emergencies. Within this new structure, the WHO Academy is emerging as a central tool to standardize and expand global health learning.
The Academy aims to create a unified, high-quality framework for training and capacity-building across the health ecosystem. It is currently mapping learning needs and identifying gaps in under-addressed areas such as environmental health, food safety, and community engagement. The goal is to provide prioritized, accessible, and effective learning materials that avoid redundancy and ensure global access, particularly in low-resource settings.
Funding Innovation: Climate and Health in the Spotlight
Grand Challenges Canada shared exciting news about their forthcoming Climate Health Innovation Fund, set to launch in early 2026 with a target of $50 million USD. The fund will focus on supporting innovation in climate and health within low- and middle-income countries, guided by insights from a global survey involving over 6,000 respondents from 100+ countries.
To ensure robust implementation, the organization is looking to form a consortium of funding partners and offer a centralized platform for climate-health innovators. The fund aligns with the upcoming World One Health Summit and presents an opportunity to mainstream innovation and equity into the One Health movement.
From Concept to Action: Operationalizing One Health
Participants unanimously recognized that One Health is no longer just a concept—it’s a necessity. The challenge now lies in translating it into practical, impactful actions. The One Sustainable Health for All Foundation plays a key role here by coordinating international working groups that address topics from antimicrobial resistance to climate resilience, all in support of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Participants emphasized that terminology fatigue must give way to political engagement, interdisciplinary communication, and measurable progress. A central concern remains the need for clear accountability and inter-sectoral cooperation.
Snow Change: Indigenous Knowledge and Biodiversity
The session also showcased Snow Change, a network of indigenous communities from the Arctic and boreal regions working on climate adaptation and ecosystem restoration. Through its landscape rewilding program, Snow Change restores wetlands and other critical habitats, which also function as powerful carbon sinks.
The initiative is an example of science-practice partnerships, combining indigenous knowledge and ecological restoration with robust scientific monitoring. The group emphasized the importance of women-led climate actions and proposed organizing a visibility event at COP, potentially highlighting the link between biodiversity, traditional knowledge, and climate mitigation.
Targeting the Biodiversity Hotspots
Addressing the triple planetary crisis—climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution—requires focused, high-impact action. The International Support Group (ISG) suggested prioritizing protection for the 5% of land that hosts 60% of global biodiversity, through community-based conservation models.
Participants called for creating a global platform to aggregate and democratize access to existing solutions, bridging the gap between scientific expertise and political decision-making. Concrete outcomes for the upcoming One Health Summit were also discussed, with suggestions to leverage the G7 presidency to secure political buy-in and continuity.
Merging Silos: Toward Collective Planetary Health
A shared concern throughout the discussion was the fragmentation among communities working on One Health, Planetary Health, and Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR). The group called for convergence rather than competition—especially between environmental and poverty reduction agendas.
Speakers highlighted that investing in environmental protection is not a trade-off but rather a catalyst for economic resilience. Anchoring discussions in robust science, showcasing success stories, and translating strategies into ground-level actions were seen as vital to maintaining momentum. The White House summit on climate and health was flagged as an opportunity to push for a paradigm shift.
Centering Social Sciences and Equity
A critical insight came from the conversation around the integration of social sciences into global health frameworks. Participants noted the risk of overlooking social determinants, vulnerable populations, and equity in the race for technological solutions.
A call was made to design a flagship project that links local innovations and community knowledge with global policy platforms. Examples involving indigenous leadership, gender-responsive actions, and rights-based approaches were viewed as particularly promising. Moving beyond silos—disciplinary, institutional, and geographic—was deemed essential for systemic impact.
Innovation, Policy, and the Role of Technology
Several global health platforms were discussed, including the European Global Health Research Institute Network (EGHRIN), the World Network of One Sustainable Health Institutes, and the Health Innovation Exchange (HiEx). From using mobile technology to track mosquito-borne diseases in Brazil (Fiocruz), to the exploration of blockchain tools for monitoring impact (SEND.social), the conversation showcased the vast potential of digital tools in advancing health equity.
An ambitious idea emerged: a Global Health Policy Lab, powered by AI-based repositories to consolidate knowledge and guide policy innovation. However, participants cautioned that tech solutions must be paired with policy reform and contextual understanding, especially in the Global South.
Shifting the Metrics and Empowering Communities
The final segment of the session turned inward, questioning the dominant metrics in global health, particularly the overemphasis on lives saved as the main indicator of success. Participants advocated for broader, more inclusive measures, capturing indirect impacts such as climate-driven displacement, conflict, and mental health effects.
There was a strong push to decentralize problem-solving, shifting away from top-down frameworks and instead empowering local actors, municipalities, and grassroots organizations. Simplifying communication, ensuring access to global knowledge in local languages, and supporting country-led solutions emerged as key imperatives in line with the initiative to create a World Network of One Sustainable Health Institutes..
Looking Ahead: One Health, One Future
As the session concluded, participants agreed that this was only the beginning. The Geneva Health Forum’s closed-door session will feed into a series of events over the next 18 months, including the One Health Summit in Lyon, COP, G7, and other regional forums.
The conversations surfaced practical proposals, political opportunities, and strategic priorities—from financing mechanisms and flagship initiatives to knowledge platforms and equity-focused policies. But above all, they reaffirmed a shared commitment to forging a common roadmap for global health and planetary resilience.
“One Health is not a slogan. It’s a systems revolution. And we cannot afford to wait.”
