Dr Yodi Mahendradhata is Dean and Professor in Health Policy and Management at the Faculty of Medicine, Public Health and Nursing, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia. He leads the South East Asia Regional Training Center for Health Research, supported by the Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR). Dr Mahendradhata serves as Commissioner for the NUS-Lancet Pandemic Readiness, Implementation, Monitoring, and Evaluation Commission and the WHS-Lancet Commission for Academic Responsibility He is a member of the Partnership Advisory Council of the Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health and a member of the BMJ Asia Pacific Regional Advisory Board. He has recently been elected as Co-Chair of the Research Committee of the Consortium of Universities for Global Health (CUGH). His research interests are global health, one health, tropical medicine, knowledge translation, implementation science, health policy and management.

Dr. Joko Pamungkas (veterinarian) is a retired Associate Professor of Microbiology at the School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Science, IPB University, Bogor, Indonesia, has been serving as the Vice Coordinator of the Indonesia One Health University Network (INDOHUN) since 2021. With over three decades of expertise in virology-immunology, animal model development, and viral disease surveillance, Dr. Pamungkas has held various leadership positions, including the Director of the Primate Research Center (2004–2017) and the Chairperson of the Veterinary Public Health Graduate Program (2019–2022), both at IPB University. Dr. Pamungkas’ research primarily focuses on retrovirus-related topics and dengue virus infections in non-human primates. Beyond his research endeavors, he participated in professional organizations, serving as the President of the Indonesian Association for Laboratory Animal Science (2011–2018) and the Country Coordinator for USAID-EPT PREDICT project (2011–2019). These roles have been instrumental in promoting professional and ethical standards in research.

Professor Vonthanak Saphonn is the Rector of the University of Health Sciences (UHS), Cambodia, and a distinguished epidemiologist, and public health leader. He earned his Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) from the University of Health Sciences in Phnom Penh in 1995 and completed his Ph.D. in Epidemiology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2003. Throughout his career, Prof. Saphonn has held numerous leadership positions in Cambodia’s health sector, including HIV/AIDS Surveillance Officer at the Ministry of Health, Chief of the Research Unit at the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Dermatology and STDs, and Deputy Director of the National Institute of Public Health. He also served as Head of the School of Public Health and Vice-Rector of UHS before becoming Rector in 2012. Since 2021, he has additionally served as an Advisor to the Ministry of Health. His contributions have significantly advanced public health research, education, and policy development in Cambodia.

Dr. Dyna Khuon earned her Ph.D. in Epidemiology from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2021. She holds a pharmacist degree from the University of Health Sciences (UHS), Cambodia, and a Master of Science in Nutrition from the National Institute of Public Health. She currently serves as Vice-Director of the Technical School for Medical Care and Head of the Public Health Unit at UHS. In addition, she is the Coordinator of the Cambodia One Health University Network (CAMBOHUN), where she collaborates closely with the Southeast Asia One Health University Network (SEAOHUN) and national partners to advance One Health initiatives. Dr. Khuon teaches Biostatistics, Life Cycle Nutrition, and Research Methods, integrating One Health principles into her courses. Her research interests include HIV, sexually transmitted infections, maternal and child nutrition, communicable and non-communicable diseases, and One Health. She actively contributes to scientific review processes, student mentoring, and regional One Health conferences, promoting the vision of One Planet, One Health.

GHSA D5 web-meeting on Multi-sectoral/Multi-discipline and workforce development at the sub-national level framework 12-13 January 2022! at 5.00 -8.30 PM GMT+2 https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1d3BWdx_nllOd7NykepQ556-5QoKdoLO28h8mVUAVFWQ/viewform?edit_requested=true

Volunteerism has long been an integral element of health services. It enhances well-being for individuals and societies through the ideals of solidarity and altruism. Volunteerism offers vital assistance to people and communities in need without requesting anything in return. Unexpectedly, one call for volunteers generated a snowball effect of good deeds in a time of crisis. As COVID-19 cases surged in Malaysia, the Malaysia One Health University Network (MyOHUN), through active collaboration with the Government of Malaysia, activated its second call for volunteers in January 2021 to assist the Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre in their efforts to manage the spread of the virus. MyOHUN established multiple social media and networking platforms reaching member and non-member universities, public and private agencies all around the country. It announced the first call for volunteers in March 2020 during the early phase of the pandemic. The call succeeded in enlisting more than 1000 volunteers to help in hospitals with the positive cases and laboratories for COVID-19 screening tests. A second call saw more than 250 health-related personnel respond despite pandemic-induced fatigue and other challenges. Happily, this call captured the attention of the Ericsen Foundation. "I saw MyOHUN’s post on Facebook calling for volunteers and thought that this is an opportunity to help the overburdened medical system as the rate of infection increased every day because we are in this together,” said Chew Meng Li, the Financial Officer for the “Malaysia COVID-19 Charity Drive” of the Ericsen Foundation. This program was recently launched by the Foundation. After seing MyOHUN’s call for volunteers, Chew Meng Li contacted Dr. Chee Hui Yee from the Universiti Putra Malaysia Teaching Hospital (HPUPM) to offer the sponsorship in the form of medical supplies, small equipment, and consumables. The Ericsen Foundation also contributed to the work on COVID-19 screening for refugees registered under the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. This medical testing is currently undertaking with the main funding coming from the USAID COVID-19 Emergency Tranche Fund. "Without this help, HPUPM would not be able to set up the COVID-19 detection laboratory so fast, just within 2 weeks.” Dr. Chee Hui Yee, Associate Professor, Universiti Putra Malaysia Teaching Hospital. COVID-19 has impacted the communities more than we can imagine. A single act of kindness may directly cushion the negative impact of the pandemic to a degree, but more importantly it may generate a snowball effect of good deeds from all directions. So…pay it forward, everyone. MyOHUN did! - Personal protective equipment, distancing, and group size standards in this photo were consistent with local public health guidance and COVID-19 status in the specific country and time it was taken. This may not reflect best practices for all locations where COVID-19 is still spreading. -

The University of the Philippines Manila pilots short course to equip health practitioners, academics, and government officials with knowledge on One Health The University of the Philippines Manila pilots short course to equip health practitioners, academics, and government officials with knowledge on One Health “This was the first-ever course on One Health in the Philippines”, said Dr. Carmencita David-Padilla, Chancellor of the University of Philippines (UP) Manila, upon delivering her closing remarks in the short course on “Introduction to One Health”. “We had limited One Health initiatives in the past and we hope that this short course will trigger a series of capacity-building activities for academics and practitioners working in various health-related disciplines”, she continued.​ “Introduction to One Health” was an online course held from May 4-6, 2021, via Zoom. It was the first initiative of its kind in the Philippines for the capacity building of professionals from the human, animal, and environmental health sectors. More than 130 professionals from 15 regions across the country took part in the course, representing academic institutions, government agencies, and non-government organizations. The participants came from a wide range of disciplines such as medicine, allied health, veterinary medicine, agriculture, education, and social science. The course was developed by the UP College of Public Health (CPH), SEAMEO TROPMED Regional Centre for Public Health, Hospital Administration, Environmental and Occupational Health (TROPMED Philippines), in collaboration with the Philippine One Health University Network (PhilOHUN). The initiative was supported by a small grant from the Southeast Asia One Health University Network (SEAOHUN) under the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) One Health Workforce - Next Generation (OHW-NG) Project. The course aimed to increase understanding of One Health fundamentals while planting the seeds of multidisciplinary collaboration in research, education, and policy development around One Health in the Philippines. ​ Over three days, experts and practitioners from the human, animal, and environmental health sectors facilitated a series of sessions on the Fundamentals of One Health; the Interrelatedness of Human, Animal, and Environmental Health; and, the Applications of One Health. Among the course participants was Dr. Virginia M. Venturina, Professor and Dean of the College of Veterinary Science and Medicine of the Central Luzon State University, who shared her hope for more courses that bring together lecturers and academicians from different backgrounds. She said, “One Health is not new to us, but we need to work more on infusing these important concepts to our students and make these efforts sustainable. This way we can contribute to preventing future pandemics”. One of the course lecturers, Dr. Soledad Natalia M. Dalisay, Professor and former Chair of the Department of Anthropology at the UP Diliman, reflected: “I hope that through this course, our interests in One Health are piqued, so that when we get back to our offices, our respective work, we would now more consciously seek to work towards the One Health approach. It has already been said that this concept is not new, but this time, hopefully we are now more proactive in trying to tweak work towards the One Health concepts and the processes.” Dr Michael L. Tee, Vice-Chancellor of the UP Manila and Chair of the PhilOHUN shared that the course inspired new ideas that may contribute to the development of new health-related legislation to address issues such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Vipat Kuruchittham, SEAOHUN Executive Director; Dr. Vicente Y. Belizario Jr., UP CPH / TROPMED Philippines Dean and Centre Director; Dr. Michael L. Tee, PhilOHUN Chair; and, Dr. Carmencita D. Padilla, UP Manila Chancellor giving their closing messages for the participants of “Introduction to One Health”. Dr. Vicente Y. Belizario, Jr., Dean of the UP CPH and Centre Director of TROPMED Philippines, in his closing statement as course coordinator, expressed that UP CPH/TROPMED Philippines will support other universities that will hold similar courses in the future, and will guide the establishment of “U-2-U” (university to university) collaboration. The College/Centre, together with the PhilOHUN, SEAOHUN, USAID OHW-NG project, and Chevron, will continue to offer courses in One Health to train future “champions” in different fields. The short course on “Introduction to One Health” has set the stage for expanding the One Health network in the country by bringing together participants from the disciplines of human, animal, and environmental health sectors from across the Philippines. Scaling up and engaging more universities in offering the course as part of continuing education for health, allied health, and collaborating professionals is the next step in advancing One Health in the Philippines, thereby nurturing the seeds of collaboration towards growth to a full-fledged network for the advancement of the One Health agenda in the country.

It has been over a year since the beginning of COVID-19 global outbreak, and the world is still adapting to the new normal situation. In order to help society be better protected from the illness, Mahidol University, a member of Thailand One Health University Network, conducted a series of workshops on “Design Thinking for COVID-19 Prevention and Control with Clinical Management” in November, December 2020 and in March 2021. These workshops resulted in 10 prototypes of innovative products that help to make COVID-19 prevention more comfortable, effective, and creative process.​ For example, among the winning designs is a smart mask that protects from both SARS- CoV-2 and PM 2.5, the harmful dust particles found in polluted urban air. This mask also allows to eat and drink easily with the zip! Cleansing tubes that are made of nature-friendly packaging materials with alcohol gel and moisturizing coating for a pleasant after touch can be attached to hand watch and make sterilizing process enjoyable. Smart helmets not only protect motorbike drivers from potential injuries, but also measure their temperatures and filter the air. In the future, some of these innovative projects may receive funds from the Government of Thailand for actual production. At the core of the effort is Design Thinking – a creative approach or social technology for problem solving. It allows to focus on user’s experience, but also to consider technological feasibility and cost-effectiveness. Design thinking process releases creativity and catalyzes innovation. This method consists of five phases: empathize, define, ideate, prototype and test. It can be applied to any field, and the Mahidol University team saw its potential in COVID- 19 prevention and control.​ Through various workshop activities, such as brainstorming, buzz group, prototype presentation and feedback, the participants came up with out-of-the-box solutions that can improve our daily experiences in times of COVID-19 pandemic. Over 60 participants - faculty members with human, animal, environmental health, and social sciences backgrounds, learned about Design Thinking and how to implement this approach to address COVID-19. Ten best prototypes were awarded with seed funds for pilot production. Complex issues require comprehensive solutions. The multidisciplinary team of lecturers who participated in the workshop is now equipped with an approach to solving any problems creatively and can use it to teach their students. The design thinking tool can be applied for solving complicated problems similar to COVID-19. When dealing with a crisis such as this pandemic, it is important to define the right problem and develop the right solutions. - Personal protective equipment, distancing, and group size standards in this photo were consistent with local public health guidance and COVID-19 status in the specific country and time it was taken. This may not reflect best practices for all locations where COVID-19 is still spreading. -

By Training Volunteers and Health Students in Contact Tracing The best collaborations create something bigger than the sum of what each person can create on their own Increasing the national capacity in contact tracing, a key strategy for interrupting chains of SARS-CoV-2 transmission, is critical for strengthening Indonesian public health response to infectious disease outbreaks, especially in the light of ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. INDOHUN, with the support from the Government of Indonesia and the USAID One Health Workforce – Next Generation project, collaborated with the Indonesian COVID-19 Task Force, FHI 360, WHO, FAO, and the Ministry of Health to develop 9-hour training modules on contract tracing. The modules cover the basic concept of contact tracing, self-isolation and quarantine, COVID-19 stigma, effective communication for behavioral change, confidentiality of patient data, and the use of mobile application for contact tracing called “Silacak”. Silacak is a reporting system used by the public health center (Puskesmas), relevant Health Offices, and the Ministry of Health to monitor for the COVID-19 situation. These modules would be the standard for capacity building activities on contact tracing in Indonesia. After the module development, INDOHUN trained over 4000 university health students and health volunteers from January to April 2021 from all over Indonesia in contact tracing, who would be able to support the Ministry of Health to trace close contacts of COVID-19 cases. The training was separated into 10 batches with approximately 400 trainees in each batch. Several participants commented that the information presented was easy to understand with fun quizzes to help them remember the information. Participants asked for additional training series to advance their contract tracing knowledge even further. An officer from the Ministry of Health informally noticed that there was an increase in contact tracing data in Indonesia. A formal evaluation would be conducted to measure the results and impact of the training.

In March 2021, SEAOHUN launched a Fellowship Program in partnership with LAOHUN and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations representation in Lao PDR (FAOLA). The program helps young and mid-career professionals from relevant sectors gain experience in implementing One Health approach at leading organizations working on One Health issues. Dr. Ketkesone Phrasisombath, Public Health Specialist and Researcher from the University of Health Sciences in Vientiane, became the first fellow to be hosted by FAOLA. During his 5-months assignment, he will contribute to the ongoing efforts of FAOLA to improve the country’s multi-lateral collaboration among animal health and other One Health partners, including public health, wildlife and private sectors, and academia.

Vietnam One Health University Network joined the One Health Partnership for Zoonoses (OHP) that was officially signed on March 23, 2021. National and international partners joined hands for the second phase of the OHP framework to improve multi-sectoral collaboration in preventing potential outbreaks and strengthen Viet Nam’s current efforts at controlling zoonotic diseases (the diseases that are transmitted from animals to humans). The OHP is now in its second phase, covering the period of 2021 – 2025. Its main objectives are: 1) to reduce the risk of animal to human transmission of microorganisms that can cause disease, and 2) to address antimicrobial resistance through enhanced multidisciplinary collaboration using the One Health approach. The global outbreak of coronavirus disease has brought the spotlight on the potential catastrophic consequences of emerging or re-emerging infectious diseases originating from domestic or wild animals. The One Health is of the most effective approaches in addressing complex global health issues, as it emphasizes the need for coordination between human, animal and ecosystem health sectors and strengthens collaboration capacities of the key players. The One Health Partnership Framework on Zoonotic Disease Prevention is designed to increase the sustainability of One Health partnership in Vietnam, to support Vietnam's commitment to the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) through 2024 and advance the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda in the country. The One Health partners plan to organize a national One Health forum in Vietnam annually. The organizations who joined included the national Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the Ministry of Health, as well as the Asian Development Bank, the European Union, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the International Livestock Research Institute, the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the Korea International Cooperation Agency, the United Nations Children’s Fund, and the World Health Organization.

Associate Professor Le Thi Thanh Huong, PhD, is Vice Rector of Hanoi University of Public Health and Chairperson of the Vietnam One Health University Network (VOHUN). She previously served as Chairperson of VOHUN and has been actively involved in the development and expansion of VOHUN since its establishment. Prof. Huong is a leading expert in environmental health and public health in Vietnam, with extensive experience in climate change and health, health impact assessment, infectious diseases, environmental risk assessment, and One Health approaches. Her work focuses on generating evidence to support climate-resilient and equitable health systems, particularly for vulnerable populations. She has led and coordinated numerous interdisciplinary and multi-country research projects and has worked closely with government agencies, universities, and international partners to translate scientific evidence into policy and practice. She has also played an important role in strengthening regional collaboration, capacity building, and academic networking in One Health across Vietnam and Southeast Asia.