Over recent decades, the frequency of zoonotic disease outbreaks has risen significantly worldwide, with their emergence and re-emergence increasingly acknowledged to be closely linked to human-driven environmental pressures.

At the national level, efforts are ongoing to develop a Belgian One World, One Health (OWOH) vision for preventing the emergence and spread of zoonotic diseases. In support of this initiative, a collaborative project between Sciensano and the Federal Public Services (FPS) Health, titled ZooBiodiv, was initiated in April 2024 and concluded in May 2025.

The project comprised two distinct work packages.

The first examined the links between anthropogenic environmental changes, including climate change, and the emergence and spread of zoonotic diseases within a Belgian context. This component resulted in a detailed report of over 100 pages, based on a review of existing scientific literature on how five major anthropogenic drivers, namely climate change, land use change, pollution, biological invasions, and globalization, impact key variables influencing zoonotic disease transmission dynamics. Based on the findings and identified knowledge gaps, preliminary recommendations were formulated to guide future prevention efforts in Belgium.

The second work package involved a descriptive mapping of Belgian actors and their associated projects, initiatives, and databases across all areas of zoonotic disease intervention, from prevention to control. Using a combination of online research and interviews, an Excel document was created containing 10 thematic sheets, each listing different categories of actors, including institutions in animal, human, and environmental health, administrative authorities, projects, databases, academic bodies, and networks, totaling over 160 entries.

The two work packages highlight the critical need to better understand the causal links between environmental disturbances and zoonotic risk, as well as the importance of interdisciplinary and multisectoral collaboration in tackling these complex challenges. Building on this project, continued efforts could pave the way for effective, evidence-based policies for zoonotic disease prevention.