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African Health Sciences
Makerere University Medical School
ISSN: 1680-6905 EISSN: 1729-0503
Vol. 8, Num. s1, 2008, pp. S46
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Untitled Document
African Health Sciences, Vol. 8, Suppl, 2008, pp. S46
Animals as key promoters of human resilience
Joann M. Lindenmayer
Associate Professor, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, Tufts University
http://www.tufts.edu/vet/facpages/lindenmayer_j.html
Correspondence author: Joann M. Lindenmayer, Associate Professor Department of Environmental and Population Health, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, Tufts University, 200 Westboro Road, North Grafton, MA 01536, UK, Tel. 508-887-4344 Fax: 508-839-7946 Email: Joann.Lindenmayer@tufts.edu
Code Number: hs08067
The concept of resilience has been applied in
a wide variety of situations and from the molecular to
the ecosystem level. It has been most commonly
used, however, to describe the capacity of human
populations to survive disasters of acute onset and broad scope
that are political, economic, social or environmental in
origin. One aspect of resilience that is frequently overlooked
is the role that animals may play in helping human populations to maintain and restore resilience. The
role of animals encompasses companion animals as
key sources of social support, as was seen in the
United States after Hurricane Katrina, to livestock as
critical sources of social and economic capital, as has been
seen among herding communities after drought and
forced migration in Africa and elsewhere. Because the role
of animal populations in disasters is typically overlooked, data on the role of animals in maintaining and
restoring human resilience is scant.
In situations where human
communities maintain strong bonds with animals, regardless of
the nature of those bonds, immediate post-disaster
response must include efforts to address the survival needs
of animals. Intermediate and long-term response
planning must include efforts to restore animals to
those communities. Public and private veterinary
services should be included in post disaster response efforts.
Veterinary services can assist by responding to
animal needs, documenting critical needs of affected
animal populations and thereby providing data for
future disaster plans, and helping to restore resilience to
human communities after massive disruptions.
© Copyright 2008 - Makerere Medical School, Uganda
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