In the first of four screencasts the public health practitioner is introduced to zoonoses and vector borne diseases and how they differ from other infectious diseases. In subsequent screencasts, the factors (drivers) that influence zoonoses and vector borne disease are explained, including human systems, human-animal-environment interaction, and environmental change. Multiple disease-specific examples are provided, including COVID-19.

Zoonotic diseases are those that can be passed between humans and other vertebrate animals and vector borne disease are those that are transmitted by an arthropod vector like a flea or tick. Because non-human animals serve as a disease reservoir or vector, disease prevention and control strategies differ from other infectious diseases. More than half, an estimated 60%, of all the kinds of infections that people can get are zoonotic and 75% of emerging infectious diseases, including COVID-19, are zoonotic. There are many human-driven factors that influence zoonotic disease emergence and re-emergence. These drivers include infrastructure, travel and trade, culture, agricultural intensification, interaction with domestic and wild animals, climate change, land use, and biodiversity. In this series of four screencasts, you will be introduced to zoonotic and vector borne diseases and their drivers.