ILRI scientist receives international award for ecohealth research

Hung Nguyen-Viet (left) receives the 2016 International Association for Ecology and Health (IEAH) ‘Exceptional Early Career Contribution to the Field of EcoHealth’ award from former IEAH president Jakob Zinsstag (photo credit: ILRI/Tarni Cooper).

Hung Nguyen-Viet, a senior scientist in food safety and ecohealth at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), was named the winner of the 2016 International Association for Ecology and Health (IAEH) Exceptional Early Career Contribution to the Field of EcoHealth Award together with Jonathan Kingsley of the University of Melbourne.

IAEH is a scholarly organization whose membership is drawn from all continents. Its mission is to strive for sustainable health of people, wildlife and ecosystems by promoting discovery, understanding and transdisciplinarity.

The award was given in recognition of Hung’s leadership, mentorship, research and writing on topics of domestic and global significance, including health, agriculture, food safety and infectious and zoonotic diseases at ILRI and at the Center for Public Health and Ecosystem Research (CENPHER), Hanoi University of Public Health.

Hung received the award at the closing ceremony of the 4th International One Health Congress and 6th IAEH Biennial Congress held in Melbourne, Australia on 3–7 December 2016.

“I strongly believe that ecohealth and One Health are good approaches to address complex health and environmental problems,” said Hung in his acceptance speech.

“Let us all work together and advance ecohealth,” he urged his colleagues.

Hung is a Vietnamese national and holds a PhD in Life and Environmental Sciences from Besançon, France. He co-founded and led CENPHER where he has been coordinating a regional program called Ecohealth Field Building Leadership Initiative in Southeast Asia from 2012 to 2016. In addition to his research role at ILRI, he is the institute’s acting regional representative for East and Southeast Asia based in Hanoi. He is also an honorary professor at Hanoi University of Public Health.

Congratulations, Hung!

 

One Health, many tools for forecasting climate-sensitive diseases in Vietnam

ILRI Asia

Nobody likes getting sick. However, climate change, like higher temperatures, heavier rainfall and higher humidity, is already a given, and diseases highly sensitive to such changes would likely increase over time.

Climate change might also make the environment more suitable for diseases to spread, not only among individuals of the same species, but also across species (known as zoonotic diseases). In fact, 70% of the emerging diseases today, like ebola, A(H1N1) (‘swine flu’) and avian influenza (‘bird flu’), have been transferred from animals to humans. Such diseases threaten not only agricultural and food production, but also human lives as well.

A better understanding of how diseases are linked to climate change is needed. “We need more information on climate-sensitive zoonotic diseases to improve healthcare,” said Dr Hu Suk Lee of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI).

A team of researchers from ILRI and national climate, agricultural and…

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ILRI scientist receives honorary professorship at Hanoi University of Public Health

Hung Nguyen-Viet (right) receives his award of honorary professor at the Hanoi University of Public Health. Also pictured are Le Nhan Tuan, Director of the HIV/AIDS Prevention Center of Hanoi (left) and Hoang Van Minh, Vice Rector of Hanoi University of Public Health (centre) (photo credit: ILRI/Hung Nguyen-Viet).

Hung Nguyen-Viet, a senior scientist at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), was awarded an honorary professorship by the Hanoi University of Public Health in recognition of his contribution to teaching and scientific research. The award was presented at a ceremony that took place on 18 Nov 2016 in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Hung holds a PhD in Life and Environmental Sciences from Besançon, France. His current research focuses on the link between health and agriculture, food safety, and infectious and zoonotic diseases with an emphasis on the use of risk assessment for food safety management with an integrative approach (One Health and ecohealth). He is also ILRI’s acting regional representative for East and Southeast Asia.

Congratulations, Hung!

 

South–South exchanges on One Health/EcoHealth: Capacity-building practices in India and Vietnam

ILRI Asia

ILRI scientists Hung Nguyen and Johanna Lindahl (fifth and sixth from right) at a One Health/EcoHealth seminar on capacity building in India (photo credit: Public Health Foundation in India).

One Health and EcoHealth approaches have gained a foothold in Southeast Asia in recent years, especially in Vietnam. In India, One Health/EcoHealth approaches have also been adopted, and the goal of the agencies and research institutes in the country is to strengthen capacity building for those involved in the livestock sector, particularly smallholder farmers, to respond to threats of zoonotic diseases.

To promote One Health/EcoHealth mainstreaming in India, two scientists from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) recently participated in two seminars in New Delhi to share their research experiences that can be useful for India’s efforts at mainstreaming One Health/EcoHealth capacity building in the country.

Hung Nguyen-Viet, ILRI acting regional representative for East and Southeast Asia, food safety scientist and…

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On better water use and reuse: ‘One Water, One Health’ panel at Singapore International Water Week

ILRI Asia

ILRI’s Hung Nguyen (second from left) participated in the ‘One Water, One Health’ panel at the 2016 Singapore International Water Week (photo credit: ILRI).

A global water management event which aimed at sharing and co-creating innovative water solutions was recently held in Singapore.

The Singapore International Water Week (SIWW), held 10–14 July 2016, brought together several stakeholders in the international water industry to exchange best practices, showcase latest technologies and promote business opportunities.

The ‘One Water, One Health’ workshop at the SIWW aimed to raise the profile of water, sanitation and wastewater management in the context of One Health. The speakers discussed important topics such as the relationship between water-borne diseases and management of livestock waste, and the added value of health and well-being of humans and animals and/or financial savings through closer cooperation of human and animal health.

The speakers also talked about the importance of re-using…

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Connecting the dots: Actionable recommendations towards safer pork and leafy vegetables in Vietnam

ILRI Asia

The consultation workshop towards safer pork and vegetables in Vietnam was held on 27 July 2016 in Hanoi (photo credit: ILRI).  

Responsiveness to citizens’ needs and demands is an indicator of good governance and public service. In Vietnam, the government and development partners including international organizations and research centres with expertise in food safety and risk management are responding to a growing public concern over food safety.

This year, the Vietnamese government and partners have been carrying out an assessment of food safety risks in the country. The ‘Food safety risk management in Vietnam: Challenges and opportunities’ study is led by the World Bank with technical support from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and partners. It started in January 2016 and will be completed at the end of August. ILRI has also asked for research support from Risk Taskforce, a project also supported by ILRI.

The study used…

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ILRI shares ongoing research on ensuring food safety in Vietnam at Hanoi conference

ILRI Asia

During the plenary session of the Vietnam Agricultural Outlook Conference 2016 (photo credit: ILRI/Hung Nguyen)

An agricultural conference that discussed ways to strengthen Vietnam’s integration and competitiveness in the global market, as well as the readiness of its livestock, rice and fisheries sectors for the challenges of climate change, was recently held in Hanoi.

Co-organized by the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development (IPSARD), the Department of Economics of the Office of the National Assembly, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Australian Embassy, the ‘Vietnam Agricultural Outlook Conference 2016’ brought together scientists, economists, officials and representatives from Vietnamese government agencies, international research organizations and the private sector.

Hung Nguyen, a food safety and zoonotic diseases scientist from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and acting regional representative for ILRI East and Southeast Asia, co-chaired a session on ‘livestock commodity – global…

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New ILRI research brief highlights outcomes of pork safety project in Vietnam

Hmong butchers selling pig meat from the indigenous Hmong black pig, recognizable from its thick layer of fat below the skin, Bac Ha, Lao Cai Province, Vietnam (photo credit: ILRI/Jo Cadilhon).

Scientists working on a project to reduce disease risks and improve food safety in smallholder pig value chains in Vietnam have published a new research brief that highlights the key outcomes of the project in capacity building and transdisciplinary research.

The 5-year project, Reducing disease risks and improving food safety in smallholder pig value chains in Vietnam (PigRisk), was launched in 2012 and is led by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in collaboration with the Hanoi School of Public Health and the Vietnam National University of Agriculture.

Among the outputs the project has achieved to date are: maps of value chain actors, assessments of production constraints of pig producers and estimates of health risks along the pork value chain.

In addition, several MSc students have been trained, publications written and presentations made to disseminate the study findings. The research team is currently developing and implementing interventions to positively influence the behaviour of value chain actors and improve food safety.

Download the brief, Changes in researcher capacity in assessing food safety risks and value chains: Insights from PigRisk team

 

ILRI pork safety project holds mid-term review in Vietnam

ILRI Asia

The PigRisk project team during the March 2016 mid-term review meeting (photo credit: ILRI/Fred Unger).

In March 2016 the PigRisk project, which focuses on food safety and pork value chains, held its mid-term review. This five-year project (2012–2017) aims to improve the livelihoods of rural and urban poor in Vietnam by creating better opportunities and incomes from pig value chains as a result of reduced risks associated with pork-borne diseases. The project is led by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR).

The review highlighted significant achievements of the project including the development of a ‘cost of disease’ model and quantitative microbial risk assessment (QRMA) for Salmonella in consumers. This was the first time that these models had been used for food safety in Vietnam and they revealed the high economic cost to consumers from Salmonella-induced diarrheoa, whose treatment…

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ILRI supports Thailand symposium on food safety, zoonoses and EcoHealth

ILRI Asia

The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) recently supported and co-organized a symposium on food safety, zoonoses and EcoHealth in Thailand.

ILRI scientists Fred Unger and Hung Nguyen with Pudji Astuti, Vice Dean, Vet Faculty, University of Gadjah Mada (second from left) and other researchers from the region at the Chiang Mai symposium (Photo credit: ILRI/Duong Van Nhiem).

The fourth Food Safety and Zoonoses Symposium for Asia Pacific, which also included the second Regional EcoHealth Symposium, held 3-5 August 2015 in Chiang Mai, brought together experts to share knowledge and information on food safety and zoonoses and to provide a platform for recent EcoHealth research.

This year’s theme was ‘Professional learning community for human–animal–environmental health’.

The symposium focused on several important themes including assessment of biological and chemical risks in food system, antimicrobial resistance in humans and animals, emergence of zoonoses and vector-borne diseases, innovation in surveillance and epidemiological tools…

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