On-site Module

One Health in Northern Communities and Ecosystems 1 (On-site course)

Course code  

MAOK4008 (MSc level) or AE9119 (PhD level)

Course name  

One Health in Northern Communities and Ecosystems 1

Credits  

5 ECTS

Semester  

Spring

Language  

English  

Required prerequisite knowledge  

Recommended knowledge for Master students and other applicants:The course is relevant for students with a background in natural or social sciences as well as humanities, law and health sciences, currently studying at master level. The course may also be relevant as continuing education for professionals interested in the One Health topics, the Arctic and transdisciplinary approaches. 

Recommended knowledge for PhD candidates: The course is relevant for students with a background in natural or social sciences as well as humanities and health sciences, currently studying at PhD level.

This course can be taken in combination with the online course ”One Health in Northern Communities and Ecosystems 2". Admission priority will be given to students enrolled in both courses. 

Learning Outcomes   

Upon successful completion of the course:  

Knowledge:  Students 

  • will have broad knowledge on the concepts of One Health
  • can identify methods to analyse human, environmental and animal health issues in a One Health perspective
  • will be familiar with the complexity of health management
  • will have broad knowledge of the core concepts and basic principles in infection prevention and control

 Skills:  Students  

  • will be able to apply various scientific methods relevant to One Health issues
  • can critically identify, discuss and respond to One Health challenges
  • will be able to identify and discuss the roles, responsibilities and needs of key stakeholders in the context of Northern communities

Competence:  Students  

  • can analyse relevant academic, professional, and research ethical problems
  • can communicate extensive independent work and master relevant academic language and terminology

Contents  

One Health is an integrated, unifying approach to balance and optimize the health of people, animals and the environment. It is particularly important to predict, prevent, detect, and respond to global health threats. The One Health approach mobilizes multiple sectors, disciplines and communities at varying levels of society to work together. 

The One Health approach is particularly relevant for food and water safety, nutrition, the control of zoonoses, pollution management, social relationships between humans and animals, and combating antimicrobial resistance. These issues are all responding to several of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (https://sdgs.un.org/goals). One Health is an emerging research field, aligned with Arctic Indigenous Peoples views of health, that has developed as a response to the need of transdisciplinary collaboration to be able to solve problems and challenges in a sustainable manner. Thus, the course is suited for students with a variety of backgrounds, such as life sciences, social sciences, health sciences and humanities.

This course aims to engage students in the practical dimensions of One Health by the use of case studies, simulations, and interactive exercises. The course is designed to advance transdisciplinary dialogue and problem-solving focusing on the context of the Arctic ecosystems.

Students shall prepare for this on-site intensive course by studying selected literature, including peer reviewed scientific articles, grey literature and book chapters.

The course addresses current challenges like zoonoses, species-on-the-move, pollution, antimicrobial resistance and food security through case studies with a One Health approach. Students are also exposed to the complexities of international cooperation through role-playing exercises, allowing them to draft and present collaborative One Health policies.

By active engagement and critical thinking, this course aims to deepen students' transdisciplinary competence in addressing the multifaceted challenges of One Health.

Work and teaching methods  

This 5 ECTS course will be offered as an on-site course that will be continued with the online course XXXX “One Health in Northern Communities and Ecosystems 2” with a total workload of 10 ECTS.

Learning methods include:

  • Lectures, seminars, case-studies, presentations, and self-study.
  • The course has a total workload of approximately 130 hours, including 20 hours of lectures and seminars, including workshops, 60 hours reading syllabus and 50 hours for the course work requirement and self-tuition (preparation for seminars and the exams).

Teaching methods:

  • Comprehensive and interactive lectures are given to provide an overview of the main topics in the course. 
  • Problem-based group work at which participants will be expected to seek literature and other types of relevant information to solve cases using One Health approaches in theory and practice. The cases and challenges will be chosen according to current challenges relevant to Northern communities and the students background and interests.

Compulsory requirements  

  • Completion of all assignments (short presentations, written reports, peer evaluation, etc.) that are arranged during the course.

Examinations  

  • Group presentation at the last day of the on-site gathering that will be graded as PASS/FAIL.
  • PhD candidates that register for this course will also have to deliver an individual presentation (poster presentation) that will be evaluated as PASS/FAIL in addition to the group presentation.

Course evaluation  

In order to help improving the educational quality of the programme of study, students are expected to actively participate in evaluations, questionnaires, meetings etc. The evaluations shall be carried out in accordance with the INN quality assurance system.

Responsible faculty  

Faculty of Applied Ecology, Agricultural Sciences and Biotechnology