Socio-environmental Global Changes and Infectious Diseases: Interdisciplinary Approach Applied to Tourism Studies

Abstract

I am dealing with the issue of infectious diseases in relation to social and environmental global changes. I suggest few ideas to develop interdisciplinary approaches despite long-time obstacles. I use the example of growing tourist activities as one possible agent of disease spreading. Infectious diseases, some really new but others known for centuries, are spreading widely outside previous limited areas because of ecologic and economic transformations. A growing interest of research in social sciences in fields such as health and environment has emerged simultaneously since social uses, access and practices on the environment are crucial to understand how epidemics can spread or not. Exchange and dispersion of diseases are one of the many global consequences of tourism. Movement of infectious organisms by tourists is an important aspect of international travel. Tourism can contribute in different ways to exchange and dispersion of both pathogens and diseases. More than ever, there is an urgent need to build capacity in the environmental community and the interdisciplinary approach. Tourists are at risk to acquire new infections, and they aid as vectors in the global dispersal of microbes. Infectious diseases are responsible for about 35 % or the mortality throughout the world and during past 30 years more than 30 new disease-causing organisms have been identified.