CALL FOR ABSTRACTS — APHA 2026 Annual Meeting and Expo
One Health
Meeting theme: "Together We Thrive: Health Across the Lifespan"
Submission Deadline: Tuesday, March 31, 2026
One Health is a collaborative, multisectoral, and transdisciplinary approach to public health that recognizes the interconnections between people, animals, plants, and their shared ecosystems. One Health work occurs locally, regionally, nationally, and globally to address the policies, systems, and environments that impact their shared wellbeing.
We will consider abstracts related to One Health issues. These include but are not limited to: animal-human-ecosystem interactions, zoonoses and vector-borne diseases, food safety, antimicrobial resistance, waste management, agriculture and animal husbandry, ecosystem health, plant health, climate change, integrative and traditional health practices, the human-animal bond, service animals and working animals, access to veterinary care, social determinants of health related to human-animal-environmental factors, One Health in conflicts and disasters (natural and manmade), and other topics related to Veterinary Public Health and Planetary Health.
The theme for this year’s APHA Annual Meeting is "Together We Thrive: Health Across the Lifespan." Within the context of One Health, this theme offers an opportunity to highlight the ways that human-animal-plant-ecosystem interactions are integral to the health of all species and systems across time. However, abstracts do not necessarily need to match the theme to be considered for inclusion in the One Health scientific program.
One Health & Occupational Health One Health recognizes that interconnections between human health and the health of plants, animals, and ecosystems - including in many occupations and industries. Topics at the intersection of One Health and Occupational Health include, but are not limited to: chronic and communicable diseases in occupations where humans interact with plants, animals, and ecosystems (such as in agriculture, food production, animal husbandry, forestry, wildlife management, wildfire management, waste management, pest control, fishing, hunting, healthcare, etc.), as well as workers’ rights and the effects of policies in those fields.
One Health Approaches to Emerging and Re-Emerging Health Issues Potential topics include: antibiotic resistance in animal, human, plant, and ecosystem health; waste management; zoonoses and vector-borne diseases; surveillance methods for human/animal/plant/ecosystem health; using animals and the environment as sentinels for emerging diseases, reemerging diseases, and effects of climate change; One Health in the context of conflicts (e.g. armed conflict, conflicts borne of systems of oppression, etc.) and natural and man-made disasters (e.g. hurricanes, drought, oil spills, etc.).
One Health in Policies, Systems, and Environments Potential topics include: how policies, systems, and environments affect the health of animals, plants, humans, and ecosystems; animal-plant-human-ecosystem interactions; access to resources for animal, plant, and ecosystem health; globalization and One Health; One Health and the economy; One Health and systems of oppression such as racism, classism, ageism, and other systems of oppression; One Health law; science communication and One Health; community-level approaches to One Health.
One Health: Plants, Animals, Humans, and Ecosystems Potential topics include: effects of human activity on plant, animal, human, and ecosystem health and vice versa; effects of climate change on plant, animal, human, and ecosystem/environmental health and vice versa; the use of plants and animals in human health practices, including in traditional and alternative health practices; mental health and One Health; disability and One Health, including but not limited to service animals; access to nature and natural spaces.
Abstract Guidelines:
Limit to 300 words.
Please include the following sections: Introduction, Methods, Findings, Implications. Section headings that correspond with those sections are helpful but not necessary. The description of these sections below is intended as a rough guide:
Introduction: This should include the purpose of the work/research and a brief but precise statement of key background information, such as a description of the problems or issues that the work/research seeks to address.
Methods: This section should describe what you did. Here, describe the methods and design of the work or research.
Results: This section should describe what you found. This is the main outcomes of the work, or the main findings of the research.
Implications: This section should describe what your findings mean. Here, briefly state the implications of your work/research.
About the APHA One Health 2026 scientific program:
Accepted abstracts will be grouped into Poster Sessions and Oral Sessions.
If you have a preference, you will be able to specify this when you submit your abstract through APHA's Confex system.
Please note that while we will try to honor preferences, we have limited space, particularly for Oral presentations.
APHA required in-person attendance for both poster presentations and oral presentations.
Poster presentations occur during Poster Sessions, each consisting of up to 10 posters presented in-person. These sessions are an hour long, during which time presenters are expected to stand by their poster to give an overview of their work to visitors and answer questions.
Oral presentations occur during Oral Sessions, each consisting of four 15-20 minute oral presentations presented in-person.
Session topics will be finalized AFTER all abstracts have been reviewed, to allow for organic groupings. Potential sessions outlined in this Call for Abstracts are intended as examples.
