One Health zooeyia in our asocial age: A transdisciplinary and systems approach to the human-animal bond

Abstract Background : Companion animals can play vital roles in promoting human health and well-being, with the potential to mitigate contemporary social concerns about human isolation and loneliness. Zooeyia, recognized as the positive inverse of ‘zoonosis’, is a term inclusive of these benefits within One Health. Exploring zooeyia’s influence in One Health from a transdisciplinary lens offers a unique opportunity for integrative, cooperative systems thinking that recognizes people, animals, the environment, and the connections between them as parts of larger complex socioecological systems. Methods : This case study presents our team’s initial work to develop a Canadian One Health human-animal bond network. Applying One Health zooeyia, we envision a transdisciplinary network that collaboratively explores the human-animal bond and its broader implications across systems that shape, and are shaped by, our increasingly asocial society. Results : Guided by the One Health High-Level Expert Panel’s (OHHLEP) definition of transdisciplinary collaboration, our team’s early efforts have begun to address a global need identified by academic and non-academic knowledge holders alike – social disconnection, bridge disciplinary divides, elevate post-humanist and Indigenous perspectives, and critically engage with the social science dimensions of the human-animal bond. Collectively, these efforts have already generated valuable insights and practical lessons for advancing transdisciplinarity broadly within One Health. Conclusion : Emphasizing systems thinking in future One Health zooeyia initiatives can contribute to a more inclusive, responsive, and resilient future for One Health research, policy, and practice. One Health impact statement This case report details our team’s efforts to establish a collaborative Canadian One Health zooeyia network centred on the reciprocal human-companion animal bond through a complex systems lens. The initiative brings together diverse disciplines alongside Indigenous and non-academic community knowledge to research a meaningful, real-world challenge: isolation and loneliness in our asocial age. To do this, we operationalized the One Health High-Level Expert Panel’s definition of transdisciplinary collaboration. A systems thinking approach focused on the human-animal bond is not common within One Health, and it offers valuable insights and practical lessons to strengthen One Health research, policy, and practice to address existing and emerging complex health challenges. Examining the human-animal bond through a One Health zooeyia lens, emphasizing the expertise of a multiplicity of academic and non-academic partners through a transdisciplinarity lens, can create new opportunities for integrated systems thinking.