Would it surprise you to learn that the emergence of covid-19, Lyme disease and other zoonotic diseases could have a common cause...the loss of biodiversity? Powerful research is shining the light on how our exposure to these infectious diseases is related to the decrease in biodiversity globally and in our own yards.
Dr. Felicia Keesing, Professor of Ecology and Infectious Disease, and Distinguished Professor of the Science, Mathematics, and Computing at Bard College will share her years of research on the biology of species diversity. She will help us to understand how reversing the decline of a variety of plants and animals in our environment could help prevent the emergence and spread of these diseases on a global and community based scale.
Dr. Keesing will also describe a five-year project to test whether environmentally-safe methods of tick control, used in entire neighborhoods, could reduce the cases of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases.
Her groundbreaking 5 year Tick Project is led by Dr. Keesing and Cary Institute disease ecologist Dr. Richard Ostfeld in partnership with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the New York State Department of Health, and the Dutchess County Department of Behavioral and Community Health.
Dr. Keesing will share ways that improving biodiversity in our yards could potentially be a key factor in breaking the link to Lyme disease and other diseases. Join us for this amazing live lecture!