Wellcome Trust Grant for Climate Change and Health Research in Kyrgyzstan
Associate Professor Angus Campbell, Nossal Institute for Global Health, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health has been awarded a major research grant from Wellcome Trust to study the impacts of climate change on human health within livestock-keeping communities in Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia.
The three-year AUD $4.9 million project, "Community Climate Health Amongst Livestock Keepers in Kyrgyzstan (CCHALKK)," will take a One Health approach to tackling complex challenges at the interface of human, animal and environmental domains.
"We're delighted to receive this support from Wellcome Trust to tackle this critically important issue," said lead researcher Associate Professor Angus Campbell. "In regions like Central Asia where livestock farming is fundamental to lives and livelihoods, climate change poses a major threat to community health and wellbeing. This project will generate vital evidence to inform policies and actions for strengthening resilience."
The project's co-applicants include climate change experts from Charles Sturt University, as well as two highly experienced organisations based in Kyrgyzstan: The Association of Village Health Committees of Kyrgyzstan (KADK in Kyrgyz), a community health promotion group with a network of over 1,600 village-level volunteer committees; The Ilbirs Foundation, which works in wildlife conservation and community-based natural resource management.
"Our Kyrgyz partners are deeply embedded in communities across the country," said Campbell. "Their expertise, trust, and relationships will be essential for conducting inclusive research and translating findings into meaningful change."
The research will generate evidence that is representative of large parts of Central Asia and, in so doing, support positive policy reform such as those called for within the Central Asia One Health Regional Framework for Action and other strategies.
The CCHALKK project reinforces the University of Melbourne's commitment to pursuing impactful global health research and cross-sector partnerships that create lasting change.
Associate Professor Angus Campbell leads the One Health research at the Nossal Institute for Global Health. He is a livestock veterinarian and epidemiologist with over 20 years’ experience working in One Health, international agricultural development and livelihood security.