Jeffrey Gilbert Föreläsare

Senior One Health Advisor
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

While not starting out to specialize in emerging zoonotic diseases, pandemic threats and One Health Jeff Gilbert’s varied career has provided the background and experience enabling him to make some contribution to these global priorities through various clinical, research and development positions.

He initially trained as a doctor in his native Northern Ireland, working in surgery and emergency medicine – then opting to pursue his original dream of becoming a veterinary surgeon. After some further years in clinical work in the UK and South Africa he took a research position in Cameroon with the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.

Following a Masters in Veterinary Epidemiology a position with an NGO in Afghanistan followed - Asia became home for the next 15 years. He was based in China during the SARS ‘1’ epidemic which was quickly followed by avian influenza H5N1. Working with both WHO and FAO provided insights from each. - The need to combine efforts and collaborate - not just avian influenza and SARS - but all diseases with similar risk to animals and humans. Multi-sectoral research with the International Livestock Research Institute and further deployments with WHO in West Africa during the 2014-15 Ebola crisis and Covid-19 in China has only reinforced his commitment to the One Health approach.

Currently he works with FAO in Rome as the global coordinator of a large animal health programme which is active in more than 25 countries across Africa and Asia.