IMGA One Health Working Group Meeting Held at Nanjing University
Figure 1. International Medical Geology Association (IMGA) One Health Working Group Academic Symposium
On July 3, 2026, the IMGA One Health Working Group Meeting was held at the School of the Environment, Nanjing University, China. Convened by Prof. Lei Huang, Chair of the IMGA One Health Working Group and Professor at Nanjing University, with the participation of Prof. Hassina Mouri, President of the International Union of Geological Sciences, the meeting brought together scholars from medical geology, environmental health, public health, epidemiology, toxicology, atmospheric science, earth sciences, and related disciplines.
The meeting built on the establishment of the IMGA One Health Working Group and aimed to strengthen dialogue across regions, disciplines, and generations of scholars under the One Health framework. In his opening introduction, Prof. Huang emphasized that human health cannot be understood in isolation, but is closely connected with ecosystems, air, water, soil, food systems, and broader geological and environmental processes. She noted that this perspective is also central to medical geology, which seeks to understand how geological materials and environmental processes influence health, and how scientific evidence can be translated into prevention, intervention, and sustainable development. Prof. Huang highlighted the Working Group’s mission to integrate knowledge from geology, medicine, environmental science, public health, and other fields; to build a shared environmental-health knowledge network; to develop practical frameworks for health intervention. Prof. Huang further stressed the importance of addressing emerging environmental health challenges in China, Africa, and other regions facing complex and rapidly changing environmental risks.
The keynote lecture was delivered by Prof. Hassina Mouri. Her lecture, “Medical Geology: Understanding the Links Between Geology, Environment, and Human Health,” provided a broad international perspective on the role of geological sciences in global health, environmental justice, and One Health action. Through examples involving toxic and essential elements, mineral dusts, arsenic exposure, volcanic processes, climate change, and geo-environmental issues in Africa, she illustrated the complex pathways linking geological processes with human, animal, and ecosystem health.
Figure 2. Prof. Hassina Mouri, President of IUGS, Vice Chair of the ISC Geo-Unions Steering Committee, UNESCO Chair in Medical Geology in Africa, and Professor at the University of Johannesburg.
The meeting also featured invited presentations by Prof. Bin He from Ningbo University on One Health and eco-environment practice under global change; Dr. Hong Sun from Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention on ambient ozone and incident osteoporosis in China and the UK; Dr. Yong Han from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University on biomass-burning aerosols; and Dr. Chen Li from Peking University on selenium intervention, cadmium exposure, and accelerated aging.
The meeting concluded with an open discussion on future Working Group activities, joint research themes, training opportunities, and mechanisms for sustained international collaboration. Participants agreed that One Health research requires not only senior academic leadership, but also the energy and creativity of young scholars. The event reinforced the IMGA One Health Working Group’s commitment to advancing integrated research, evidence-based prevention, and practical solutions for global environment-health challenges.