The Secretariat of GLC4HSR, ACCESS Health International, continued to advance cross-sector learning on resilience and adaptive health systems at the One Sustainable Health Summit organized by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru. ACCESS Health hosted a panel discussion on Adaptive Transformation of Health Systems to the Concept of One Health. We reflect on the valuable insights shared through this session, which brought together experts from across research, policy, and practice to explore how health systems can operationalize the One Health approach in India.

The panel featured a distinguished group of speakers from leading institutions. Dr. Anoop Velayudhan, Senior Scientist (Medical) at the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), presented the structure established at the central and state levels for implementing the One Health framework. He elaborated on the mechanisms through which the National One Health Mission, coordinated by ICMR, is being activated to strengthen multisectoral coordination and early response systems.

Dr. Rishi Bhagwati from the One Health Trust shared his experiences in policy advocacy, emphasizing that implementing One Health requires robust collaboration among multiple sectors, including public health, veterinary sciences, and environmental management. He also highlighted the crucial role of vaccination as a preventive measure to curb antimicrobial resistance (AMR), underscoring prevention as the foundation of a resilient health system.

Dr. Shivranjani Moharir, Senior Scientist at the Tata Institute for Genetics and Society (TIGS), discussed wastewater surveillance initiatives undertaken in collaboration with the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) and the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. She emphasized the importance of cross-sectoral collaboration in ensuring accurate interpretation of data and timely identification of emerging health threats.

From the community perspective, Dr. Tikesh Bisen from PATH shared findings from an ongoing project on community-based surveillance in a district in Odisha. His experience demonstrated how involving local communities as primary stakeholders strengthens disease surveillance and creates ownership of the One Health approach at the grassroots level. By integrating community participation, surveillance efforts become more context-sensitive and sustainable.

The session was moderated by Dr. Shrikant Kalaskar from ACCESS Health International, who also represents GLC4HSR. He shared ACCESS Health’s ongoing work in health literacy, community engagement among tribal and indigenous populations, and collective learning initiatives facilitated through GLC4HSR. Drawing on his experiences with indigenous communities, Dr. Kalaskar reflected on how these populations naturally embody the principles of One Health through their deep connection with the environment and animals.

The session underscored that operationalizing One Health is central to building resilient and sustainable health systems. It is not only a multidisciplinary framework but also a systems-level approach that strengthens prevention, surveillance, and response capacity. Through its Secretariat, ACCESS Health International, GLC4HSR remains committed to fostering such dialogues, facilitating collaboration across disciplines, and promoting shared learning to advance the vision of resilient health systems globally.