Environmental and socioeconomic factors of epidemics

Biological, environmental and socioeconomic factors cause the epidemics of today’s global world. Zoonotic emergence is a complex process that involves not only wildlife and natural ecosystems, but also many other anthropogenic aspects. In addition to the compatibility of viruses with human cell receptors, a key factor in the emergence of transmissible diseases is the human social environment. Environmental disturbances increase the likelihood of a species jump, and deforestation is one of main disturbances. But for a pandemic to occur, the species jump is not enough: the virus must amplify and spread.
The increase in the world population and the great mobility of humans are conducive to the amplification and spread of disease. We had an example of this in the COVID-19 pandemic. Cities are epidemiologically exposed places, and we therefore need to protect them and prepare them for future epidemics. The strategy for dealing with epidemics pursued by our society so far has been reactive. It is important to devote more effort to prevention and not wait until we have the problem. We must change our relationship with the natural environment and focus more on research, biodiversity conservation and education.