![KRASNOYARSK TERRITORY, RUSSIA - APRIL 17, 2021: An aerial view of the village of Nosok, Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky District. It is also the location of the Zarya Taimyra [Taymyr Dawn] state reindeer farming enterprise. Alexander Ryumin/TASS (Photo by Alexander Ryumin\TASS via Getty Images)](/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/16172321/PRI_223741874.jpg?w=840)
HERE is a sinister idea: as climate change thaws the world’s ice and permafrost, frozen viruses and bacteria may emerge and . We might one day have to face Neanderthal influenza or Homo erectus anthrax.
Most readers will, on balance, feel that we have had enough novel diseases lately. But the good news is that there is plenty we can do to reduce the chances of a major outbreak. Increased monitoring in remote permafrost zones, for example, will give public health agencies a chance to stamp out diseases before they gain a foothold.
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So far, so positive. But if there is one lesson to be learned from the covid-19 pandemic, it is that having medical and technological solutions isn’t enough. We also have to overcome social challenges.
“Indigenous community leaders must be involved in any public health projects from the outset”
Permafrost regions are often inhabited by Indigenous peoples who, owing to long histories of colonialism and genocide, are understandably mistrustful of the governments under which they live. That distrust often extends to scientific and medical institutions, which have been complicit in abuses. For these reasons, many Indigenous people are wary of covid-19 vaccines. The same problem may befall efforts to boost public health monitoring among the Indigenous communities living in permafrost zones.
These problems aren’t insoluble. In recent years, some researchers have tried to improve relationships with Indigenous groups. The result is an . One key principle is that Indigenous community leaders must be involved from the outset. For example, a project called tackled the growing rates of diabetes among Canada’s Indigenous peoples by working closely with communities to identify why they often didn’t receive healthcare. It succeeded in boosting Indigenous people’s access to diabetes therapy – which .
Regardless of where the next potential pandemic comes from, it is this sort of collaborative, listening approach to research and public health that we need more of if we are to stop it before it starts.
