This landmark study presents the first comprehensive global assessment of zoonotic diseases (e.g., Ebola, Nipah, etc) listed as priorities by the World Health Organization (excluding COVID-19).

• Definition: Zoonotic diseases (also known as zoonoses) are caused by germs (e.g., viruses, bacterial, parasites, and fungi) that spread between animals and people.

Key Findings

• Globally, 9.3% of the land surface is at high (6.3%) or very high (3%) risk of disease outbreaks.
• Global Zoonotic Disease Hotspots: Latin America and Oceania (18.6%) are the most at-risk regions, followed by Asia (6.9%) and Africa (5.2%).
  • About 3% of the world’s population resides in high or very high-risk zones; 20% lives in medium-risk areas.

Anthropogenic Drivers Influencing the Risk of the Priority Diseases

• Climate Factors:
  • Disease risk spikes in warmer climates and rises with increased rainfall up to a threshold.
  • Water deficits promote animal congregation near limited resources, intensifying human-animal contact and transmission potential.
• Environmental and Land-Use Factors:
  • High livestock density raises spillover risk by increasing infectious pressure from concentrated animal populations near human settlements.
  • Frequent land-use changes and proximity to forests amplify human-wildlife interactions, contributing to outbreak risk.
• Population density has the strongest individual influence on outbreak risk, especially in rapidly urbanizing, unplanned areas with poor health infrastructure.