One Health Institute2025 Faculty One Health Pilot Projects Addressing an Ecosystem Health Challenge Through the One Health Approach
CSU’s One Health Institute funded three faculty One Health pilot projects in 2025. The One Health Institute funds faculty pilot awards annually.
This year’s faculty pilot projects focus on implementing the One Health approach to address an ecosystem health challenge.
The One Health Institute is funding three interdisciplinary teams to implement the One Health approach to better understand and develop solution-oriented approaches for ecosystem health challenges.
See the faculty One Health pilot projects funded in 2024 here.
Impacts of Land Management Practices Related to Wildfire Risk Reduction on Lyme Disease Risk in the Mountain West
Tick populations and the diseases they transmit are on the rise across the U.S., with new tick-borne diseases being discovered more frequently. In the Mountain West, increasing wildfires are altering ecosystems and could impact tick populations. This project aims to explore how land management strategies, such as prescribed burns and mechanical thinning, affect tick ecology and the spread of tick-borne diseases such as Lyme disease.
Wildfires are becoming more severe and can influence tick abundance and behavior by changing vegetation and wildlife habitats. By studying four sites in Utah and Oregon, where Lyme disease is a growing concern, the project will examine how wildfire fuel reduction efforts influence tick populations, their hosts, and the risk of disease to humans, pets, and wildlife. Through tick and pathogen surveillance, vegetation and climate assessments, and wildlife and human exposure analysis, the project will provide important insights into managing tick-borne disease risks in these areas.
Principal Investigator:
Elizabeth Hemming-Schroeder, Ph.D.
Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Colorado State University
Co-Investigators:
Lise Aubry, Ph.D.
Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology
Warner College of Natural Resources
Nicole Kelp, Ph.D.
Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Brooke Berger, Ph.D.
Biology
College of Natural Sciences
Addressing the Health of Lake Yojoa and Developing Interoperable Social-Environmental Data
Lake ecosystems are key to understanding the connections between human, animal, and environmental health. In developing economies, these relationships are often stronger, as people rely on natural resources for their livelihoods. This project focuses on the ecosystem of the large tropical Lake Yojoa in Honduras, investigating how the lake’s health, local fisheries, aquaculture practices, mining, and exposure to toxins like heavy metals and algal blooms impact both human and ecosystem health.
The team will develop an interactive web application to integrate data on these factors, aiming to improve environmental decision-making. The research team, which includes experts in ecology, social science, and data science, will work closely with stakeholders to better understand and reduce environmental risks in communities.
Principal Investigator:
Ed Hall, Ph.D.
Ecosystem Science and Sustainability
Warner College of Natural Resources
Colorado State University
Co-Investigators:
Andrea Baudoin-Farah, Ph.D.,
Ecosystem Science and Sustainability
Warner College of Natural Resources
Colorado State University
Caitlin Mothes, Ph.D.
Geospacial Centroid
Colorado State University
A One Health Approach to Studying Microbes in Soil from Biocrust Communities to understand their role in Ecosystem health
This project examines how biocrust communities influence the presence of microbes in different soil types and their potential effects on human, animal, and ecosystem health. Biocrusts—surface-dwelling communities of bacteria, fungi, algae, and lichens—help stabilize soil, retain moisture, and support plant growth. However, their role in harboring or suppressing disease-causing microbes remains largely unknown.
The study will be conducted on four different land types, where past uranium mining has left over 500 abandoned sites, contributing to heavy metal contamination in soil and water. Many residents, livestock, and wildlife live near these sites, where arsenic and uranium levels often exceed safety limits. Understanding how biocrusts interact with microbial communities in these environments may provide insight into potential health risks and inform land management efforts.
Researchers will collect biocrust samples from rangelands, farmlands, undisturbed areas, and locations near abandoned mines. Using laboratory analysis, they will identify microbial communities to determine the presence of potential pathogens. By combining scientific research with community collaboration, this study aims to contribute to our understanding of soil biocrust in ecosystem health.
