Reimagining malarial infection control in terms of planetary health boundaries

Non-human life, environmental and other conditions, like floods, famine, drought, pandemics, and violence, may impact on malaria transmission and infection that progresses to varying levels of severity, treatment and care dynamics. Yet these are inadequately addressed in interventions seeking to eradicate malaria in sub-Saharan Africa. Alexander Kagaha will critically review social science research on malaria, complemented with in-depth interviews with key people in the malaria control programme, to demonstrate how nonhuman elements and conditions are discounted in studies of human health, risk, infection and wellbeing. Kagaha will describe how malaria infection, treatment and healing are connected to the status of nonhuman life forms and conditions of living. This project will illustrate how nonhuman elements are often excluded by those focused on human aspects of infection, while humans are often subsidiary to questions of environment and vector. These are all relevant to disease control. The work will then focus on stakeholders engagement to develop ways to better integrate site-specific conditions and events into future malaria control interventions.

Humanitarian Emergencies
Social Science

Nov 2022 — Oct 2027

$431,766

Uganda