Systemic spillover risks demand 2026 UN PPPR meeting to address colonial health inequities, corporate biopiracy, and ecological degradation
Original framing: “[Comment] Elevating spillover prevention at the 2026 UN High-Level Meeting on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response” — The Lancet
By linking current pandemic risk to a legacy of colonial health policies and neoliberal austerity, the piece situates the crisis within a continuum of extractive exploitation. It draws clear parallels to past failures such as the 1918 flu and HIV/AIDS responses that ignored structural determinants.
The article weaves together Indigenous stewardship, historical colonial patterns, and scientific evidence to argue that pandemic prevention must be reframed as a justice issue.
By foregrounding marginalized voices and exposing the paradoxes of high‑level technical meetings, it calls for systemic reforms that include debt relief, equitable IP governance, and community‑driven surveillance. Future modelling underscores that without these structural shifts, ecological degradation and biopiracy will continue to fuel spillover, making the proposed solution pathways essential for resilient, inclusive health security.