1) The document discusses Ebola transmission from bats to humans in the DRC due to slash and burn agriculture and logging destroying bat habitats. 2) It proposes policies and regulations to control logging and slash and burn agriculture through licensing and oversight. It also suggests alternatives like Inga alley cropping and education programs. 3) If an Ebola outbreak occurs, it recommends establishing school-based task forces for community testing, connections, and access to timely medical care.

1. Onehealth Hackathon: Ebola Team 1
Shrey
Goel
Aditi
Gupta
Sam
Bouchard
Namrata
Venkatesan

2. What is Ebola/the Problem?
1
Slash and Burn +
Industrial Logging
Subsistence slash and
burn agriculture used as a
livelihood and industrial
logging used for economic
purposes
Exposure to
Bushmeat
Slash and burn and
logging introduces
humans to bats due to the
destruction of bats’
habitats
Ebola Transmission
Increased human and bat
contact increases the
transmission of Ebola
virus
2 3

3. Logging and slash and burn agriculture in the
DRC must be controlled and regulated
through culturally sensitive policies and
education

4. Logging and Policy Proposal
● Increases the potential for zoonotic
disease transmission
● Bats often live in tree hollows, peeling
bark, and in fissures and foliage
○ Encounter humans and transmit
ebola to them
● Widely unregulated -- logging is not
occurring where it’s supposed to
Fill out a request-to-log
form
Companies
Funding for a regulation
team to check licenses
Regulation team
Meet the organization
that requested to log for
further credibility and
questions
Interviews
Special license to signify
an organization has been
cleared to log
Licensing
Review the forms for
credibility
Managers

5. Why we need an alternative to slash and
burn:
● Deforestation occurs
● Loss of habitats and species
● Limit contact between bats and
humans
Bring the alternatives to
the people
Implement
Introduce alternatives to
slash and burn
Proposal
Be culturally sensitive by
proposing other job
opportunities
Response
Slash and Burn Alternatives and Policy Proposal

6. Inga Alley Cropping
Inga trees are planted
following the terrains natural
contours.
The Inga is allowed to
completely dominate the land
to shade out weeds and cover
the ground in a thick layer of
mulch.
The Inga is cut and crops are
planted in the rows, fed by the
mulch. This also produces
firewood from the inga trees.

8. LIVELIHOOD EDUCATION
Teach alternatives to slash
and burn + logging that
are culturally sensitive
Education
W.A.S.H.
Ensure the importance and
role of hygiene kits is known
and ensure it is available and
easily accessible
PUBLIC AWARENESS
Media and meetings -
radio and posters

9. What if Ebola Hits?
● School based task force consisting of local community members
● Quick access to testing kits connected to the main medical facility
● Connect with the community to test for Ebola
1
School based task
force
Local community members to
build trust with others
Testing
Community response team
that can have access to
testing equipment and the
main medical facility
Community
connections
Can educate, can administer
rapid testing, prevent spread,
and provide access to timely
care for the local community
2 3

10. Impact
● Our Ideas:
○ Policy proposal that reduces illegal logging and slash and burn agriculture
○ Slash and burn alternatives and education (such as inga alley cropping)
○ Policy proposal for slash and burn
○ Culturally sensitive education on hygiene and awareness
● Benefits:
○ Reduced population movement leads to less slash and burn
○ Reducing deforestation leads to decreasing carbon emissions
○ Allows populations to keep a source of income while being culturally sensitive

11. Sources
- https://www.flickr.com/photos/mattmangum/3420536970/
- https://www.newscientist.com/article/2215913-logging-study-reveals-huge-hidden-emissions-of-the-forestry-in
dustry/
- http://www.ingafoundation.org/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4666536/
- https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2014/07/we-are-making-ebola-worse/
- https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-14727-9
- https://worldcrunch.com/food-travel/congo-farming-eco-friendly-fertilizer-v-slash-and-burn
- https://cdn.bats.org.uk/pdf/Bats-Trees.pdf
- https://globalforestatlas.yale.edu/forest-use-logging/logging/logging-conservation-practices#:~:text=Three%20
examples%20of%20improved%20sustainability,and%20associated%20timber%20harvest%20standards.
- https://socratic.org/questions/what-are-some-alternatives-to-slash-and-burn-agriculture#:~:text=Another%20o
ption%20is%20to%20combine,in%20the%20forest%20for%20agriculture.
- https://backpackgearinc.com/product/deluxe-kids-personal-hygiene-kit/
- valleyadvocate.com
- https://media.ifrc.org/1bc/solution-cards/create-a-campaign/

12. Thank You!