Antimicrobial Resistance in a Changing Climate: One Health Policy Framework (2025-2026)

Please note that this is a joint Duke-DKU team that will include faculty and students from both institutions. Applicants should be excited to work collaboratively across institutions and should expect to coordinate meetings across time zones.

Background

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a process by which microbes (e.g., bacteria, viruses) change over time and no longer respond to medicines. AMR is caused by the misuse and overuse of antimicrobial medicines (e.g., antibiotics, antivirals) in human healthcare and animal farming and is a leading cause of death globally. In 2021, nearly 5 million deaths were associated with AMR and over one million deaths were directly attributable to AMR. The number of deaths due to AMR are projected to increase drastically by 2050 due to climate change.

Increased global temperatures are associated with increased bacterial growth rates and horizontal gene transfer of AMR-encoding genes between bacteria. Extreme weather events increase demand for antimicrobials, and overcrowding could amplify AMR transmission. While the link between AMR and climate change is complex, their interconnectedness and the need for definitive research and advocacy is clear.

To address AMR in the context of a changing climate, a One Health approach that includes collaborative, multidisciplinary policy action and recognizes the interconnectedness of human, animal and environmental health is essential.

Project Description

This project team will use the One Health framework to identify strategies to advocate for feasible policy solutions to mitigate both AMR and climate change impacts in Asia where the AMR burden is particularly high. Team members will inform stakeholders such as medical doctors, veterinarians, environmental scientists, patients and non-profit organizations about strategies that can accelerate their policy advocacy efforts to get AMR and climate change on the agenda of politicians.

Team members will identify individuals and organizations that have been involved in policy advocacy in the areas of AMR, climate change, and the One Health framework and conduct case studies on these “policy entrepreneurs” through online data analysis and interviews. This will allow the team to identify different policy advocacy strategies to assess the perceived efficacy of policy advocacy and identify obstacles to advocating for One Health policy solutions in the context of AMR and climate change.

Anticipated Outputs

Peer-reviewed article; conference presentations; research posters or oral presentations by students in China, Sri Lanka and the U.S.; policy advocacy strategies to draw policymakers’ attention to One Health policy solutions for AMR and climate change remediation; online webinar for stakeholders involved in health and climate advocacy in Asia

Student Opportunities

Ideally, this project team will include 1 graduate student and 4 undergraduate students. Interested students may have backgrounds in medical science, global health, public policy, environmental studies, political science and biology. Prospective team members should have either a basic understanding of politics and policy or a basic understanding of AMR. Team members will be recruited from Duke University, Duke Kunshan University and the Duke-Ruhuna Collaborative Research Centre in Sri Lanka.

All team members will learn about AMR, climate change, One Health policy tools and policy entrepreneurship, and develop skills in online data collection and interviewing. Then, each team member will focus on a specific policy entrepreneur and be paired with a team member from a different discipline and institution. In addition to weekly group meetings, these pairs will meet weekly to discuss relevant research topics and the research process.

Students will be engaged in all aspects of the research project, including literature review, collection and analysis of policy advocacy data, interview execution, analysis of data, and manuscript and webinar preparation. Students will gain in-depth knowledge about AMR in relation to climate change and One Health policy advocacy. Additionally, they will develop skills in research design, data collection, data organization, data analysis, communication and presentation. Team members will also learn how to work across cultural and geographical boundaries.

In Fall 2025, the team will meet on Wednesdays from 8:30-9:30 a.m. EST.

There will be an optional summer research component for students who want to work one day per week for ten weeks (May-August) on literature review and IRB. Preference will be given to students who are able to join for the summer research component.

Timing

Summer 2025 – Spring 2026

Summer 2025 (optional): Meet to introduce team members; introduce team charter; set goals; conduct literature review; seek IRB approval for interview study

Fall 2025: Design and conduct content analysis; prepare and present research poster at the annual undergraduate poster session organized by the DKU Center for the Study of Contemporary China

Spring 2026: Conduct and analyze interviews; start to write article manuscript (students will be co-authors); prepare and present research poster at Duke University in Durham and/or in Sri Lanka

Crediting

Academic credit available for fall and spring semesters; summer funding available