Environmental pressures are one factor in the increased probability of pandemics

Joanne Liu (MDCM'91, IMHL'14, DSc'16) is no stranger to health emergencies. The physician and former International President of Médecins sans Frontières is leading McGill’s efforts to prepare for future health emergencies. As the director of the Pandemic and Health Emergency Readiness Lab, Liu is seeking to develop solutions to current crises and prepare for future ones. There is an acceleration of local epidemics becoming pandemics, and that is somewhat linked to pressure on our environment, Liu told Desautels Prof. Karl Moore in an interview for Forbes.com. According to one recent study published, the yearly probability of such extreme epidemics could increase up to threefold in the coming decades.