GCSE INNOVATION LABS · GLOBAL
Essential Health Variables Lab
Together with the Smithsonian Institute and other global partners we are establishing a shared, science-based framework for measuring how conservation and restoration affect human, animal, and ecosystem health and connecting those measurements to the decisions that policy, project design, and finance actually depend on.
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Avriel Diaz
CO-INVESTIGATOR
Laila Sandroni
Willy Dunbar
LAB LOCATION
Global
FOCUS AREAS
One Health
Health Pathways
Nature Finance
LAB OVERVIEW
From Forecast to Action
This lab advances a practical, scientifically credible framework for measuring the health outcomes associated with conservation and restoration, moving beyond scattered indicators toward a common set of Essential Health Variables (EHVs) that decision-makers can actually use.
The focus is on ensuring candidate variables are not just measurable, but decision-relevant: connecting ecosystem condition, exposure, and health outcomes to the choices facing project designers, policymakers, and investors. Building on GCSE's transdisciplinary, One Health approach, the lab convenes scientists and decision-makers across five focal landscapes to co-produce a framework that is scientifically defensible, operationally feasible, and ready for real-world use.
Key Lab Priorities
Co-map the causal health-impact pathways linking conservation and restoration to human and animal health
Define a minimal, robust set of Essential Health Variables that hold across diverse ecological and social contexts
Connect candidate variables directly to real decision endpoints including project design, policy, and finance
Ensure interoperability with existing Essential Variable frameworks (EBVs, ECVs, EESVs) and health-reporting systems
METHODOLOGY
How the Lab Works
The lab operates through a co-production cycle integrating causal pathway mapping, expert convening, and mixed-methods validation into a framework built to be used, not shelved.
01
Pathway Mapping
Map the causal health-impact pathway running from ecosystem condition, through regulating processes and exposure, to health outcomes and their economic consequences.
02
Co-Production with Experts & Decision-Makers
A facilitated, multi-day convening brings scientists, practitioners, and decision-makers together to co-map pathways, locate decision endpoints, and identify candidate variables.
03
Mixed-Methods Validation
Key-informant interviews, focus groups, and targeted surveys across the focal landscapes test and refine the draft pathways, variables, and decision endpoints.
04
Feasibility & Interoperability Assessment
Assess data availability, measurement cost, and interoperability with existing essential-variable and health-reporting systems, synthesized into a peer-reviewed publication.
ACTIVE LOCATIONS
Standing Across Five Focal Landscapes
Building on GCSE's active working relationships, the lab draws on established collaborations across the Americas and East Africa, accelerating pathway validation and data access across diverse disease systems.
COLLABORATING INSTITUTIONS
Lab Partners
Smithsonian Institute
Dr. James M. Hassell
Dr. Emily Watto
The University of Glasgow
Dr. Emilia Johnson
Dr. Katrina Lohan
Dr. Jeronimo Chiarella
The University of Florida
Dr. Sadie Jane Ryan
The Nature Conservancy
Dr. Tuyeni H. Mwampamba
FORTHCOMING RESEARCH
Building the Evidence Base
The lab's structured evidence review and synthesis will feed into candidate Essential Health Variables and a peer-reviewed publication critically assessing the EHV framework, with case studies drawn from the focal landscapes.
Structured Evidence Review - Candidate EHV Definitions - Peer-Reviewed Synthesis
Contact: innovationlabs@gcseglobal.org
GET INVOLVED
Interested in this lab or similar work?
Explore membership, partnership opportunities, or learn about GCSE's Senior Fellows Program to lead your own Innovation Lab