Editorial: Proceedings of the 2nd ISESSAH Conference 2018

International audience

Inglés. Knowledge and skills in economics and social sciences are becoming increasingly significant in the animal health sector and play an important role in making sure animal health investments are people-centric. These skills provide a basis for decision-making processes within the livestockand animal health sectors at scales ranging from individual owners to farms, and from the livestock and food industries to regions and countries. The trend toward greater reliance on economics and social science skills reflects the complexity and variabilityof situations in the field, which require a whole-system approach. General “one size fits all” rules are not sufficient anymore; rather,insights are needed into the economic impacts of animal diseases, the profitability of potentialinterventions, and an understanding of the behavior of the people involved, including farmers,veterinarians, government officials, and the public. The need to take into account different viewsand therefore values of resources and outcomes during decision making often requires multi-criteria analysis to inform the trade-offs society faces in resource use. The optimization of societalbenefits has to consider an individual’s behaviors and socialrelationships within the disciplines ofanimal health management and disease control. The International Society for Economics and Social Sciences of Animal Health (ISESSAH), established in 20172, held its second conference in Montpellier, France in May 2018. The Society promotes transdisciplinary research and joined with the Innovation in Animal Health International Forum and the Economic Reasoning for Improved Animal Health Network to ensure this was achieved at the Montpellier meeting. The proceedings of this 2nd ISESSAH conference focus on how economics and social science approaches can support decision making and governance in animal disease prevention, surveillance, and control. The aim of the conference was to highlight how the principles of economic assessment and social sciences can be applied by stakeholders and leading thinkers in the field to support animal health education, research, and policy making. The 11 papers in the proceedings reflect three themes: infectious diseases, biosecurity, and alternative methods.