ABSTRACT
The ecosystem approach to human health is an innovative concept that incorporates human health into the dynamic interrelations of ecosystem analyses. In this approach, humans are not solely the drivers and disrupters of the ecosystem or the passive victims of environmental destruction, but are in continuous interaction with changing environmental, social, and economic conditions. In this dynamic process, ecosystem changes, resulting from human interventions (mining, agriculture, urbanization, etc.), driven by the need for subsistence or the forces of economic development, affect current and future well-being, not only of the present, but also for coming generations. Human health and well-being are, in turn, determinants of social, economic, and cultural development. Appropriately applied to environmental and health impact studies, the ecosystem approach can be a useful tool toward attaining sustainable and equitable development.
