UC Davis names executive director of One Health Institute

Wildlife veterinarian Michael Ziccardi, DVM, MPVM, PhD, is now executive director of the One Health Institute (image courtesy of UC Davis)

Earlier this month, Michael Ziccardi, DVM, MPVM, PhD, became the new executive director of the One Health Institute (OHI) at the University of California, Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. He will serve in the position for a five-year term.

Dr. Ziccardi is a wildlife veterinarian as well as an epidemiology professor and scientist at UC Davis. He also travels around the world teaching about wildlife health and conservation.

Formed in 2009 to advance the health of animals, people, and the environment, the OHI has been on the forefront of the global response to COVID-19, providing legislative guidance in the United States, and laboratory support and workforce training in other regions of the world.

“This new leadership opportunity is truly an honor,” Dr. Ziccardi said in a press release announcing his appointment. “In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, society has experienced first-hand the key importance of pursuing large-scale issues with a One Health focus, as well as the amazing expertise and cutting-edge science that OHI staff and faculty continue to bring to the problem.”

Dr. Ziccardi received his DVM degree in 1993, his master’s in preventive veterinary medicine in 1994, and his PhD in epidemiology in 2001, all at UC Davis. He currently serves as the co-director of the Karen C. Drayer Wildlife Center—OHI’s flagship—and helps direct the Oiled Wildlife Care Network. He is a veteran of more than 50 oil spills worldwide, including establishing and leading the Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Unit during the Deepwater Horizon spill in 2010. He has received the Pacific State/British Columbia Oil Spill Task Force Legacy Award twice and the UC Davis Cal Aggie Alumni Foundation Outstanding Alumnus Award in 2016.