The rising incidence of environmentally related cancers underscores the urgent need for integrated approaches that simultaneously address human, animal, and environmental health. The One Health framework represents an effective strategy to identify and mitigate emerging risks through the synergistic analysis of human biological matrices (blood, urine, hair, saliva) and ecological data. Novel animal models and environmental bioindicators are proving essential for biomonitoring and risk prediction: raptors and other wildlife species can serve as sentinel models for assessing the bioaccumulation of persistent contaminants and anticipating indirect risks to humans; bees, honey, pollen, and wax enable the tracking of environmental contamination and the study of toxic substance transfer through the food chain; mosses function as sensitive indicators of atmospheric deposition of heavy metals and persistent organic compounds. Integrating data from these matrices with human biomonitoring allows for the construction of predictive models of health risk, supporting preventive interventions and sustainable land management strategies. Incorporating such indicators into continuous monitoring networks and multidisciplinary approaches facilitates the assessment of temporal contaminant dynamics and enhances the predictive capacity of One Health. The application of high-precision analytical methods ensures reliable and comparable data, essential for targeted interventions and public health protection. In this context, scientific dissemination is crucial to promote awareness, prevention, and health resilience in complex and contaminated ecosystems.

For several decades a large production facility near Antwerp, Belgium, has produced a host of different per- and polyfluorinated alkyl (PFAS) compounds. Until around 2000, perfluorooctylsulfonic acid (PFOS) was the main component. After termination of the PFOS production, the production was shifted towards shorter-chain PFAS with chain lengths of, e.g., four carbon atoms. Soil excavations, needed for the construction of a new highway, revealed high levels, up to 100 mg/kg dry weight (dw), of PFOS in soil in and around the plant. A first small pilot study on PFAS in the blood of the local population showed extremely high PFOS levels, up to 1100 mg/L serum, whereas the European advisory level set by the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) is 6.9 mg/L serum for the sum of PFOS, PFOA, PFHxS and PFNA. The Flemish government therefore decided to carry out an epidemiological study on PFAS. Over 80,000 inhabitants within a radius of 5 km from the production facility, including part of the centre of Antwerp, were invited to donate blood and complete extensive questionnaires on their lifestyle and background. Nine thousand people joined this study, which took place in 2023-2024. A separate study was carried out in mother and child pairs. The study resulted in a wealth of data, of which the main observations were the following. Within ca. 2 km from the production plant, people were heavily exposed to PFOS with levels up to 500 mg/L serum. Between 2 and 5 km, a drop in the concentrations occurred to background PFOS levels in the rest of Flanders of just above those (ca. 5-20 mg/L serum). Two health effects could significantly be coupled to the high PFOS levels: an impaired thyroid function and deviations (e.g., infections) of the liver. There were indications that so-called no-regret measures (no consumption of food from own gardens, eggs from own chickens, and groundwater) taken ca. four years ago after the discovery of the pollution might have helped to lower the PFOS levels to some extent.

The Mediterranean region stands at a critical crossroads, rich in natural and cultural resources yet increasingly challenged by environmental degradation, overexploitation, and climate instability. Embracing the circular economy offers a transformative opportunity to rethink how we use, manage, and regenerate these resources—moving from linear consumption models toward systems that prioritize reuse, resilience, and renewal. This plenary will explore how circular economy principles can be harnessed to support sustainable development across Mediterranean societies, with a focus on key sectors such as agriculture, tourism, and waste management. On this point, some preliminary results from the Horizon project BioFairNet will be presented, illustrating how artificial intelligence can support the development and implementation of green policies. Drawing on successful regional initiatives and emerging policy frameworks, we will reflect on how collaboration, innovation, and traditional knowledge can together shape a regenerative future for the Mediterranean. The plenary aims to inspire collective action and shared responsibility for a more equitable, sustainable, and climate-resilient region.