Welcome Message from the Department Chair:
Welcome to Global Disease Biology at UC Davis. The Global Disease Biology major and minor is a collaboration between the Department of Plant Pathology in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the School of Veterinary Medicine, and the School of Medicine. This educational collaboration at the undergraduate level is unique in the world. Infectious, genetic, and environmental causes of disease cross disciplinary boundaries, yet traditionally disease research and education have occurred in many separate disciplines. However, there has been much recent interest in linking our understanding of plant, animal, and human diseases through education, research, and policy.
The Global Disease Biology major aims to bridge disciplinary gaps using an integrated approach to advance student understanding of the concept(s) of disease, the societal and personal impacts of past, present and future diseases, and the science behind disease discoveries, causes, evolution, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. Our goal is that students motivated by interests in health will integrate concepts from multiple disciplines to learn how to collectively solve global disease and health problems using innovative approaches.
David Rizzo, PhD
Plant Pathology Department Chair
New Student Checklist
Welcome to the GDB program, Incoming Student! We are so excited to have you. Please check out the incoming student checklist for information on orientation modules, your initial advising meeting, and some other important action items. Welcome to UC Davis!
GDB Student Testimonials
GDB allowed me to both explore my professional and academic interests during my time as an undergrad. I was also so thankful to find so many like minded individuals within my classes who were just as passionate as I regarding public health, healthcare, the one health model, and creating real change.
— Kyra Toomey (GDB Graduate, Class of 2022)
As a field of study and major, GDB gave the opportunity, flexibility and encouragement to explore so much in the classroom, but also outside through focusing on questions of planetary health, health inequity as existing within a matrix of historical violences, attention to ecological intimacies and the texturing of worlds between the human and non-human. As an Ethnic Studies Ph.D. student this is where I situate my current research, thinking about climate change and environmental justice in the Persian Gulf oil industry, and know that the major shaped this strong foundation for my thinking
— Radhika Marwaha (GDB Graduate, Class of 2021)
GDB provided me with such an incredibly well-rounded undergraduate education that has followed me throughout graduate school and has contributed to my own research interests, but also helped me understand other health and disease-related research unrelated to plant health. I also met some lifelong friends in my GDB courses and I really enjoy getting to watch what everyone is doing with their careers and how they all relate back in some way to what we learned in our GDB classes!
— Avalon Miller (GDB Graduate, Class of 2020)
GDB Students in Action!
