Yorkseed House: Nature, Trade and Human Health: Preventing the Next Global Crisis
Climate disruption, habitat loss, and the global trade in wildlife are bringing human and animal health into increasingly close contact. Preventing the next global crisis will require more than emergency response. It will require earlier detection, smarter investment, stronger policy, and collaboration across sectors.
Hosted by Yorkseed during Climate Week NYC and the United Nations General Assembly, this three-hour gathering will bring together leaders across health, investment, international policy, conservation, science, and entrepreneurship for a timely panel conversation followed by curated networking.
Together, they will explore:
How wildlife trade, habitat disruption, and climate change can increase risks to human health
How data, diagnostics, surveillance, and early-warning systems can identify emerging threats
Where investment and entrepreneurship can strengthen prevention and global preparedness
How governments, businesses, investors, scientists, and international organizations can coordinate before a crisis begins
Host
Jessica Sophia Wong, Founder & CEO of Yorkseed
Jessica Sophia Wong is the founder and CEO of Yorkseed, a global venture ecosystem connecting founders, investors, operators, and innovation leaders through curated programs and venture platforms. She convenes cross-sector conversations at the intersection of technology, capital, policy, and global collaboration.
Featuring
Rebecca Regnery, MSB
Wildlife conservation and international policy leader with extensive experience in animal protection, wildlife trade, and endangered-species conservation. Her work spans CITES, international advocacy, and coalition building, bringing together organizations and policymakers to strengthen wildlife protections and address threats from international trade and trafficking.
Dr. Jon Epstein
Veterinarian, epidemiologist, and founder of One Health Science, advising governments, international institutions, and the private sector on emerging disease risks and pandemic prevention. For 25 years, he has worked at the intersection of wildlife, livestock, and human health, leading research on zoonotic viruses and designing One Health surveillance systems to identify and prevent outbreaks. His work has been published in Science, Nature, PNAS, and Cell.
Dr. Raina Plowright, PhD, MS, BVSc
Rudolf J. and Katharine L. Steffen Professor at Cornell University. A veterinarian, epidemiologist, and disease ecologist, she studies how environmental change drives pathogen spillover from animals to people and how it can be prevented. She co-chairs the Lancet Commission on Prevention of Viral Spillover and is a member of the US National Academy of Medicine.
Harrison Carter
Conservation scientist at the University of Oxford and Incentives Lead for the WildCRU research group. His work sits at the intersection of human-wildlife coexistence and nature finance, exploring the conditions under which conservation interventions work in practice and can scale effectively.
This conversation is designed for founders, investors, health leaders, policymakers, researchers, conservation professionals, foundations, and others working across global health, climate, technology, and capital.
Join Yorkseed for an interdisciplinary conversation about moving beyond crisis response and building the systems, partnerships, technologies, and investments needed for prevention.
Venue Partner:
Resident Company Club: A curated workspace for startups, founders, and VCs, designed to foster meaningful connections and collaboration. Coworking promised community, but delivered strangers sharing Wi-Fi. Resident is a company club, where every member is intentionally selected for cultural fit and collective ambition. We are opening our third location in Chelsea.
click here to learn more.
About Yorkseed
Yorkseed is a multi-dimensional global venture platform connecting founders, investors, operators, and ecosystem leaders across technology, capital, policy, and global markets.
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All attendees are encouraged to join Yorkseed Connect this week to access Connection Intelligence and better understand who you're meeting.
2 months complimentary Yorkseed Founding Membership https://app.yorkseed.co/eventofferWe look forward to seeing you there.
Our Hosts:
Yorkseed
Yorkseed is a global venture platform designed to help founders and investors build meaningful relationships at scale. Through curated experiences, trusted introductions, and the Yorkseed platform, members discover investment opportunities, connect with relevant people, and engage with high-signal venture ecosystems across the world's leading innovation hubs.
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