Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic context is related to the interaction of human beings with the environment, as we invade and destroy important ecological niches, creating unsustainable models of animal production and trade. Washing your hands is one of the most effective actions to prevent COVID-19. But how to follow this procedure where water is not guaranteed as often as necessary? Another important aspect of surveillance is chronic exposure to air contamination, favoring high mortality rates from COVID-19. The populations of the countryside, the forest and the waters are also one of the most vulnerable groups and, at the same time, have ways of life that are decisive for the socio-environmental sustainability of the planet. Crisis offices, popular committees, solidarity articulations, platforms, academic-popular observatories, popular health barriers, internet portals for participatory monitoring are some of the ways that, spontaneously, have emerged in the favelas and in the territories of traditional peoples to cope with facing COVID-19, given the absence of effective policies, mainly at the federal level. We have to create methods, strategies and initiatives that enable health and environmental surveillance to contribute to solving problems and needs in a horizontal, participatory, democratic and scientifically qualified way.
pandemic; COVID-19; health and environment; countryside, forest and water populations; participatory health surveillance and promotion