General Information:

World Health Organization Avian Influenza
This World Health Organization website has bird flu FAQs, maps of cases and updates on the current global situation.

United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Key Facts About Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) and Avian Influenza A (H5N1) Virus
This fact sheet provides general information about avian influenza (bird flu) and information about one type of bird flu, called avian influenza A (H5N1), that has caused infections in birds and in humans.

Foreign Policy Association Pandemics and Security
The Foreign Policy Association's (FAO) list of on-line resources related to pandemics and security.

SciDev Net: Bird Flu
A comprehensive site that includes background information, updates on the latest news and a number of articles and opinion pieces.

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Maps:

WHO
Maps both bird and human cases of the virus (focuses on Asia and expands to include Europe and Africa).

BBC News
An interactive map that showing the spread of bird and human cases from Asia to Europe and Africa over the last two years. Also includes bird migration zones.

FAO
A world map that show the mayor flyways of migratory birds, as well as districts with H5NI outbreaks.

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Articles:

BMO Nesbitt-Burns: Avian Flu Crisis Economic Update
Sherry Cooper argues that the long-term economic effects of a pandemic could lead to considerable supply and demand effects. Loss of labour and trade would dominate the supply-side effect and social distancing and fear would increase the demand for essentials such as non-perishable food, water, medical supplies

IMF Report: The Global Economic and Financial Impact of an Avian Flu Pandemic
This report by the IMF's Avian Flu Working Group posits that once the pandemic has run its course, economic activity should recover relatively quickly. Both consumption and average hours worked might even overshoot the pre-pandemic level temporarily.

Brookings Report: Pandemic Influenza and its Macroeconomic Consequences
The paper looks at the economic fallout from bird flu outbreaks of varying sizes, arguing that even a small outbreak could have major impact.

WHO Issues Plan to Limit Bird Flu Outbreak in Humans
This article discusses the latest plans released by the WHO for response procedures in the event of an outbreak of bird flu.

Pandemic Flu: Fighting an Enemy that is yet to Exist
This article reports on a scientific conundrum with profound implications for developing nations — how to make large supplies of a vaccine against a pandemic flu virus that does not exist yet.

Hard Truths about Bird Flu
A commentary expressing the many difficulties that the global community would face in the event of an epidemic, and some of the difficult decisions that should be made

Who Pays for Bird Flu?
This commentary discusses the role of factory farming in the spread and severity of the bird flu.

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To read another Global Envision article about global responses to pandemics, see A Primer for Pandemics.



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