Globally, vector-borne diseases are an increasing public health burden; in the United States, tick-borne diseases have tripled in the last three years. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recognizes the need for resilience to the increasing vector-borne disease burden and has called for increased partnerships and sustained networks to identify and respond to the most pressing challenges that face vector-borne disease management, including increased surveillance. To increase applied research, develop communities of practice, and enhance workforce development, the CDC has created five regional Centers of Excellence in Vector-borne Disease. These Centers are a partnership of public health agencies, vector control groups, academic institutions, and industries. This special issue on tick and tick-borne disease surveillance is a collection of research articles on multiple aspects of surveillance from authors that are affiliated with or funded by the CDC Centers of Excellence. This body of work illustrates a community-based system of research by which participants share common problems and use integrated methodologies to produce outputs and effect outcomes that benefit human, animal and environmental health.
Keywords: Citizen science; National Ecological Observatory Network; One Health; species distribution modeling; state-space modeling; surveillance.