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In 1999, Janette Wallis and Rick Lee (1999) published a paper titled “Primate Conservation: The Prevention of DiseaseTransmission.” This paper would become very influential to many of us interested in the interface of primates, humans, and disease. Their paper was the first to discuss disease outbreaks at primate research sites globally and suggested that some of these may have been caused by human pathogens. They also suggested the introduction of protocols at primate field research sites to mitigate the introduction of human (anthropozoonotic) diseases into wild primate populations which would threaten the lives and conservation of these species. Wallis and Rick Lee (1999) also listed the stakeholders who should address the issue of potential anthropozoonotic disease introduction at primate field sites. These stakeholders included researchers, government officials, park personnel, local residents, tourists, human healthcare providers and veterinarians. In essence, their paper suggested that primate field sites adopt One Health strategies to mitigate disease transmission 5 years before the term “One Health” was coined. In 2003 the Great Ape Health Monitoring Unit (GAHMU) was created at a conference in Leipzig, Germany. In a similar vein it sought to study great ape diseases to better understand the impact of both natural and human introduced diseases on great ape communities (Leendertz et al., 2006). In 2004, the 12 Manhattan Principles were developed, and the modern field of One Health was born with the goal of examining the interrelatedness of human, wildlife, and ecosystem health (Cook et al., 2004). The ideas surrounding the concept of One Health are ancient and were even discussed by Hippocrates in his “On airs, waters and place” (Hippocrates, 2004). Our efforts to understand both natural and anthropozoonotic disease \risk, combined with the long history of primatologists being active in the conservation of wild primates (Oates, 2013), has situated the discipline of primatology as a potential global leader in the One Health movement. With this in mind, we approached the American Journal of Primatology Executive Editor Dr. Karen Bales with the idea of publishing a special issue of the journal dedicated to One Health related research in primates. One Health is a multifaceted discipline which incorporates not just the study of zoonoses and anthropozoonoses, but also includes conservation, behavioral ecology, human culture and conflicts at the human/wildlife interface. This issue weaves these themes into the unique fabric that is One Health. While the articles presented here may not all seem directly related to each other, each is consistent with the One Health approach, and collectively link ecology, zoonosis, evolution, and human interactions to investigate health and well‐being outcomes for humans and nonhuman primates alike. We hope that this issue opens debate and discussion of this approach and its broader implementation in primatology by primatologists, along with the realization that many of us have likely already adopted aspects of One Health as part of our own research projects. This special issue of the American Journal of Primatology highlights only a small fraction of the amazing One Health research and conservation efforts being undertaken by primatologists and other primate researchers. The first paper in this special issue by Bolt and colleagues (2021) introduces readers to the great Conservation and One Health projects undertaken by the Molina family and the Maderas Rainforest Conservancy in Central America. This paper is a great example of how sites can implement a broad One Health approach to conservation, community development, veterinary medicine, and education. Thousands of local and foreign students of all ages have been introduced to various species of wildlife ecology and conservation. It is a model for how any site can adopt a One Health model. The issue then looks at One Health associated research in the great apes. GAHMU and the associated conferences in Leipzig Germany and Entebbe Uganda inspired many of us interested in great ape health to examine health and disease under the over‐arching umbrella of One Health (Leendertz et al., 2006). Chappel and Thorpe (2021) discuss how behavior is often a forgotten aspect of One Health, and that giving rehabilitant great apes the behavioral and physical tools to learn what they refer to as “wild‐type” behaviors should be included in ape conservation plans as part of a One Health system. Zimmerman et al. (2022) review the current great ape disease surveillance systems in both Africa and Asia and suggest that these need to be standardized to be better sentinels of potential disease outbreaks in both humans and great apes. They propose the creation of a standardized real time syndromic monitoring system they call “Great Ape Health Watch.” The next two articles examine One Health related research in orangutans. Unwin and colleagues (2021) look at the work of the Orangutan Veterinary Advisory Group using semi‐ quantitative data to build capacity among people working with orangutans to improve both conservation medicine and clinical veterinary skills among its members. Reid and colleagues (2021) provide us with a new model looking at the evolution of orangutan malaria causing parasites. They argue that there are two different orangutan malaria parasites and that these parasites are quite old, with one arising as early as 1.8 million years ago and the other arising between 630 and 120