Beginning in 2005, Qinghai Lake on the Tibetan Plateau was the scene of the unprecedented appearance of avian influenza among migratory birds. These were significant events in the subsequent global spread of the virus to poultry (and occasionally humans) in many new countries on three continents. Events at Qinghai sparked energetic debates about the role of migratory birds in spreading influenza viruses among domestic and wild birds. In turn, this led to cross-disciplinary research that highlighted the interconnections of environment, wildlife, and human activities. Factors in the Qinghai case study (Qinghai) include the vast permafrost landscape of the Tibetan Plateau, the ecology of wild geese that migrate over the Himalayas, a high-altitude railway (the “permafrost rooster”) that traverses the Tibetan Plateau, and an avian virus (H5N1). This chapter considers multiple factors: the ecology of migratory birds, agricultural practices that mix wild and domestic birds, climate warming, and factory poultry farming. As a place at the crossroads of interconnected global phenomena such as avian influenza and climate change, the Qinghai case study provides a lens to envision the unintended consequences of natural and human forces over the coming decades.