Water Energy Food Research Articles

The water energy food nexus: A multi-objective optimization tool

Many methods and tools are used to model and optimize various aspects of the water energy food nexus (WEFN). This work presents a novel software tool for the multi-objective optimization of the WEFN (MOO-WEFN). The model underlying the tool captures all three nexus sectors and the interlinkages between them. In addition, the model imposes constraints that mimic forces affecting the nexus, such as economics, environment, health, and nutrition. The software tool couples Excel with Python, which facilitates the tool's accessibility and ease of use due to its widespread usage and availability. A case study application demonstrates the tool's execution and provides examples of how changes can be made to the data to simulate different nexus developments. Five scenarios are applied to reflect such changes with results demonstrating the overall impact on resource production and consumption. Removing one of the less water-intensive food items results in a 20 % increase in water consumption. Limiting the availability of surface water results in a reallocation of water resources such that 80 % of water needs are satisfied from surface water and groundwater and 20 % from wastewater, compared to the baseline of 100 % surface water. Moreover, upon introduction of the conventional activated sludge treatment technology for wastewater (compared to the incumbent membrane bioreactor technology), energy consumption decreased by 10 %. These results show changes beyond the immediate sector of change and reflect the necessity for integrated modeling that captures the impact of one change on the nexus as a whole, in terms of resource consumption and allocation. Thus, the tool supports the capability of testing how new resources, technologies, and limitations will impact nexus interactions. Furthermore, the tool facilitates carrying out sensitivity and Pareto analyses for data generation and result evaluation.

Sustainable development on the basis of the WEF nexus in arid coastal areas for climate change mitigation: Case study of Rabia community in Matrouh, Egypt

The water-energy-food (WEF) nexus is an interdisciplinary approach to address the transdisciplinary issues of developing a specific area with limited resources. We studied the potential of implementing the WEF model in the Rabia region located at Matrouh Governorate in Egypt on the Mediterranean Sea, to introduce sustainable management solutions for the limited resources in this area. The Rabia community lacks any source of water services and is not connected to the electric grid. It depends on existing wells that harvest rainwater for potable and non-potable purposes. The introduced WEF nexus scheme is based on the available resources in Rabia region to produce the required water for drinking, cultivation, and other purposes in addition to maximizing the productivity of water. It also provided renewable energy resources and food security in the area. The proposal also empowers women and provides job opportunities for the community, in addition to reducing carbon emissions to contribute to the efforts fighting climate change. This work will benefit policymakers, investors, and the local community to take tangible actions toward sustainable development in the region and other similar communities in arid coastal regions. The proposed scheme will save about 52 % of the required electricity and 54 % of the carbon emissions, through the use of renewable energy sources. It produces 2,096 t/yr of crops. It supports the achievement of many sustainable development goals and will promote the achievement of Egypt's National Vision 2030.

Analyzing spatio-temporal changes and trade-offs/synergies of gross ecosystem product based on water-energy-food nexus.

The value of the ecosystem's ultimate goods and services for human welfare and long-term economic and social development is known as the gross ecosystem product (GEP). For the study of GEP accounting, the suggested water-energy-food (WEF) nexus offers a fresh viewpoint. This work aims to build a GEP accounting index system based on WEF, investigate its spatio-temporal evolution characteristics, and assess trade-offs and synergies between and within the water, energy, and food subsystems. Using the Three Gorges Reservoir area (TGRA) as an illustration, the findings revealed that, firstly, the comprehensive benefit of GEP based on WEF showed an upward trend in TGRA. Still, it was worth noting that the total production of the food ecosystem decreased. Secondly, the GEP based on WEF in five periods showed a spatial pattern of "high east and west, low middle." Thirdly, the Pearson correlation coefficient indicated that the GEP trade-off relationships based on WEF were dominant in TGRA, with the strongest trade-offs between AQV, SCV, APV, and LEV. In addition, in bivariate local spatial autocorrelation, the value of the six ecosystem service function relationships was dominated by the trade-off relationship, and the distribution of trade-offs and synergies showed significant heterogeneity at the county scale in the TGRA. Finally, hot spot analysis showed that the hot spots of the gross water and energy ecosystem products were scattered in the tail area of the study area. In contrast, the hot spots of the gross food ecosystem product were concentrated in the belly region. The findings of this study provided a basis for the scientific formulation of territorial spatial pattern optimization for water, energy, and agricultural resources in the TGRA and can more accurately reflect the status of the ecological environment and changes of WEF over time. Moreover, this paper also gives full play to the growth advantages of shipping and aquatic products, implements effective soil erosion prevention and control measures, and establishes water-saving mechanisms and other measures in terms of water resources. Subregional plans for industrial structure and strengthening of waste gas and wastewater treatment facilities regarding energy resources are developed. Implement the cultivated land protection system and promote the superiority of crop varieties and other measures in terms of food resources.

Effects of new-type urbanization on resource pressure: Evidence from a water-energy-food system perspective in China

To address the resource and environmental challenges posed by rapid urbanization, China has devised and executed the strategy of new-type urbanization (NU). This study aims to discuss the effects of NU on resource pressure in view of the water-energy-food (WEF) system. Taking 30 provinces in China from 2006 to 2020 as samples, this paper firstly establishes a comprehensive evaluation indicator system of NU from the population, economic, spatial, social and eco-environmental dimensions, and assesses the level of NU using the entropy weight method. Secondly, this paper uses the gray water footprint as a measurement indicator, innovatively integrating water quality into the WEF system for assessing WEF system pressure (WEFSP). Finally, the impact of NU on WEFSP is explored based on the panel fixed effects model. The findings revealed: (1) There is an inverted “U-shaped” relationship between NU and WEFSP, and China's current level of NU has exceeded the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) threshold. (2) The impact of NU on WEFSP exhibits significant regional heterogeneity, with a significant impact in the eastern region. (3) NU consistently exacerbates regional water stress when water quality is considered, indicating that sustainable urban water management practices are essential. (4) The subdimensions of NU indicate that population and social urbanization are important factors that exacerbate the WEFSP, while economic and spatial urbanization reduce the WEFSP. The research results help to clarify the impact of NU on the WEFSP and provide a reference for the timely adjustment and optimization of NU policies to achieve effective resource management and regional sustainable development.

Faculty development program about the food–energy–water nexus: supporting faculty’s adoption of a curricular module and program evaluation

Purpose A faculty development program (FDP) introduced postsecondary instructors to a module focused on the food–energy–water (FEW) nexus, a socio-hydrologic issue (SHI) and a sustainability challenge. This study aims to examine factors influencing faculty interest in adopting the instructional resources and faculty experience with the FDP, including the gains made during the FDP on their knowledge about SHIs and their self-efficacy to teach about SHIs, and highlighted characteristics of the FDP. Design/methodology/approach Data from n = 54 participants via pre- and post-surveys and n = 15 interviews were analyzed using mixed methods. Findings Findings indicate that over three quarters of participants would use the curricular resources to make connections between complex SHIs, enhance place-based learning, data analysis and interpretation and engage in evidence-based decision-making. In addition, participants’ experience with the workshop was positive; their knowledge about SHIs remained relatively constant and their self-efficacy to teach about SHIs improved by the end of the workshop. The results provide evidence of the importance of institutional support to improve instruction about the FEW nexus. Originality/value The module, purposefully designed, aids undergraduates in engaging with Hydroviz, a data visualization tool, to understand both human and natural dimensions of the FEW nexus. It facilitates incorporating this understanding into systematic decision-making around an authentic SHI.

Research on optimal allocation of soil and water resources based on water–energy–food–carbon nexus

Current population growth and rapid urbanization in China have intensified the demand for water, energy, and food. This is threatening the intertwined global water, energy, and food security. Therefore, it is necessary to formulate interconnected and interdependent water, energy, food, and carbon policies. In this study, based on the theory of water–energy–food–carbon nexus, a soil and water resource optimization allocation model was developed by establishing an optimization modeling framework to achieve coordination between various sectors of water allocation. The model is an effective decision-making tool that fully considers the close relationship within the nexus system, and multiple uncertainty conditions. It was applied on the Fen River Basin in Shanxi Province as the study area, and a series of optimized allocation schemes were obtained. The results indicated that the current water allocation to each sector is meeting its minimum water demand. The planting structure optimization of two crops, wheat and corn, reduces the regional agricultural water consumption. For example, in dry years, the area of wheat cultivation (which needs more irrigation and has lower net economic benefits) is reduced and that of corn (which needs less irrigation and consumes less water) is increased in each subdistrict. The wheat plantation area in the midstream and downstream is decreased by 2.08% and 26.25%, respectively. The water use structure of crops indicated that precipitation and groundwater resources significantly contribute to the production of both crops throughout the entire growth process. This model can be applied in other regions; the model's economic and ecological benefits are combined so that decision makers can consider the stability of the water–energy–food–carbon system and provide optimal resource allocation under various scenarios, contributing to achieving the goal of sustainable development.

Implementation of water energy food-health nexus in a climate constrained world: a review for South Africa

In recent years, the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) nexus has gained significant attention in global research. Spatial inequality in water-energy-food security (WEF) and its impact on public health and how this is affected by climate change remains a grand adaptation challenge. South Africa is extremely vulnerable and exposed to the impacts of climate change due to its socio-economic and environmental context. While alternative nexus types have garnered interest, this paper pioneers an extension of the conventional WEF framework to encompass health, giving rise to the Water-Energy-Food-Health (WEF-H) nexus. Despite a plethora of WEF nexus studies focused on South Africa, a substantial knowledge gap persists due to the lack of a comprehensive overview of the enablers and barriers to realizing the WEF-H nexus. South Africa boasts diverse policies related to water, energy, food, and health; however, their alignment remains an ongoing challenge. This study seeks to bridge this critical gap by conducting an exhaustive review of existing literature. Its primary aim is to delve into the intricate mechanisms that either facilitate or impede the actualization of the WEF-H nexus in South Africa. By synthesizing insights from a wide array of literature sources, this research strives to illuminate the challenges and opportunities stemming from the integration of health considerations into the established WEF nexus framework. This exploration holds immense significance, not only for unraveling the multifaceted interactions between these pivotal sectors but also for guiding policy development and decision-making processes in South Africa towards a more holistic and sustainable approach to resource management.

Analysis of Pros and Cons in Using the Water–Energy–Food Nexus Approach to Assess Resource Security: A Review

The water–energy–food (WEF) nexus is drawing much attention in scholarly literature as a novel alternative to address complex resources and achieve resource security. The aim of this study is to analyze and review existing nexus studies to investigate the current status of nexus research worldwide. This study used a narrative review approach to provide a comprehensive overview on the WEF nexus using a variety of databases. It is indicated that the majority of studies in Asia and Africa focused on the water–energy–food (WEF) nexus. China and Brazil had the largest nexus research. Based on the existing literature, most of attention has been paid to food production. However, food consumption patterns and dietary change are rarely evaluated, and there is a lack of study on impacts of dietary change on the WEF nexus. Moreover, there is a lack of frameworks for the evaluation of the WEF nexus under dietary change scenarios. The major challenge of the nexus approach is data availability in crop production, which can be solved by using remote sensing data. There is a lack of standard and conceptual frameworks for nexus assessment and, then, an essential need to provide a new holistic and standard approach that be applicable worldwide to increase connections between researchers and decision makers, as well as the applicability of nexus approaches. Future research must couple the development of a holistic standard approach with experimental tests in different areas, involving interdisciplinary research groups able to carry out all the experimental activities, the numerical simulations, and the statistical analyses of climatic time series (in a climate change perspective) indispensable to demonstrate the real benefits of using a WEF-derived nexus approach.

Water Energy Food Nexus in Urbanizing Wetlands: Challenges and Solutions Explored through Choremes and Focus Maps

Addressing complex interactions within water, energy, and food (WEF) resources, innovative tools for in-depth analysis and decision-making are imperative. This study introduces chorematic focus maps (CFMs) as a groundbreaking method to visualize and tackle the WEF nexus’s complexities, focusing specifically on the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve (DDBR). By merging geospatial analysis with on-site validation, this research reveals intricate interdependencies within the nexus and positions CFMs as an effective tool for stakeholders. This study adopts a methodological approach that focuses on identifying human activities and evaluating their impacts on the WEF nexus, with the goal of developing practical and grounded strategies for managing these essential resources. By testing this approach within the DDBR, the potential for wider application is demonstrated, offering a promising framework for addressing similar socio-environmental challenges across various regions. Future research directions include refining CFMs’ precision and practicality through extended fieldwork and stakeholder engagement, testing the framework’s adaptability across various locations and nexus dynamics. Additionally, incorporating cutting-edge technologies such as machine learning could provide deeper insights and reinforce CFMs’ role in decision support for the WEF nexus. Conclusively, this investigation into the WEF nexus through CFMs emphasizes the critical need for strategies that navigate the complexities of environmental management and resource optimization, marking CFMs as a significant tool for both decision-makers and researchers.

Assessment of the impacts of water resources allocation on the reliability, resilience and vulnerability of the water–energy–food–society (WEFS) nexus system

To ensure water, energy and food supply security in the future, examining resources shortage risks within the integrated management strategy of the water-energy-food-society (WEFS) nexus system under uncertainties is necessary. Reliability, resilience, and vulnerability (RRV) are the most popular criteria for quantifying risks. However, their current applications focus on individual systems and adopt constant resource shortage rate thresholds across different spatial scales. To consider the interconnections in the WEFS nexus system and reflect the spatial heterogeneities of resource shortage risks when estimating the RRV, this study proposed a framework for estimating the RRV of the WEFS nexus system under uncertainties through a WEFS nexus model integrating water resources allocation model. Water availability uncertainty was simulated using Monte Carlo simulation and inputted into the stochastic WEFS nexus model. The water, energy, and food shortage rates outputted from the WEFS nexus model were used to determine the RRV of the WEFS nexus system. The impacts of water resources allocation on the RRV of the WEFS nexus system were studied by investigating its response to different water resources allocation scenarios at the basin and operational zone scales. The results indicated that water resources allocation can effectively ensure water supply through reservoir operation and further decrease the shortage risk of water and food systems through its nexus. The vulnerability of the water system decreased from 15.87% to 6.71% and the RRV of the food system improved from 27.33%, 8.20%, and 13.15–69.84%, 26.17%, and 7.03%, respectively. The energy shortage risk increased with increasing energy demand, with a trade-off between water and energy systems, the RRV of which decreased from extremely low levels to 69.84%, 26.17%, and 7.03%. The water shortage risk exhibited spatial heterogeneities owing to the uneven distribution of the water regulating capacity. The water shortage risk significantly decreased in areas with sufficient water regulating capacity but remained high in areas with few water regulating capacity and further propagated from upstream to downstream through hydrologic connections. Even an insignificant water shortage can be found across the basin, risking water system and further the WEFS nexus system through its nexus. Our proposed framework for assessing the impacts of water resources allocation on the RRV of the WEFS nexus system can not only help understand the risk of the WEFS nexus system under uncertainties, but also contribute to the integrated planning and management of water, energy, and food.

Water–Energy–Nutrients Nexus of Urban Environments

The objective of this article is to deepen knowledge about the existing connections, at the level of urban environments, between energy, water, and nutrients (or food). Energy and basic resources—water and food—are closely interconnected, which is why the water–energy–food nexus constitutes the essential integrated approach to ensuring the sustainable development of humanity. This nexus is also valid in urban environments and can be adapted for buildings, interconnecting, in this case, water, energy, and nutrients. This article is a literature review in this area, intending to highlight the strong connections between water, energy, and nutrients at the level of buildings, integrating the results obtained in different studies and showing the global importance of this nexus. The water–energy relationship in buildings is already well known in terms of the production of domestic hot water or building pumping, for example, but it turns out that it goes far beyond this interrelationship, also having implications for public networks. Regarding the water–nutrients nexus in urban environments, it can play an important role in terms of food security for humanity, especially regarding the possibility of recovering phosphorus in buildings.

Toward revolutionizing water-energy-food nexus composite index model: from availability, accessibility, and governance

The water-energy-food (WEF) nexus has emerged as a critical research interest to support integrated resource planning, management, and security. For this reason, many tools have been developed recently to evaluate the WEF nexus security and monitor progress toward the WEF-related sustainable development goals. Among these, calculating the WEF composite index model is critical since it can provide a quantitative approach to demonstrate the WEF nexus security status. However, the current WEF nexus index model framework needs to include the incorporation of governance indicators, neglecting the importance of governance in the WEF nexus framework. Thus, this article develops a new WEF nexus composite index model that incorporates governance indicators in each subpillar. The principal component analysis (PCA) is adopted to reduce the variables’ collinearity and the model’s dimensionality. A quasi-Monte Carlo-based uncertainty and global sensitivity analysis are applied to the index model to assess its effectiveness. Finally, the new WEF index model is applied to the 16 South African Development Community (SADC) countries as a case study. A critical synergy effect within the WEF nexus framework is identified that nations with better WEF governance ability tend to perform better in improving the WEF accessibility capability, suggesting the importance of governance in the WEF nexus security framework.

A comprehensive assessment indicator of the water-energy-food nexus system based on the material consumption relationship

The input–output relationships among material, energy, and information within the water, energy, and food subsystems are intricately interwoven, constituting an integrated system vital for sustainable development. Various water-energy-food (WEF) nexus indicators have been applied to evaluate the system's internal relationships and state. Nevertheless, these methods fail to aggregate the internal relationships into an indicator. This study proposes a WEF nexus indicator that incorporates the interconsumption into the system using the material flow analysis. The interconsumption consists of energy consumption in the food and water subsystems, water consumption in the energy and food subsystems, and food consumption in the energy subsystem. Moreover, the major factors were identified by the sensitivity factor method. The three countries (Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan) in the Amu Darya River (ADR) basin exhibit strong interactions in the WEF nexus system, are chosen as a case study. Our results show that in 1992–2018, Uzbekistan's food subsystem consumed the most energy among the three countries; the energy consumption within the water subsystem displays an upward trend across all three countries; the water consumption in the energy subsystem of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan is 2–4 times greater than that in Turkmenistan; and the water withdrawals for agriculture within the three countries have remained relatively stable. The composite index in three countries exhibits an upward trend, with the most pronounced increase occurring in Turkmenistan. Uzbekistan has the strongest WEF nexus relationship, with a WEF nexus index that was 2–3 times greater than that of Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. The most important subsystem of Tajikistan and Turkmenistan is the energy subsystem; however, water resources are the major factors in Uzbekistan. The introduced indicator enables a comparison of the WEF system between regions and temporal variations in a certain region. It can provide intuitive and effective data support for WEF nexus system management.

The role of technology in the water–energy–food nexus. A case study: Kerinthos, North Euboea, Greece

The water–energy–food (WEF) nexus is a basic element of prosperity, yet it is not equally distributed on the land. Human progress has optimized the function of the WEF nexus to bridge the inequality gap. In order to understand this progress, this study compares the preindustrial and modern agricultural practices in an area in Greece. Interviews were conducted with an elderly man who lived in the 1950s, and the process was quantified in units of WEF. The same procedure was also carried out with modern farmers for modern agricultural practices. In comparing the past and present agricultural processes, it is observed that today, a farmer can feed approximately 100 times more people. This feat has been achieved as modern practices push the land with energy sources in multiple ways (fuels and fertilizers). However, energy indices such as energy ratio, net energy gain, specific energy, and energy productivity do not seem to be improved. Furthermore, farmers prefer to pump underground water for irrigation, instead of utilizing the nearby river, as was done in the past when the river provided both energy to the watermill and an abundance of water for irrigation. In addition, as the price of wheat is dependent on the stock market, even in 2023, there are risks to food security, the cultivation of wheat was not economically efficient for farmers in this area in 2023.

Urbanization effects on the food-water-energy nexus within ecosystem services: A case study of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei urban agglomeration in China

This research centers on the necessity for synchronized management of natural resources in urban agglomerations. This study utilizes the ecosystem services theory to analyze the interplay between land use and the Food-Water-Energy (F-W-E) nexus in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (B-T-H) region from 2000 to 2030. Assessment of ecosystem services is conducted using InVEST models, which include Habitat Quality (HQ), Water Yield (WY), Carbon Sequestration (CS), Soil Retention (SDR), and Food Production (FP). The findings indicate an annual increase in construction land with a concurrent notable decrease in cultivated land. Furthermore, HQ, CS, and per capita FP show an annual decline until 2020, which is expected to continue until 2030. Conversely, WY and SDR have been growing annually, albeit projected to decline by 2030. Spearman coefficient analysis uncovers synergies between HQ and CS, SDR and CS, and SDR and HQ, alongside trade-offs between CS and WY and HQ and WY. Trade-offs are also observed between FP and SDR, CS, and HQ. Applying K-means clustering analysis facilitates county-based spatial planning for the F-W-E system, providing crucial insights and suggestions for sustainable resource management.

Global hydrological reanalyses: The value of river discharge information for world‐wide downstream applications – The example of the Global Flood Awareness System GloFAS

AbstractGlobal hydrological reanalyses are modelled datasets providing information on river discharge evolution everywhere in the world. With multi‐decadal daily timeseries, they provide long‐term context to identify extreme hydrological events such as floods and droughts. By covering the majority of the world's land masses, they can fill the many gaps in river discharge in‐situ observational data, especially in the global South. These gaps impede knowledge of both hydrological status and future evolution and hamper the development of reliable early warning systems for hydrological‐related disaster reduction. River discharge is a natural integrator of the water cycle over land. Global hydrological reanalysis datasets offer an understanding of its spatio‐temporal variability and are therefore critical for addressing the water–energy–food–environment nexus. This paper describes how global hydrological reanalyses can fill the lack of ground measurements by using earth system or hydrological models to provide river discharge time series. Following an inventory of alternative sources of river discharge datasets, reviewing their advantages and limitations, the paper introduces the Copernicus Emergency Management Service (CEMS) Global Flood Awareness System (GloFAS) modelling chain and its reanalysis dataset as an example of a global hydrological reanalysis dataset. It then reviews examples of downstream applications for global hydrological reanalyses, including monitoring of land water resources and ocean dynamics, understanding large‐scale hydrological extreme fluctuations, early warning systems, earth system model diagnostics and the calibration and training of models, with examples from three Copernicus Services (Emergency Management, Marine and Climate Change).

Assessment of Water Quality as a Key Component in the Water–Energy–Food Nexus

The intensive economic activity along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast is causing serious changes in the quality of the river water. In view of the topicality of the problem, the main goal of this article is to emphasize the water quality as a necessary key component in the water–energy–food nexus by determining the status of the surface waters of selected Bulgarian Black Sea tributaries from the point of view of their physicochemical characteristics. The research is based on the Water Framework Directive (WFD)—2000/60/EU and the relevant national legislation. In the present study, the Canadian Complex Water Quality Index (CCME, WQI) was applied to determine the quality of river waters. The novelty in the present study is a definite and necessary emphasis on the opinion that the analysis and assessment of water quality should become an integral part of all studies of the water–energy–food nexus.

Sustainable and Circular Hotels and the Water–Food–Energy Nexus: Integration of Agrivoltaics, Hydropower, Solar Cells, Water Reservoirs, and Green Roofs

The hotel industry in Iran faces critical challenges that underscore the urgent need for sustainable practices, specifically in the realms of energy, water, and food. Despite industry growth, a mere three percent of hotels fall into the five- and four-star categories, emphasizing the need for widespread adoption of sustainable practices. Focused on Ramsar in Mazandaran, the study underscores the importance of eco-friendly strategies to tackle challenges related to the food–water–energy nexus. Employing the SCOC, Fuzzy BWM, and Z-MARCOS methods, the research proposes a robust framework for evaluating hotel development strategies. The case study reveals a concentration of hotels in Khorasan Razavi, Mazandaran, and Tehran, urging prioritization of sustainable practices in these regions. Analyzing Ramsar’s climate, the study suggests leveraging solar energy and implementing green roofs, emphasizing an integrated approach to achieve eco-friendly hotel construction. Furthermore, the research provides a prioritized set of strategies based on SCOC, aligning with criteria regarding the water–energy–food nexus. It emphasizes internal strengths, opportunities, and strategic technology partnerships while acknowledging external challenges such as political stability and climate change risks. The discussion introduces an Importance–Performance Analysis (IPA) to guide managerial decisions, presenting an insightful perspective for effective strategy implementation in Iran’s evolving hotel industry.

Co-designing grounded visualisations of the Food-Water-Energy nexus to enable urban sustainability transformations

In the past few years, the Food-Water-Energy (FWE) Nexus has emerged as a key concept to address the complex relationships and interdependencies between food, water, and energy systems. Cities are an important context for understanding the FWE nexus given their significant footprints and complex socio-ecological systems, but researchers have only recently started to explore an explicit urban perspective on food, water, and energy interrelationships. This paper tackles a particularly significant knowledge gap in this context by introducing an approach to co-design visualisations of the FWE nexus that are understandable and actionable for the various stakeholders involved in urban governance such as citizens, communities, governments, non-governmental and private-sector organisations. Drawing on user-centred design and inspired by the dialogic pedagogy of Paulo Freire, we present and evaluate the co-design process of a FWE nexus visualisation tool for stakeholders engaged with pre-school education in Słupsk, Poland. Our results provide evidence that this co-design process has been effective to developing a new critical consciousness in the participants about how their everyday choices are related to the FWE nexus, enabling them to change perspectives, leading to more sustainable choices. We propose that our co-design process can be used to develop 'grounded visualisations' of the FWE nexus, i.e., visualisations that are grounded in the experiential situations and lived realities of stakeholders, thus offering an effective support for decision-making that could open pathways to sustainability transformations.

Consideration of the Environment in Water-Energy-Food Nexus Research in the Aral Sea Basin

The water-energy-food (WEF) nexus is a holistic concept used to understand the synergies and trade-offs of interdependent water, energy, and food resources. Despite its widespread use, this concept often overlooks environmental concerns. In addition, the lack of a systemic approach in the Aral Sea Basin (ASB) has resulted in serious environmental degradation. For instance, the Aral Sea, situated at the terminus of the basin, is steadily shrinking, yet researchers studying the WEF nexus tend to overlook the upstream tributaries of the basin. This study aims to determine the extent to which research on the WEF nexus in the ASB in Central Asia has considered the environment through a systematic review of the literature published between 2012 and 2022. The results indicate that the number of WEF publications regarding the ASB has seen an upward trend, with a primary focus on the transboundary level and less research available on the local and national levels. This confirms the strong reliance of Central Asian states on one another for food, energy, and water resources. Furthermore, the results show that the majority of published studies either do not consider environmental concerns in their analyses at all or do so with little precision. Therefore, to achieve precise and sustainable outcomes, this study recommends the inclusion of environmental concerns along with basin-wide coverage in future WEF analyses. Finally, the WEF concept should be downscaled to the national and local levels in order to facilitate its implementation.