Water, Energy And Food Nexus Research Articles

Analyzing Policy Framework of Agrovoltaics Across the Water Energy and Food (WEF) Nexus in The Gambia

The projected increase in demand for food, water, and energy owing to systemic shocks has heightened the need for innovative solutions and integrated resource governance. The Agrovoltaics for Mali and Gambia (APV MaGa) Project, focuses on sustainable electricity production through agrovoltaics' triple land-use system and is leveraged with digital technologies. The project addresses The Gambia’s high food importation gap, growing dependency on fossil fuels for electricity generation, and high electricity tariffs. However, the nascence of agrovoltaics presents a new energy dimension that calls for increased coordination of sectoral policy and management, a domain of WEF nexus governance detached mainly from governance practice. Thus, a policy and institutional foresight of the potential implications of agrovoltaics’ integration is warranted, since Gambia’s decision-making for land, water, energy, and agriculture remains mainly sectoral. A qualitative research design was adopted, using a sample of twenty-eight key informative interviews, policy document analysis, and grey literature. Research findings show that the existing policy frameworks such as ‘Feed-in tariffs for excess RE, renewable energy funds, and capital subsidies can practically accommodate the frame of the agrovoltaics. However, clarification is required on the siting aspect of solar panels within the compartmentalized land policy structures. Institutionally, the Ministry of Energy’s nexus platform allows for technical coordination of agrovoltaics projects. However weak institutional harmonization, technical/financial incapacities, and overriding national interests due to sectoral bias present challenges. Therefore, harmonizing sectoral divergent policy provisions, interests, and prioritization of sustainability concerns will foster the pertinent integration of agrovoltaics for fast expansion.

Resource sustainability in the water, energy and food nexus: role of technological innovation

Purpose This paper aims to examine the role of technological Innovation in ensuring resource sustainability in the water, energy and food (WEF) nexus, as there exists a shortage of statistical research on the extent of the influence of technological Innovation on the WEF nexus. Design/methodology/approach The study used a quantitative research method, using a well-structured questionnaire to collect data from management staff in the WEF departments in South Africa. The collected data were analyzed by using mean score ranking, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) for structural equation modelling (SEM). Findings The findings show that the technological process of technological innovation is significant for resource sustainability. The result also showed that technological innovations directly and statistically significantly affect WEF nexus. The EFA resulted in three components of WEF nexus product innovation, WEF nexus process innovation and WEF nexus novel innovations. Furthermore, the CFA and SEM analysis reveals that six technological innovation indicators influence the sustainability of the nexus: smart water metering technology, smart metering technology, food quality monitoring technology, agricultural technology solutions, new technological design and eco-friendly WEF products. Originality/value The sustainability of these three inevitable resources for man’s survival is dependent on technological innovations, and this study has shown the major categories of innovations needed, thus establishing a pathway for engineering design.

Agent-Based Modeling for Water–Energy–Food Nexus and Its Application in Ningdong Energy and Chemical Base

Water, Energy and Food (WEF) are coordinated and constrained by each other, constituting a multivariate coupled feed-forward dynamical system. Traditional modeling and simulation methods struggle to model and simulate complex interactions in the WEF nexus. Therefore, we proposed and developed an agent-based model, which is one of the most effective tools for simulating complex systems. It also has unique advantages in simulating WEF allocation, which is very helpful in improving regional WEF use efficiency. By taking Ningdong Energy and Chemical Base as the research area, an agent-based water–energy–food model based on MESA library was developed using Python 3.9 language, which includes six types of agents and can explore and simulate the complex dynamic interactions in the supply and demand process of WEF sectors. Different behavior rules were proposed to quantify the interactions between WEF sectors of Ningdong Energy and Chemical Base. Four different scenarios were set up, namely, the baseline scenario, the water conservation scenario, the new reservoir scenario and the integrated scenario, and the uncertain system evolution processes between departments and resources under the four different scenarios were analyzed in detail to quantitatively analyze the evolution of the water–energy–food complex system of Ningdong Energy and Chemical Base, which has proven the effectiveness of the proposed model. The results show that: water allocation, energy consumption and food consumption in the domestic sector have similar degrees of impact, because the natural population growth rate does not change under different scenarios; water allocation in the food sector shows a trend corresponding to changes in crop yields; water allocation in the energy management sector shows an upward trend, the water allocation in the actual years 2016–2020 is almost the same, and in the forecast years 2021–2025, the baseline scenario and the water conservation scenario can’t meet the demand volume of the energy management sector due to limited water sources, so the total allocated water is lower than that in the increased reservoir and comprehensive scenario; the water allocated to ecological sector has a balanced situation, and the annual growth of the ecological greening coverage area is also balanced; the total water allocation also shows a trend of annual growth; regarding the annual energy volume that can be delivered to the area outside the base, the curve first grows sharply with a growth rate of about 19.85%, and then becomes slowly with a growth rate of about 3.53%. The total volume is expected to increase to 4.96 × 107 tce by 2025; the total energy, consumed energy and output energy, in general, shows a growing trend, and with the development of the economy and technology, the total energy of the base will reach 7.96 × 107 tce by 2025.

Incorporating deep learning predictions to assess the water-energy-food nexus security

Water, energy and food (WEF) are experiencing significant stress due to an increase in their demand and scarcity, and this situation will worsen in the coming years. For this reason, this paper proposes a WEF nexus index, which consists of 6 indicators of availability and accessibility to measure water, energy and food security. The proposed methodology, based on indicators and a scoring system, allows decision-makers to evaluate the nexus security and implement actions to achieve the sustainability of the three resources by 2050. Models based on deep learning are developed for the projection of the production and consumption of resources for the case study of Mexico. The Long Short-Term Memory and Gated Recurrent Unit networks are considered. Projections for 2050 resulted in water consumption of 121,679 hm3, electricity generation of 772,486 GWh and electricity consumption of 932,764 GWh, while food production will reach 351,802,080 tons. This represents an increase of 51.7% in water consumption, 180.33% in electricity generation, 254.54% in electricity demand and 103.05% in food production, compared to 2010. The WEF nexus index has an upward trend because the accessibility of water and energy will increase by 2050, but their availability will decrease; the opposite is the case in the food sector, where availability will increase and access will decrease.

Key points for green management of water-energy-food in the Belt and Road Initiative: Resource utilization efficiency, final demand behaviors and trade inequalities

As the largest contemporary platform for international cooperation, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) may carry the risk of increasing pressure on water, energy and food (WEF) resources while driving economic development. WEF nexus analyses can help promote green and sustainable management of the BRI's resources, but has received little attention. Based on a multi-regional input-output model, this study identifies key points of WEF nexus management in the BRI from WEF utilization efficiency, final demand behavior and trade inequality. On the supply side, the common points of inefficiency in WEF use were primarily manufacturing and transport and communication in China and India, chemicals and manufacturing in Russia, and chemicals, manufacturing, and transport and communication in Iran. Water and food systems were closely linked through the planting industry. The focus for adjustment was the direct water and land use efficiency of the planting industry in India and Pakistan. On the final demand side, household consumption drove 73.6%, 50.0%, and 80.1% of WEF, respectively; particularly richer countries (e.g., South Korea and Italy) had more serious overconsumption problems. The macro-control points of investment behavior primarily include manufacturing, construction, and transport and communication in China, South Korea, Italy, and Russia. With the reduction of trade barriers, countries with a propensity to export, particularly those with resource scarcity, face trade-offs in export behavior (e.g., exports of crops, and food and tobacco from China, India and Pakistan). Notably, for certain resource-rich economies, such as Southeast Asia, Russia, and West Asia, improving the efficiency of relevant sectors, rather than restricting exports, is the priority. In bilateral trade, richer countries acquired both economic and resource advantages, whereas countries such as China, India, and Pakistan faced serious trade inequalities. Greener and more equitable WEF development in the BRI could be better promoted through strengthening dialogue and cooperation regarding supply and demand at these key points. • WEF nexus and trade inequality were analyzed to promote BRI's green development. • Key WEF efficiency improvement points in the BRI were identified on the supply side. • Important final demand behaviors in the BRI requiring macro-control were determined. • Unequal trade pairs related to resource costs and economic benefits were revealed. • Improved co-management of WEF between unequal trade pairs should be prioritized.

Interactive quantitative modeling and cost optimization of regional sustainable development based on water-energy-food nexus

As the critical resources for regional development, water, energy and food (WEF) are highly interdependent. Improving the cognition of the complex interactions of WEF nexus is the top priority of regional sustainable development and decision-making. This paper proposes a novel regional water-energy-food interaction model based on supply and demand to clarify the nexus between WEF resources and its impact on the development of the entire region. An indicator of sustainability index is employed to quantitatively evaluate the interactions between supplies and demands in WEF nexus. The scenario analysis method is used to predict the resources and demands for the future medium and long-term development in a high-tech industrial zone, China, and then the total regional cost is optimized to obtain the suitable development roadmaps. The analysis results indicate that energy is the key to WEF and significant regional development. The collaborative development of WEF, including the supply of external resources, can better promote the sustainability of the region. Appropriate adjustment of energy structures and power generation ratios can not only effectively reduce the total cost, but also control CO2 emissions. The proposed WEF model with the indicator of sustainability index can quantitatively evaluate the region sustainable development.

Quantifying and analysing water trade-offs in the water-energy-food nexus: The case of Ghana

Water, Energy and Food (WEF) are inextricably linked, and the Water-Energy-Food nexus (WEF nexus) provides a comprehensive framework for addressing the complex and intricate interconnections in the development of these invaluable resources. Quantifying the interconnections among energy, water, and food sectors is a preliminary step to integrated WEF systems modelling, which will further contribute to robust WEF security management. However, the use of the WEF nexus concepts and approaches to systematically evaluate WEF interlinkages and support the development of socially and politically relevant resource policies in Ghana has been limited. This study sets the pace in the development of WEF nexus research in Ghana to facilitate policy and decision-making in the WEF sectors in the country. The study aimed at quantifying the existing water trade-offs in the WEF nexus and also model the trade-offs considering basic development scenarios. The water intensities of food production and energy generation in Ghana were found to be 990 m3/tonne and 2.05 m3/kWh respectively. Scenario analysis was done to project future annual water requirements for food production, energy generation as well as socio-domestic WEF demands based on two possible development scenarios. The analysis predicts that with business as usual, the annual water requirements for food production and energy generation as well as domestic sustenance in Ghana would increase by 34% in 2030. However, technological advancements and innovation in the energy and food sectors could reduce annual water requirements by over 26% even when 100% access to electricity is achieved nationwide.

Assessing Theoretical Frameworks, Human Resources Management Implications and Emerging Technologies on the Water, Energy and Food (WEF) Nexus

The interactions of water, energy, and food resources resulting in WEF nexus thinking have been conceptualized as an integrated framework to achieve the security of the three vital resources. However, there are some gaps in WEF nexus research, which constrains the understanding and actualization of the nexus. Hence, this review paper aims to assess theories, human resource management implications, and emerging technologies' effect in understanding the nexus for its actualization. The research employed a qualitative research methodology to achieve the research objectives. The research findings revealed six (6) significant theories that can aid the understanding and actualization of the WEF nexus. The research also revealed that human resource management is strategic, highlighting the need for nexus thinking among human resources. Furthermore, the study revealed the three major emerging technologies of Artificial Intelligence, Big data analytics, and Internet of Things (IoT), which are shaping the WEF nexus through innovations and shaping the nature of the nexus. The study concluded that there is an interaction between the theories and human resources management for attaining the WEF nexus, which affects the extent of the sustainability of the innovations introduced by the emerging technologies. The study recommended quantification of the theories, training on nexus thinking of the current human resource in the WEF sectors, and capital investment on emerging technologies in the WEF nexus.

Prospects for Rooftop Farming System Dynamics: An Action to Stimulate Water-Energy-Food Nexus Synergies toward Green Cities of Tomorrow

Rooftop farming is a practical solution of smart urban agriculture to furnish diverse socio-environmental benefits and short food supply chains, especially in densely populated cities. This study aims to raise urban food security with less use of public water and energy in food production, through utilizing green water and energy for sustainable management. A system dynamics (SD) model framed across the nexus of climate, water, energy and food (WEF) sectors is developed for a rooftop farm in Taipei City of Taiwan. The urban WEF Nexus is structured to address how local weather affects water and energy utilization to grow vegetables. The SD results showed that the annual yields of sweet potato leaves achieved 9.3 kg/m2, at the cost of 3.8 ton/m2 of harvested rainwater and 2.1 ton/m2 of tap water together with 2.1 kwh/m2 of solar photovoltaic power and 0.4 kwh/m2 of public electricity. This study not only demonstrates that green resources show great potential to make a significant reduction in consuming urban irrigation resources for rooftop farming, but contributes to urban planning through a sustainable in situ WEF Nexus mechanism at a city scale. The WEF Nexus can manifest the rooftop farming promotion as cogent development to facilitate urban sustainability.

Water competition mechanism of food and energy industries in WEF Nexus: A case study in China

Water, energy and food (WEF) are three basic elements that safeguard human life and socioeconomic development. As the demand for water increases in food and energy production, water scarcity is more prominent globally. WEF Nexus plays an important role in evaluating and alleviating the contradiction between food and energy for water. Based on the water footprint of food and energy in China from 1997 to 2016, this paper used the “Structure-Conduct-Performance” analysis paradigm to evaluate the water competition mechanism. The newly constructed competition mechanism model includes type, conduct and performance. The results showed that the blue water footprint of energy increased from 3.25 Gm³ in 1997 to 12.54 Gm³ in 2016. The blue water footprint of food remained above 200 Gm³ for many years, and competition between food and energy production for water was intensifying. The gray water footprint of energy was increasing yearly, and food reached the maximum value of 181.01 Gm³ in 2014. Through model analysis, the South-to-North Water Diversion has not effectively alleviated water scarcity, and a few provinces were still classified in the water pressure-dominated area. The northern channel of West-to-East Power Transmission only transferred electric energy from water pressure-dominated area, causing the unsustainability coefficients of Inner Mongolia and Yunnan to increase from 0.09 and 0.03 in 1997 to 0.23 and 0.05 in 2016. This paper provides effective policy insights for global challenges facing WEF Nexus from the source, process and end of food and energy production.

A Review of the Water–Energy–Food Nexus Research in Africa

Notwithstanding the dispersed nature of the water, energy and food (WEF) nexus scholarship in the African continent, its strategic importance to the African agenda has gained widespread attention in research and planning circles. In this regard, the bibliometric science mapping and content analysis of the WEF nexus scientific publication trends, the conceptual, intellectual and social structures, as well as the inherent paradigmatic shifts in the WEF nexus body of knowledge in the African continent have been undertaken, using the nexus body of literature accessed from the Web of Science and Scopus core collection databases. The review results confirmed that, whilst the WEF nexus scholarship has expanded since 2013, there is also evidence of growth in the conceptual, intellectual and social structures of the WEF nexus in the African continent. These shifts have resulted in the emergence of hot topics (subfields) including modelling and optimization, climate variability and change, environmental ecosystem services sustainability, and sustainable development and livelihoods. The review further determined that these structures have evolved along two main perspectives of WEF nexus research development, i.e., the interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary domains. In support of the interpretation of the visual analytics of the intellectual structure and changing patterns of the WEF nexus research, the shifts in positivist, interpretivist and pragmatic paradigmatic perspectives (these are underpinned by the ontology, epistemology, and methodology and methods) are considered when explaining WEF nexus research shifts: (a) From the unconnected silo paradigms that focus on water, energy and food (security concerns) to interconnected (and sometimes interdependent or nested) linkages or systems incorporating environmental, social-economic and political drivers (also viewed as subfields) in a bid to holistically support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across the African continent; and (b) in the evaluation of the WEF nexus scholarship based on novel analytical approaches. We contend that whilst the theories of science change underpin this apparent expansion, the macro-economic theory will find use in explaining how the WEF nexus research agenda is negotiated and the Integrative Environmental Governance (IEG) is the duly suited governance theory to bridge the inherent disconnect between WEF nexus output and governance processes uncovered in the literature. Overall, operational challenges and opportunities of the WEF nexus abound, transitioning the WEF nexus research to practice in Africa, motivating the need to take advantage of the scholar–practitioner research underpinnings, as contemplated in the transdisciplinary research approach, which is characterised by the dual quest for new knowledge and considerations of use. Yet, there is need for more coordinated and collaborative research to achieve impact and transition from WEF nexus thinking to WEF nexus practice.

What could go wrong with cooking? Exploring vulnerability at the water, energy and food Nexus in Kampala through a social practices lens.

Sub-Saharan African cities like Kampala face challenges with rapid urbanization and impacts of climate change. These challenges have exacerbated the struggle to provide adequate infrastructural and socio-ecological services to Kampala's growing poor. Based on a social practices perspective, this paper presents a study of emergent vulnerabilities at the urban Nexus of water, energy and food (WEF) in the informal settlements of Bwaise and Kanyogoga. We employ methods of observation, interviews, focus group discussions and a vision-building workshop to explore the growing vulnerabilities of poor households as they daily navigate deteriorating water quality, rising energy prices and food insecurity. Results indicate that most household-level vulnerabilities relate to energy poverty. Households scale back on water treatment practices such as boiling and the cooking of highly-nutritious yet energy-demanding foods such as beans in efforts to conserve charcoal. Emergent practices of everyday resilience-building include the use of biomass briquettes as an alternative to solid charcoal as well as social networks and capital which allow households to borrow food and energy. We suggest the notion of ‘precarious consumption’ as a tool for understanding emergent everyday vulnerabilities in relation to the urban WEF Nexus service provision and resilience policy-making in cities of the Global South.

The global governance of water, energy, and food nexus: allocation and access for competing demands

Globally, 3 billion people are without access to modern fuels or technologies for cooking/heating, 900 million people lack access to safe water, 2.6 billion lack improved sanitation, 2 billion people lack food security intermittently, and more than 820 million people are chronically hungry due to extreme poverty. This paper on the allocation of and access to water, energy and food (WEF) nexus rests on the ???Rawlsian??? conception of distributive justice to human security and the competing demands for WEF. Based on a review of papers on access and allocation published from 2008 through 2020, this paper finds that ???policy coordination??? among all the actors (at all levels in general and local levels in particular) governing the water???energy???food nexus is the key to promoting equitable allocation of and access to WEF. Only legitimate governance with robust legal structures in place can provide for the equitable allocation in the WEF nexus. Effective stakeholder participation in governance of the nexus is necessary and ensured when power asymmetries, interdependencies and rights are accounted for in principles of procedural justice. Moreover, to ensure access to people in the WEF nexus, the distribution of the three goods and related rights must be delivered as a ???triplet???. This will promote the goal to mitigate trade-offs and promote synergies among the resources as well as conserve the environment within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The competitive relationship between food and energy production for water in China

Abstract Water, Energy and Food (WEF) are key elements of economic and social sustainable development, and present a complex nexus. Existed WEF nexus research is mainly confined to qualitative analyses, and it needs constant improvement and increases quantitative analyses. In China, water security is the most prominent problem in the WEF-nexus, which is manifested in the competitive relationship between food and energy production for water. Therefore, the matter of alleviating water resources stress has become a difficult and hot issue. After improving the existed water footprint accounting method for food and energy production, this study calculated the food water footprints (blue water footprint and green water footprint) in the 31 provinces of mainland China in 2015, as well as the blue water footprints of major energy systems (coal, oil, natural gas and thermal power generation). This study proposed water resources pressure index ( I W S ), water resources pressure contribution rate of food and energy (WCR), water consumption rate of food and energy (n) and competition composite index (CCI) of WEF, which were used to evaluate the consumption of water resources in food and energy production in different regions, and assess the intensity of competition for water resources in food and energy production. The results showed that the national food water footprint in 2015 was 690.8 Gm³, and the blue food water footprint was 287.8 Gm³. The main water-consuming blue energy water footprint was 18.5 Gm³, and coal production accounted for 9.9% and thermal power generation accounted for 87.6%. According to the competition indicators, the competition relationship among the administrative regions of the 31 provinces in mainland China was obtained. For example, 5 provinces had serious competition and 19 provinces had weak competition. The water consumption of the energy industry continues to grow rapidly by economic development. Corresponding measures should be taken according to the different competition levels for water resources.

Sustainable development and the water-energy-food nexus: Legal challenges and emerging solutions

Traditionally water, energy and food (WEF) resources are governed in many countries by separate sets of laws, rules and institutions. However, recent studies have increasingly underlined the WEF nexus approach as a framework for coherent, holistic and integrated implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to address fragmentations and ensure cleaner and efficient production methods in each sector.This article examines the legal and governance aspects of integrating and implementing the WEF nexus in practice. Various legal and institutional challenges that arise with a nexus approach, such as incompatibility of WEF nexus aims, limited rule linkages, institutional limitations and resource constraints are examined in order to identify the ways in which an integrative legal framework on WEF can help close these gaps.The study suggests that enhanced levels of legislation and rule linkage; elaboration of common and shared principles by institutional actors in WEF domains; as well knowledge, expertise and information sharing on WEF-related decision making are significant steps towards advancing systemic and integrated governance of WEF resources.

Synergetic assessment of water, energy and food nexus system

Water, energy and food are three important resources for human to face serious security risks. A systematic perspective, namely Water, Energy and Food Nexus (WEFN), was proposed to achieve the sustainable human development. In this study, a method of hierarchical weight assignment based on synergetic theory and Shannon information theory was applied in the Bayan Nur city, China. Through calculating order degree of order parameter components of resources, society, economic and environmental dimensions, the order degree of order parameters and sub-systems and the order entropy were obtained. It is found that water resources supply, energy supply, energy consumption and food price would dominate the corresponding trends in water, energy and food sub-systems respectively. The water and food sub-system may play a more dominant role in the harmonious assessment of WEFN system in the study area. Although the variance of the order degree of sub-systems and the order entropy were small, the WEFN system was still moving toward an unstable state, which could aggravate the inharmonious degree of WEFN system in the study area.

An integrative approach for the water-energy-food nexus in beef cattle production: A simulation of the proposed model to Brazil

Global environmental and economic changes are putting pressure on natural resources with increasing demands for fresh water, energy and food (WEF). These changes aligned with the consequent change in dietary behaviors through an increased consumption of meat and a preference for sustainability standards of production, demand new technologies and techniques. Accordingly, the aim of this study is to propose a beef cattle production model based on a sustainable integrative approach to the WEF nexus, addressing water savings through rainwater collection, food production, and clean and renewable energy generation (solar cells and biodigesters). In addition, cattle are provided thermal comfort and welfare. The proposed model was tested in a beef cattle production environment and the benefits of this sustainable integrative approach were analyzed. Findings suggest that the proposed standard modules represent a strategic option for livestock producers. The use of the photovoltaic solar cells shadow improve the welfare and quality of cattle production, while generating clean and renewable energy and providing water savings.

Bridging Science and Policy in Water-Energy-Food Nexus: Using the Q-Nexus Model for Informing Policy Making

Water, energy and food (WEF) systems are highly interconnected and they directly and indirectly affect one another. Science based tools that quantify the direct and indirect interconnections between water, energy and food systems are essential for informing effective WEF policy-making. The Q-Nexus Model is a mathematically-based quantitative WEF nexus assessment tool that serves as platform to quantify, simulate and optimize water, energy and food as interconnected systems of resources. This paper presents a generic scenario-based framework of using Q-Nexus Model for informing about the nexus effects that need to be reflected in the WEF planning and policy-making settings. Firstly, the technical features of the Q-Nexus Model and its capability to evaluate the direct and indirect quantitative effects are introduced. Secondly, the use of the Q-Nexus Model to quantify and simulate numerous key challenges and policy options are then presented. At the practical level, a numerical experiment is presented, and results are discussed. Lastly, the conclusions and further developments are presented.

From risk to WEF security in the city: The influence of interdependent infrastructural systems

Across the planet, interacting threats are converging in urban areas beset with pressures brought on by global processes such as urbanization and climate change, and the challenges of creating water, energy and food (WEF) security for their populations. With an increased probability of floods and other extremes, goes a heightened potential for cascading effects as WEF security is at risk from an array of tightly bound interdependencies undergirding the WEF nexus. Such interdependencies heighten risk for generalized disruptions, as, for instance, when heavy precipitation triggers a breakdown of transportation infrastructure, leading to failures in energy generation, and provision of food and water. In this paper, we apply a framework to examine how interdependent WEF infrastructural systems mediate the risks that climate extremes pose to urban WEF security. Given that urban WEF security often hinges on dynamics that take place in regions outside city boundaries, we also examine the effect of this dependence on urban FEW security risk. We compare the pre- and post-event governance and infrastructural conditions shaping WEF security in four cities: Boulder Colorado and New York (USA) illustrative of WEF security risks posed by low probability high impact extreme events; and Accra (Ghana) and Mexico City (Mexico), illustrative of governance and infrastructural arrangements that can fail even under low risk high probability extreme events. We find that complex technological and governance failures can amplify negative impacts from extremes. Conversely, institutional actions and infrastructural supports can mitigate these impacts. By understanding interdependencies, cities can anticipate and avoid cascading effects on WEF systems. We reflect on how commonalities and differences in sociodemographic, economic, technological, environmental, and governance configurations relate to different capacities to mitigate risks and adapt.

Applying the Water-Energy-Food Nexus to the Charcoal Value Chain

Globally, natural resources are increasingly under pressure, especially due to population growth, economic growth and transformation as well as climate change. As a result, the water, energy and food (WEF) nexus approach has emerged to understand interdependencies and commonly manage resources within a multi-scale and multi-level framework. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the high and growing consumption of traditional biomass for cooking purposes - notably fuelwood and charcoal - is both a key source of energy and contributor for food security as well as a pressure on natural resources. Improving the bioenergy value chains is essential for limiting environmental degradation and for securing the livelihoods of millions of people. Although the WEF nexus approach entails large potential to address the complex problems arising along the bioenergy value chains, these are currently not considered. Based on the WEF nexus approach, we analyze the different steps within the charcoal value chain in Sub-Saharan Africa and highlight the respective interdependencies and the potential for improving overall socio-economic and environmental sustainability. We emphasize the water, energy and food related implications of vicious and virtuous production cycles, separated by value chain segments. We discuss the potential and major challenges for implementing more sustainable value chains. Furthermore, we underline the necessity of applying WEF nexus approaches to these value chains in order to optimize environmental and social outcomes.