Full-text resources of CEJSH and other databases are now available in the new Library of Science.
Visit https://bibliotekanauki.pl

Results found: 6

first rewind previous Page / 1 next fast forward last

Search results

Search:
in the keywords:  water-energy-food nexus
help Sort By:

help Limit search:
first rewind previous Page / 1 next fast forward last
1

Tools for tackling the water-energy-food nexus

100%
Byers E. A.
Change and Adaptation in Socio-Ecological Systems
|
2015
|
vol. 2
|
issue 1
EN
Researchers and practitioners have developed many tools to study the water-energy-food nexus at a variety of scales and perspectives in order to aid decision-making. However, there is a recognised lack of tools that consider these interdependent and complex interactions in an integrated fashion. Whether to connect and federate wellestablished modelling systems and approaches, which may be challenging, or to design truly integrated tools for holistic consideration of the nexus issues, is also debated. This paper discusses four distinctly different approaches which appear to have wide-scale applicability, although demonstration of these approaches in multiple cases (besides the Polestar model which is already regional/ global) is yet to be applied. Sustainable implementation of any tools will require greater accessibility such that they may be more widely deployed by practitioners. Harmonisation of results and insights between different scales, so that decision-makers may consider global-local impacts, also remains a challenge.
2

Earth Observations and Education for the Sustainable Implementation of the Nexus Approach

100%
Voigt H.
Change and Adaptation in Socio-Ecological Systems
|
2015
|
vol. 2
|
issue 1
EN
Water, energy and food are closely connected sectors which interact in a complex manner. Complex problems which need to be addressed in these sectors require informed decisions. The key to this information are data which need to be easily available to the decision maker. In the context of the Sustainability in the W-E-F Nexus conference May 19-20, 2014, the session on ‘Earth Observations, Monitoring and Modelling for the Sustainable Implementation of the Nexus Approach’ revealed institutional shortcomings and general problems in data provisioning for the water-energy- food (WEF) nexus. Key Findings of the session were that (1) integrative thinking of collaborating institutions is required to address problems in the water-energy-food nexus, (2) comprehensive and coherent data need to be made readily available, potentially through the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) and (3) that nexus education needs to be promoted in basic and higher education in order to ensure efficient use of coherent and comprehensive datasets.
3

Implementing the Water-Energy-Food Nexus at Various Scales: Trans-Boundary Challenges and Solutions

100%
Scott McLachlan N.
Change and Adaptation in Socio-Ecological Systems
|
2015
|
vol. 2
|
issue 1
EN
Watersheds, climate regimes and nature in general do not abide to boundaries created by human institutions, increasing the difficulty for these institutions to manage them. Human activity is, on the other hand, capable of linking geographically separate regions through trade and supply chains. Implementing the water-energyfood nexus therefore often requires science and policy to work on a trans-boundary level. This article looks at two examples of quantitative trans-boundary approaches in science. Johansson explored the effects of foreign land acquisition on regional water scarcity through virtual water flows. The virtual water flows were based on the water used to produce the exported food and energy crops. The flows were aggregated on a national basis to compare countries. Van der Krogt presented a water simulation model for the Eastern Nile Basin, developed through joint cooperation between the four Eastern Nile countries. The model incorporates information on all current, planned and potential water infrastructure and irrigation projects into different scenarios. These are compared with a long term hydrological baseline to assess the impact development has on downstream water supply. This new tool allows Eastern Nile countries to better understand how their actions can affect downstream neighbours.
4

Summary Paper: ‘Governance and Management of the Nexus: Structures and Institutional Capacities’

88%
Snorek J.
Change and Adaptation in Socio-Ecological Systems
|
2015
|
vol. 2
|
issue 1
EN
Sustaining the water-energy-food nexus for the future requires new governance approaches and joint management across sectors. The challenges to the implementation of the nexus are many, but not insurmountable. These include trade-offs between sectors, difficulties of communication across the science-policy interface, the emergence of new vulnerabilities resulting from implementation of policies, and the perception of high social and economic costs. In the context of the Sustainability in the W-E-F Nexus conference May 19-20, 2014, the session on ‘Governance and Management of the Nexus: Structures and Institutional Capacities’ discussed these problems as well as tools and solutions to nexus management. The session demonstrated three key findings: 1. Trade-offs in the Water-Energy-Food Nexus should be expanded to include the varied and shifting social and power relations; 2. Sharing knowledge between users and policy makers promotes collective learning and science-policy-stakeholder communication; and 3. Removing subsidies or seeking the ‘right price’ for domestic resources vis à vis international markets is not always useful; rather the first imperative is to gauge current and future costs at the national scale.
5

Implementing the nexus at various scales: Local and regional perspectives

88%
Aarnoudse E., Leentvaar J.
Change and Adaptation in Socio-Ecological Systems
|
2015
|
vol. 2
|
issue 1
EN
Many issues in the water, energy and agricultural sector are in fact crosscutting issues, which can only be solved by a nexus approach. A nexus approach means that management solutions account for synergies and tradeoffs between the sectors. Critical issues emerging across the three sectors ask for different policies at different governance levels. However, at each level of policy making the impact at local level should be an important point of reference. In line with this, the case of the Aral Sea Basin in Central Asia exemplifies how international energy politics affect local farmers’ access to irrigation water. Moreover, a comparative study of three states in India shows that local differences in the implementation of the nexus approach can lead to different outcomes in terms of groundwater and electricity use for agriculture. These two examples underline that to implement a nexus approach; the local perspective should not be overlooked, even when policies are designed at higher governance levels.
6

Connecting cities and their environments: Harnessing the water-energy-food nexus for sustainable urban development

88%
Chan A.
Change and Adaptation in Socio-Ecological Systems
|
2015
|
vol. 2
|
issue 1
EN
Thousands of years of development have made the production and consumption of water, energy, and food for urban environments more complex. While the rise of cities has fostered social and economic progress, the accompanying environmental pressures threaten to undermine these benefits. The compounding effects of climate change, habitat loss, pollution, overexploitation (in addition to financial constraints) make the individual management of these three vital resources incompatible with rapidly growing populations and resource-intensive lifestyles. Nexus thinking is a critical tool to capture opportunities for urban sustainability in both industrialised and developing cities. A nexus approach to water, energy, and food security recognises that conventional decisionmaking, strictly confined within distinct sectors, limits the sustainability of urban development. Important nexus considerations include the need to collaborate with a wide spectrum of stakeholders, and to “re-integrate” urban systems. This means recognising the opportunities coming from the interconnected nature of cities and metropolitan regions, including links with rural environments and wider biophysical dynamics.
first rewind previous Page / 1 next fast forward last
JavaScript is turned off in your web browser. Turn it on to take full advantage of this site, then refresh the page.