India and the Gulf: A NewStrategy for Water, Energy,Food, and EcosystemSecurity
Water, energy, food, and ecosystems(WEFE) are deeply interconnected,and these linkages sit at the core oftoday’s most critical global securitychallenges. With climate pressures intensifying, cities expanding,and populations growing, the interconnections among agrifoodsystem transformation, energy transition, integrated watermanagement, and land governance are not parallel agendas.They shape each other’s risks and opportunities in ways thatdetermine whether communities move […]
What “Nexus”? Towards Resource Nexus standardization (Policy Brief No. 1). United Nations University Institute for Integrated Management of Material Fluxes and of Resources (UNU-FLORES).
Following the Dresden Nexus Conference in 2025, which also marked its 10th anniversary, a policy brief was developed by researchers from the Nexus community. The development of the Policy Brief was led by UNU-FLORES and PRIMA. The policy brief is titled “What ‘Nexus’? Towards Resource Nexus Standardization.” Read full policy brief: What “Nexus”? Towards Resource Nexus […]
Synergetic Benefits of Agricultural Sewage Reuse and Floating Photovoltaics in Mexican Wastewater System: A Municipal‐Level WEF Nexus Study
Financial stability is essential for the sustainable operation of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), as they require substantial resources but generate minimal revenue. In Mexico, a lack of funding resources and supporting policies has resulted in inefficient treatment and extensive surface water degradation. This work examines the positive impacts of treated sewage-operated irrigation ponds equipped with […]
From Data to Decisions: Water-Energy-Food-Environment (WEFE) Nexus Modeling Under Changing Climate
Transforming data into actionable insights is crucial for building resilient and sustainable water, energy, food, and environmental systems. However, the accelerating impacts of climate change are reshaping the dynamics of WEFE systems, intensifying resource interdependencies, and challenging conventional resource planning approaches. To navigate this complexity, decision-makers increasingly need integrated modeling frameworks that reflect cross-sectoral linkages […]
Integrating Health in the Water-Energy-Food Nexus: A Comprehensive Review of Interdependencies, Challenges, and Future Research Opportunities
The Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus has become a crucial framework for understanding resource interdependencies, nevertheless its integration with health remains underexplored. This review paper examines the current literature in the Water Energy Food Health (WEFH) Nexus, emphasizing the complex relationships between resource security and public health outcomes. Through a systematic literature review, the existing research trends, […]
Simplexifying Sustainability
How can sustainability science avoid paralysis in the face of complexity and ensure it catalyses meaningful action? The key lies in practising the science and art of simplexity, argues Bassel Daher. You can find the full article here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-025-01650-5.epdf
Financing the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem Nexus project: challenges, opportunities, and pathways for sustainable investment
The Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem (WEFE) Nexus framework provides a holistic approach to sustainable resource management, addressing the interdependencies between these sectors to enhance resilience against climate change and resource scarcity. Despite its potential, financing WEFE projects remains a significant challenge due to complex investment structures, long-term payback periods, and difficulties in demonstrating economic returns. This paper explores […]
Inclusive policy development from the ground up: Insights from the household water-energy-food nexus
Despite substantial contemporary research and a growing trend in exploring the water-energy-food (WEF) nexus, most research efforts have been invested in macro-level supply-side infrastructure and policies. However, prioritizing demand-side management policies can provide new opportunities and untapped potential for addressing interconnected resource challenges. Demand management inherently encompasses users’ consumption patterns, behaviors, socio-economic conditions, and choices, […]
Coproducing water-energy-food Nexus actionable knowledge: Lessons from a multi-actor collaborative learning school in Uganda, East Africa
The water-energy-food (WEF) Nexus is an integrative framework for addressing the multi-scalar interdependencies that challenge sustainability solutions across the water, energy, and food systems. However, challenges linked to scale and data availability often make WEF analyses more theoretical, limiting their ability to offer practical, implementable solutions in policy and decision contexts. This paper introduces Collaborative […]
Quantifying sustainability and resilience in food systems: a systematic analysis for evaluating the convergence of current methodologies and metrics
The global food system faces multiple challenges including growing demand, climate change, conflicts, economic shocks, pandemics, and disasters. Food systems aim to provide healthy and nutritious food for all, while minimizing environmental impacts, ensuring social equity and economic viability, and enhancing resilience to shocks and stresses. The fragility of the global food system has been […]