SCIENCE TALK: Towards an Inclusive Water Energy Food Nexus Framework

The Water-Energy-Food (WEF) nexus is a transformative approach for sustainable socio-economic development and natural resources management focused on the security and sustainability of the WEF resources. However, a lack of real-world applications and uptake by sectors dependent on water, energy, and food has limited its practical adoption and implementation. In this talk, distinguishing between transformative and resource-centric approaches, Professor Tafadzwa MABHAUDHI will review existing frameworks used to identify how the dimensions of sustainability (social, economic, and political) and human and environmental well-being have been considered in the WEF nexus. Given the gaps, a Planetary Health WEF nexus framework focusing on gender, human, and environmental well-being is proposed, building on the existing frameworks. The proposed framework, focusing on Planetary health, addresses scale, governance and outcomes for effective operationalization. Exploring, among others, the pressure that people and their choices and lifestyles have on the planet and its resources, the impact of the degraded planet systems on humans, and dignified access to WEF resources for all people to enhance environmental stewardship and equitable access to WEF resources by all – leaving no one behind.