The concept of Nexus has received increasing interest both in the research and in the decision-/policy- making communities in recent years. It represents a conceptual approach targeting the security of natural resources, and comprises a multiplicity of dimensions (typically Water, Energy, Food and Ecosystems - WEFE) that need to be considered with an explicit focus on their mutual influences and interdependencies. Adopting a WEFE Nexus approach, i.e. overcoming a purely sectoral natural resources management promoting integrated management, is becoming particularly critical as both the negative environmental impacts and insecurity of water, energy and food supply are expected to worsen in the near future, driven by population growth, increasingly resource- intensive lifestyles and vulnerabilities to disruptive shocks including climate-related risks.

The systematic implementation of a WEFE Nexus approach in practice is, however, still an ambition as there is limited knowledge on how tools and methods can be used to address the interlinked resource security concerns. A major gap is related to how scientific knowledge can be made actionable with relevance to policy- and decision-makers.

The main goal of the present Research Topic is to contribute to the WEFE Nexus dialogue particularly focusing on the transition from an improved understanding to action. Several methods, tools and technologies are being developed and implemented to facilitate ‘Nexus thinking’ and analysis, including integrated modelling tools and participatory approaches. The aim of the collection is to take advantage of implementation activities in ‘real environments’ to demonstrate how tools and methods can be used to operationalize WEFE Nexus, providing ‘actionable information’ to decision-and policy makers for identifying suitable solutions for sustainable Nexus management. Ultimately, the present collection aims at providing knowledge on how science can support operationalizing the Nexus, promoting resilience of Nexus systems and sustainability transitions, based on the rational management of natural resources in conditions of increasing uncertainty and stress.

Submissions are open to diverse papers, dealing with different methods, models, tools and techniques that may be directly applied in the management of WEFE Nexus systems. We particularly welcome articles that: i) provide integrated and interdisciplinary perspectives to WEFE Nexus, ultimately supporting (holistic) resource management in view of water, food, ecosystems and energy security; ii) deal with the interconnectedness between bio-physical systems and human/societal systems; iii) explore the use of participatory approaches and the capitalization of stakeholders’ knowledge.

We invite papers focusing on, but not limited to:

• Dynamic tools and methods to operationalise the WEFE nexus (e.g. System Dynamics Modelling, Agent-Based Modelling, LCA, statistical modelling, etc.)

• Integrated modelling and/or participatory approaches to understand and model WEFE Nexus systems

• Scenario analysis for Nexus systems, to support policy- and decision- makers

• Identification of solutions for an improved Nexus management, including technical measures (e.g. Nature-based Solutions) and policies (e.g. resources allocation criteria).

The following article types are invited for submission: original research, reviews, methods, perspective papers, community case studies, policy briefs, opinion papers and brief research reports.

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Frontiers in Water

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