Water, energy, food, and ecosystems (WEFE) are interconnected, comprising a coherent system (nexus) dominated by complexity and modulated by climatic and socio-economic drivers. Resource constraints, and their interconnectedness could hamper economic development, including optimal trade, market and policy solutions.
NEXOGENESIS offers a coherent WEFE nexus framework for the assessment of potential impact pathways of implementing new policy objectives (WFD, RED, CAP, SDGs, Paris Agreement) in the nexus, including: (i) biophysical and socio-economic modelling; (ii) stakeholder engagement together with; (iii) validation of NEXOGENESIS outputs and; (iv) use of the latest artificial intelligence techniques.
General objectives
NEXOGENESIS will develop and validate novel machine learning techniques, bio-physical and complexity science modelling to assess stakeholder response to changes in the nexus for smarter nexus policy formulation. The output will be embedded in a nexus assessment engine aimed at policy makers and stakeholders for validation. NEXOGENESIS will advance knowledge on WEFE nexus responses to new policy measures in five diverse CS for improved multi-sector policy design in a variety of nexus challenges in complex transboundary socio-ecological systems, assisting (water) diplomacy.
CMCC role
CMCC co-leads WP2 Biophysical-human modelling. The goal is to identify and bring together relevant nexus data, to create a coherent scientific portfolio of data across case studies for characterizing physical, environmental and socio-economic components under current and future climate change conditions through the century.
Activities
Researchers will identify and document information and consolidated data available according to specific WEFE nexus dimensions from the different partners, repository data and Inter-Comparison projects. CMCC will provide support to data knowledge for elaboration of feasible and optimal solutions to elaborate complexity science model(s) for each Case Study.
CMCC will support analyses and evaluation of nexus criticalities within the Adige watershed case study from middle to lowland, mostly related to agriculture in the valleys to delta ecosystems near the seacoast. CMCC will investigate the nexus between water-food production and the provisioning of ecosystem services, analyzing the possible synergies and conflicts of interest under different climatic conditions and alternative policy settings.
Expected results
NEXOGENESIS will advance in the state-of-the-art in biophysical-human nexus analysis by linking complexity science with novel AI techniques and effective stakeholder engagement. NEXOGENESIS will co-create with stakeholders from the nexus a user-validated policy packages, a governance roadmap for policy change and a river contract for stakeholder commitment on implementation of the roadmap.
Partners
- KWR WATER B.V. (NL)
- ACCADEMIA EUROPEA DI BOLZANO (IT)
- FONDAZIONE CENTRO EURO-MEDITERRANEOSUI CAMBIAMENTI CLIMATICI (IT)
- HELMHOLTZ-ZENTRUM FUR UMWELTFORSCHUNG GMBH – UFZ (DE)
- FUNDACIO EURECAT (ES)
- STICHTING WAGENINGEN RESEARCH (NL)
- NATIONAL TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS – NTUA (EL)
- FONDAZIONE UNIVERSITA CA FOSCARI VENEZIA (IT)
- UNIVERSITE DE TOURS (FR)
- UPPSALA UNIVERSITET (SE)
- PANEPISTIMIO THESSALIAS (EL)
- BALTIJAS VIDES FORUMS (LV)
- Jones and Wagener (Pty) Ltd (ZA)
- GAC (FR)
- BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT GROUP SRL (Romania)
- Tamara Avellan (DE)
- Municipality of Gotse Delchev (BG)
- MUNICIPALITY OF NESTOS (EL)
- WATER EUROPE (BE)