Research Article // Creating knowledge about food-water-energy nexus at a local scale: A participatory approach in Tulcea, Romania
By Dragos Balaican and colleagues. This study presents participatory research activities focused on the water-energy-food nexus in Tulcea, Romania. Involving multiple local stakeholders is very important in the co-creation process in research project on WEF nexus.
Physical Map of Romania with Tulcea City position highlighted.
Abstract
The concept of the water-energy-food nexus (WEF nexus) presents an alternative paradigm to traditional sectoral approaches for managing natural resources while promoting climate resilience and sustainable development. Applying the WEF nexus in the urban context, however, has been limited due to the complexity of the concept and the challenges of integrating interdisciplinary and local knowledge with the governance structure available to resource managers. This case study from Tulcea, Romania explores the participatory process used to analyze the dynamic character of the WEF nexus in the context of current societal challenges and practices. Participatory research activities presented in this study focused on the ‘food’ component of the WEF nexus (i.e., local vegetable markets), while exploring connections with water (irrigation and water quality) and energy (consumption and renewable energy sources). The results illustrate the utility of adopting a transdisciplinary integrative approach to understanding the nexus, particularly for local-scale applications of the WEF system integrations within broader sustainable development initiatives.
Published
March 2023
By
Environmental Science & Policy
Citation
Balaican, D., Nichersu, I., Nichersu, I. I., Pierce, A., Wilhelmi, O., Laborgne, P., & Bratfanof, E. (2023). Creating knowledge about food-water-energy nexus at a local scale: A participatory approach in Tulcea, Romania. Environmental Science & Policy, 141, 23-32.
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