Water-Energy-Food nexus in cities: solving urban challenges together
Between April and October 2022, the world horticulture expo Floriade is organised in the city of Almere, the Netherlands. The theme of the Floriade World Expo 2022 is Growing Green Cities. In line with this theme, Closer Cities organises a one-day conference on 12 May around the topic of the Water-Energy-Food nexus in urban environment. This conference is organised in close collaboration with several partners and experts from organisations such TU Delft, TNO, Deltares, Wageningen University & Research, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Aeres University of Applied Sciences, and many more. The experts represent various WEF-nexus related projects, such as adaptive horticulture in Dubai, UAE; farm of the future in Lelystad, Netherlands; training of farmers in Kumasi, Ghana; city-region food systems approach related to water, energy, food.
The WEF-nexus challenges and opportunities will be related to the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals. Participants represent the public sector, the private sector, knowledge institutes, NGOs, and civil society.
The conference is an expert meeting by invitation only. The format consists of three rounds of round table discussions, networking opportunities, and a visit to the Floriade (world horticulture exposition).
Complicated Water-Energy-Food interdependencies ask for smart, comprehensive approaches
Cities around the world deal with this WEF-nexus in various ways. During the one-day international conference on Water-Energy-Food nexus in cities, the focus lies on how improved urban knowledge sharing regarding the WEF-nexus can contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Experts and participants will focus on the exchange of effective local approaches and discuss questions like: how can we scale up good practices? What role do context variables – like climate, city size, geography, governance – play in the exchangeability of effective approaches? What can stimulate the co-creation of effective approaches? The experts of the conference present and discuss various WEF-nexus related topics, such as water, food and/or energy related challenges, intersectoral (nexus) issues as well as specific solutions.
According to the United Nations: “The water-food-energy nexus is central to sustainable development. Demand for all three is increasing, driven by a rising global population, rapid urbanization, changing diets and economic growth. Agriculture is the largest consumer of the world’s freshwater resources, and more than one-quarter of the energy used globally is expended on food production and supply. The inextricable linkages between these critical domains require a suitably integrated approach to ensuring water and food security, and sustainable agriculture and energy production worldwide.”
Programme
Go to our information sheet for more details on the conference, the creative format of the roundtable sessions, and the programme.
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More information
The conference is by invitation only. For any questions, please contact the Closer Cities team: info@closercities.org