187
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
P. Saundry, B. L. Ruddell (eds.), The Food-Energy-Water Nexus, AESS
Interdisciplinary Environmental Studies and Sciences Series,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-29914-9_7
Chapter 7
Trade
Peter Saundry and Benjamin L. Ruddell
7.1 Introduction
Trade is a key feature of the FEW Nexus. The D’Odorico and Scanlon framings
described in Sect. 1.4 emphasize the importance of focusing on problems and
solutions at the nexus, as a strategy for making sense of complex FEW systems.
Typically, the practical goals are straightforward—decrease demands for FEW
commodities, increase supplies, increase storage buffers, increase transportation
and trade capacity and connectivity, and do so in the presence of climate change,
population growth, growing wealth and consumption, and dietary changes. Trade is
a powerful tool in achieving practical goals in FEW systems.
In Chap. 2, we noted the importance of inputs and outputs in system science.
Trade is one of the major classes of system inputs and outputs. Imports and exports
of commodities through trade (the buying or selling of goods and services) are
frequently important inputs and outputs in FEW systems.
In Chap. 3, we noted that food, energy, and water security require four attributes:
availability, access, utilization, and reliability (see Sect. 3.2). Trade can facilitate all
four attributes.
0. Trade makes commodities physically available at locations where local supplies
do not meet demand.
P. Saundry (*)
Energy Policy and Climate, Advanced Academic Programs, Krieger School of Arts
and Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Washington, DC, USA
e-mail: psaundr1@jhu.edu
B. L. Ruddell
School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems, Northern Arizona University,
Flagstaff, AZ, USA
e-mail: Benjamin.Ruddell@nau.edu
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
P. Saundry, B. L. Ruddell (eds.), The Food-Energy-Water Nexus, AESS
Interdisciplinary Environmental Studies and Sciences Series,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-29914-9_7
Chapter 7
Trade
Peter Saundry and Benjamin L. Ruddell
7.1 Introduction
Trade is a key feature of the FEW Nexus. The D’Odorico and Scanlon framings
described in Sect. 1.4 emphasize the importance of focusing on problems and
solutions at the nexus, as a strategy for making sense of complex FEW systems.
Typically, the practical goals are straightforward—decrease demands for FEW
commodities, increase supplies, increase storage buffers, increase transportation
and trade capacity and connectivity, and do so in the presence of climate change,
population growth, growing wealth and consumption, and dietary changes. Trade is
a powerful tool in achieving practical goals in FEW systems.
In Chap. 2, we noted the importance of inputs and outputs in system science.
Trade is one of the major classes of system inputs and outputs. Imports and exports
of commodities through trade (the buying or selling of goods and services) are
frequently important inputs and outputs in FEW systems.
In Chap. 3, we noted that food, energy, and water security require four attributes:
availability, access, utilization, and reliability (see Sect. 3.2). Trade can facilitate all
four attributes.
0. Trade makes commodities physically available at locations where local supplies
do not meet demand.
P. Saundry (*)
Energy Policy and Climate, Advanced Academic Programs, Krieger School of Arts
and Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Washington, DC, USA
e-mail: psaundr1@jhu.edu
B. L. Ruddell
School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems, Northern Arizona University,
Flagstaff, AZ, USA
e-mail: Benjamin.Ruddell@nau.edu