15
functioning regarding environmental and human concerns. These processes are
essential components of any consideration at the nexus of FEW systems and receive
our attention now.
1.3.2 Core Processes Influencing the Nexus
Several processes that influence and interact with the nexus are commonly discussed, each with the potential for a variety of nexus impacts depending on their
characteristics, functions, and interactions with other processes. Each has varying
degrees of responsiveness and importance to the five criteria introduced above. The
importance of these processes has led some to frame the nexus as including them as
components equivalent to food, energy, and water; an alternative to the FEW framings described above. Here, based upon the criteria that we have just discussed, they
are viewed as critical processes shaping the FEW nexus. A fundamental understanding of these processes and their underlying components will be helpful to a scholar
of nexus studies, who may find in the Further Reading and Educational Resources
throughout the book additional background for FEW nexus topics outside their primary discipline.
1.3.2.1 Population Growth and Societal Development
Recognizing food, energy, and water as “three critical consumables” anchors the
nexus in considerations of people, their demographics and locations, the conditions
in which they live, and their aspirations for nutrition, energy services, and water—
and a certain “quality of life.”
The total human population on earth, 7.7 billion in 2019, while profoundly
important, is a superficial indicator. The consequences of how human societies
function concerning food, energy, and water are complicated and related to far more
than the numbers of people within them. Factors such as geography, local resources,
and ecosystems affect how people live. The age structure, wealth, education, social
inequality, fertility, political and economic structures, and many other factors are
every bit as necessary as the absolute number of people for an understanding of the
structure and functioning of the FEW nexus.
In Chap. 3, we will explore Demographics and Sustainable Development. We will
do so with an eye to the billions of people on this planet who aspire to live like their
wealthier neighbors. We will focus on the concepts of resource “security,” “development,” and initiatives like the Millennium Development Goals (2000–2015) and the
Sustainable Development Goals (2015–2030) which seek to bring about greater
access to food, energy, and water, as well as other aspects of human development.
While the focus of development is usually on the poorest countries on the planet
where simple access to adequate supplies of food, energy, and water are critical and
ethical objectives, it is important to remember that development never stops, even in
1 Introduction
functioning regarding environmental and human concerns. These processes are
essential components of any consideration at the nexus of FEW systems and receive
our attention now.
1.3.2 Core Processes Influencing the Nexus
Several processes that influence and interact with the nexus are commonly discussed, each with the potential for a variety of nexus impacts depending on their
characteristics, functions, and interactions with other processes. Each has varying
degrees of responsiveness and importance to the five criteria introduced above. The
importance of these processes has led some to frame the nexus as including them as
components equivalent to food, energy, and water; an alternative to the FEW framings described above. Here, based upon the criteria that we have just discussed, they
are viewed as critical processes shaping the FEW nexus. A fundamental understanding of these processes and their underlying components will be helpful to a scholar
of nexus studies, who may find in the Further Reading and Educational Resources
throughout the book additional background for FEW nexus topics outside their primary discipline.
1.3.2.1 Population Growth and Societal Development
Recognizing food, energy, and water as “three critical consumables” anchors the
nexus in considerations of people, their demographics and locations, the conditions
in which they live, and their aspirations for nutrition, energy services, and water—
and a certain “quality of life.”
The total human population on earth, 7.7 billion in 2019, while profoundly
important, is a superficial indicator. The consequences of how human societies
function concerning food, energy, and water are complicated and related to far more
than the numbers of people within them. Factors such as geography, local resources,
and ecosystems affect how people live. The age structure, wealth, education, social
inequality, fertility, political and economic structures, and many other factors are
every bit as necessary as the absolute number of people for an understanding of the
structure and functioning of the FEW nexus.
In Chap. 3, we will explore Demographics and Sustainable Development. We will
do so with an eye to the billions of people on this planet who aspire to live like their
wealthier neighbors. We will focus on the concepts of resource “security,” “development,” and initiatives like the Millennium Development Goals (2000–2015) and the
Sustainable Development Goals (2015–2030) which seek to bring about greater
access to food, energy, and water, as well as other aspects of human development.
While the focus of development is usually on the poorest countries on the planet
where simple access to adequate supplies of food, energy, and water are critical and
ethical objectives, it is important to remember that development never stops, even in
1 Introduction