329
As a result, gains from FEWS nexus science are increasingly achieved when
decision- makers gain access to scientifically valid analytical tools (data/models)
that cover the range of applications from planning (larger scales) to on-the-ground
implementation (smaller scales). More effective implementation of FEW system
models is achieved when these tools are coproduced with end-users, integrating
stakeholders in the food, energy, and water sectors and the broader community to be
served by the application of such tools (e.g., ecosystem services, health, other economic activities) in framing critical questions for research and helping plan for
implementation. Such factors are addressed further in Chaps. 17 and 21.
As noted in Chaps. 4 and 5, economic analysis and modeling are necessary when
assessing FEW system trade-offs. For instance, water and energy are crucial inputs
to the production of goods and services. Tightening constraints may introduce the
potential for reductions in production activities. Increasing water demand and scarcity has the potential to increase market prices for food, energy, and water and to
lead to redistributions of these increasingly scarce resources. Economics governs
most FEW decisions and is an essential science for these systems models.
In the case of water, increasing scarcity in one area is likely to result in part in the
increased purchase of food products from another area. When this occurs, significant
structural adjustment can occur and needs to be managed with sensitivity in order to
ensure that overall economic activity and employment is not reduced in the short term,
or, in extreme cases, result in food insecurity, migration, and conflict. Actual outcomes
will depend on the capacity of a community to adjust; rates of technological progress
in the development of water efficiency in energy and food production; knowledge
provision; and institutional, governance, and planning arrangements to facilitate efficient investment and synergies in water and energy planning.
Ultimately, the feasibility of transitioning to a FEW system approach in practice
will depend not simply on the technology and policy characteristics, but also on the
economic and climate/environmental impacts, the manner in which they interface
with other technologies, physical and institutional infrastructures, and a range of
societal norms.
12.2.2 Physical Questions and Values Questions
Because FEW systems are coupled natural-human systems, a recognition of both
physical-science-based and human-values-based questions (as developed in Chap.
4) is essential. This distinction is sometimes called physical (or natural) science and
social science. It is essential to recognize the subjective human values involved in
many FEW nexus questions and delineate them from objective scientific aspects of
FEW nexus scholarship. Example human-values-based questions are:
• How can FEW outputs (goods, services) most efficiently be produced and
distributed?
• What outputs should be maximized? Food, energy, or water separately or
together?
• Where should inputs come from?
12 Questions and Scales
As a result, gains from FEWS nexus science are increasingly achieved when
decision- makers gain access to scientifically valid analytical tools (data/models)
that cover the range of applications from planning (larger scales) to on-the-ground
implementation (smaller scales). More effective implementation of FEW system
models is achieved when these tools are coproduced with end-users, integrating
stakeholders in the food, energy, and water sectors and the broader community to be
served by the application of such tools (e.g., ecosystem services, health, other economic activities) in framing critical questions for research and helping plan for
implementation. Such factors are addressed further in Chaps. 17 and 21.
As noted in Chaps. 4 and 5, economic analysis and modeling are necessary when
assessing FEW system trade-offs. For instance, water and energy are crucial inputs
to the production of goods and services. Tightening constraints may introduce the
potential for reductions in production activities. Increasing water demand and scarcity has the potential to increase market prices for food, energy, and water and to
lead to redistributions of these increasingly scarce resources. Economics governs
most FEW decisions and is an essential science for these systems models.
In the case of water, increasing scarcity in one area is likely to result in part in the
increased purchase of food products from another area. When this occurs, significant
structural adjustment can occur and needs to be managed with sensitivity in order to
ensure that overall economic activity and employment is not reduced in the short term,
or, in extreme cases, result in food insecurity, migration, and conflict. Actual outcomes
will depend on the capacity of a community to adjust; rates of technological progress
in the development of water efficiency in energy and food production; knowledge
provision; and institutional, governance, and planning arrangements to facilitate efficient investment and synergies in water and energy planning.
Ultimately, the feasibility of transitioning to a FEW system approach in practice
will depend not simply on the technology and policy characteristics, but also on the
economic and climate/environmental impacts, the manner in which they interface
with other technologies, physical and institutional infrastructures, and a range of
societal norms.
12.2.2 Physical Questions and Values Questions
Because FEW systems are coupled natural-human systems, a recognition of both
physical-science-based and human-values-based questions (as developed in Chap.
4) is essential. This distinction is sometimes called physical (or natural) science and
social science. It is essential to recognize the subjective human values involved in
many FEW nexus questions and delineate them from objective scientific aspects of
FEW nexus scholarship. Example human-values-based questions are:
• How can FEW outputs (goods, services) most efficiently be produced and
distributed?
• What outputs should be maximized? Food, energy, or water separately or
together?
• Where should inputs come from?
12 Questions and Scales