Search

This chapter summarizes the activities of the interdisciplinary study group under the RIHN Nexus project. The mission of the group was (1) to review the WEF Nexus studies as a means to understand the current state of research on the WEF, (2) to develop integrated methods to address nexus issues, and (3) to design and visualize a WEF nexus system map to understand the complexity of the WEF Nexus system. The future challenges of the interdisciplinary group are (a) to develop the concept of integration in order to understand the concept of WEF nexus, (b) to integrate each method for adopting inter- and transdisciplinary research approaches to address nexus issues, (c) to approach not only disciplines, but also sectors using integrated methods focusing on stakeholders to adopt a transdisciplinary approach.

This paper focuses on a collection of methods that can be used to analyze the water-energy-food (WEF) nexus. We classify these methods as qualitative or quantitative for interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research approaches. The methods for interdisciplinary research approaches can be used to unify a collection of related variables, visualize the research problem, evaluate the issue, and simulate the system of interest. Qualitative methods are generally used to describe the nexus in the region of interest, and include primary research methods such as Questionnaire Surveys, as well as secondary research methods such as Ontology Engineering and Integrated Maps. Quantitative methods for examining the nexus include Physical Models, Benefit-Cost Analysis (BCA), Integrated Indices, and Optimization Management Models. The authors discuss each of these methods in the following sections, along with accompanying case studies from research sites in Japan and the Philippines. Although the case studies are specific to two regions, these methods could be applicable to other areas, with appropriate calibration.

Climate change (CC) impacts are threatening around the globe and they are not limited to developing countries. CC adaptation in developing countries is mostly focused on community-based adaptation to help the poorest and the most vulnerable societies by empowering communities to become resilient to CC impacts (Huq and Reid, 2007; Ayers and Huq, 2009). In contrast, developed countries are presumed to have a low vulnerability to CC (Ford and Berrang-Ford, 2011). As a result, not many studies are conducted in the developed countries to see the effectiveness of policies and actions taken for CC adaptation. However, as the adaptation is location specific and solutions and approaches are diverse (Agrawal, 2010), it is worthwhile understanding cases in developed countries.

The Asia-Pacific region is one of the most climate change (CC) vulnerable regions in the world due to the relatively high proportion of its population depending on climate-sensitive sectors, dense population living in CC vulnerable geographical locations, and poor development of risk-governance systems. The national communications submitted by the developing countries to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) showed gaps in its capacity, including research, to effectively cope with CC impacts (Kreft et al., 2011). The need for enhanced adaptation research and policy-making capacity in developing Asia was recognised in a series of stakeholder consultations conducted by the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) and the work was carried out at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation and Vietnam Institute of Meteorology, Hydrology and Environment (Pereira et al., 2011).