São Paulo School of Advanced Science on the Water-Energy-Food Nexus for Better Decisions in a Complex World (SPSAS -WEF Nexus)

Abstract

The São Paulo School of Advanced Science on the Water-Energy-Food Nexus for Better Decisions in a Complex World (SPSAS -WEF Nexus) will be offered during July 16 to July 27th, 2018, at Unicamp. This school was developed aiming to cover the fundamentals of a field that is central to the world future and of which researchers should be knowledgeable. The nexus concept is rapidly evolving and, although an effort will be made to keep up-to-date of the latest developments, the course emphasis will be on timeless fundamentals. Thus, it is divided into three main parts: the food, water and energy crisis--general description; the nexus approach (comphreensive concepts and methodologies), and; assessment tools for urban complex systems. Part I provides an overview of the food, water, and energy crisis from different scientific fields and shows why interdisciplinary research may lead to technological innovation to avoid natural resources imbalances and environmental burdens. Part II demonstrates how the nexus approach can address effective the dynamics of food-water-energy interplay. Part III examines the available tools on risk assessment and behaviour modelling to infer possible hotspots on water-energy-food nexus in large part upon solutions on planning, management and technological innovation. The course will be concluded with some considerations on the future of sustainability within the nexus and on how to tackle future generations demands. (AU)