A Belmont Forum Scoping Workshop on Food, Water & Energy for Sustainable Global Urbanization: Accelerating Transitions to Sustainable Consumption and Production

University Of Colorado At Boulder, Boulder CO

Investigators

Abstract

This award provides support for an international workshop to explore options for international collaborative research on critical issues of balancing food-water-energy resources within the context of increased global urbanization. Achieving sustainable societies will require an understanding of the interrelated nature of global food, water and energy resource systems. Ideally, societies will minimize trade-offs and maximize synergies between these resources in order to accelerate transitions to Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) patterns. This Food-Water-Energy Nexus approach can play a pivotal role in fostering sustainable global development by helping to identify integrated solutions to govern resource interdependencies. Development in and around urban areas is of particular concern due to the ongoing rapid population increases in cities. Therefore, the Nexus approach can offer a unique perspective on accelerating transitions to sustainable societies across the urban-rural gradient. The workshop will bring together researchers from natural and social science disciplines, stakeholders and research funders to collectively determine what international collaborative research is needed to link the Food-Water-Energy Nexus approach with sustainable consumption patterns in the context of global urbanization. The goals of this workshop are to: 1. Provide global and regional perspectives from practitioners and stakeholders on challenges associated with balancing resources within the Food-Water-Energy Nexus and the impact of Urbanization on these tradeoffs; 2. Identify critical knowledge gaps in the development of potential mechanisms to accelerate transitions to Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) patterns; and 3. Assess the state of existing investments and programs in these areas and determine areas ripe for international collaboration; 4.Set out priority societal challenges to be addressed and the associated research questions/topics, where international collaboration will add substantial value and generate significant advances.