A Review on the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems Nexus Research in the Mediterranean: Evolution, Gaps and Applications

Over the last few years, the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus has been brought forward by scientists as a novel way of analysing the interconnectedness of global resources systems, and by policy makers as an approach to achieving water, food and energy security while preserving the environment.  Implementing such an integrated thinking is crucial for the Mediterranean, a region characterised by increasing demand for food and energy, and vulnerable to water scarcity, impact of climate change and degradation of natural ecosystems.  Through an integrative review of scientific literature, we examined the evolution of Nexus research in the Mediterranean in terms of critical interlinkages being investigated, explored topics, methods and scales of analysis, and context of operationalizations. The 136 reviewed articles revealed that (a) water-energy interlinkages dominates Nexus research in the Mediterranean, driven by the need of satisfying water demands for drinking and irrigation through energy-intensive water resources; (b) the expansion of Nexus thinking to additional components is mostly limited to assessing the impact of Nexus sectors on the physical environment and the climate, without capturing feedback dynamics; (c) there are only few Nexus studies working  at the entire Mediterranean scale which would provide a much needed contextual setting to the impact of isolated case studies; (d) there is promising evidence that Nexus research in the Mediterranean is going beyond the biophysical dimension to encompass socio-economic interactions and governance aspects; yet, (e) their analysis often remain segregated in silos because of a limited integration of methods across disciplines; (f) Sustainable Technology and Natural Resources Management are the key drivers of Nexus research operationalization and would  benefit from an harmonisation to coherently advance Nexus implementation in the Mediterranean region. This review concludes that Nexus research in the Mediterranean would benefit from an integration of the knowledge developed so far in multi-scale, multi-sector, and multi-dimensional frameworks, which would be capable of supporting technological, socio-economic and governance interventions.