1. Introduction

As the world's population grows and environmental challenges become more complex, it becomes increasingly important to understand and manage the interdependencies of natural resources, in particular where resource use in one area can have unintended consequences in another. Some examples include:

Intensive agricultural practices secure food production but have led to the depletion of water resources and degrading ecosystems in many parts of the world.

The need for energy production, especially from hydroelectric or biofuel sources, has put pressure on water and land resources, and thereby negatively affected food security and ecosystem health.

Climate change exacerbates these challenges by altering precipitation patterns and increasing the frequency of extreme weather events, thereby changing the balance between water availability, food security, energy production and ecosystem sustainability.

In the context of these interrelated challenges, the concept of the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE) nexus has gained increasing attention over the last decade as a way to understand the interconnection between the use of water and energy resources, the production of food, and protection of ecosystems. Adopting such a WEFe nexus perspective helps to reflect how decisions taken and resources used in one sector may significantly impact other natural resources, possibly leading to unsustainable outcomes.