Water–Food–Energy Nexus for a Sustainable Use and Management of Natural Resources, Byproducts and Wastes in Agri-Food Systems II

Dear Colleagues,

We invite submissions to a Special Issue of the journal Energies on the highly relevant topic of the water–food–energy nexus. The production and use of energy accounts for more than 75% of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions; therefore, further decarbonizing the energy system is fundamental for reaching the climate targets set for 2030 and 2050. Furthermore, agri-food systems today cause air, water and soil pollution, contribute to the loss of biodiversity and to climate change, challenge animal welfare, and consume excessive amounts of natural resources (i.e., water and energy). In this context, renewable sources such as of agro-industrial byproducts and organic wastes play a central role as demonstrated by the quantification of their overall production and the increasing public recognition of reducing, reusing, and recycling byproducts and wastes. Scientific projections show that food, energy, and water consumption will significantly increase by the mid-21st century, so understanding the interrelationships between these components is urgently needed for a sustainable development of agricultural production systems. The concept of the water–food–energy (WFE) nexus has been introduced and promoted for achieving water, food, and energy security in a sustainable way. The aim of this Special issue is at facilitating development of a nexus approach towards bio-based economy by sharing the latest research and development in WFE nexus solutions.

Prof. Dr. Wei Liao
Prof. Dr. Attilio Toscano
Dr. Francesca Valenti
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• integrated waste management
• farm-based WFE solutions
• energy and water efficiency in organic waste management
• efficient and low-energy water/wastewater treatment technologies
• WFE nexus databases and datasets
• WFE nexus tools for the agricultural, industrial, and energy sectors
• WFE nexus in urban areas
• WFE nexus policies
• carbon neutrality and WFE
• case studies of the nexus approach
• GIS application