The Water-Energy Nexus

摘要

The study of various resource "nexuses" has been an expanding topic of interest in recent years. While the use of the term "nexus" as the connection, conjunction, or joining-point of two parts (physical or philosophical) has been used for a long time, the application of the term to different types of resources has only been relatively recent. From a search of academic literature, the term "nexus" first arises in relation to the food-energy nexus in a United Nations symposium in Paris in 1982. The usage became gradually more prominent, with the application to the water-energy nexus arising for the first time (in the available online academic literature) in 2002. The water-energy nexus is also referred to in reverse - the energy-water nexus - the order makes no difference to the meaning. So what is the water-energy nexus practically, theoretically and systemically? What is the current status of the nexus, and the development in the field? It is, of course, impossible to cover the entirety of the nexus in a few papers however, this special issue will address some major, relevant and recent developments.