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FEW and Far Between

Rebalancing Research and Training Priorities at the Food-Energy-Water Nexus

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Abstract

The food-energy-water (FEW) nexus framework calls for a systems perspective on addressing complex sustainability challenges. As a sustainability science field, nexus research should in theory bring together transdisciplinary approaches drawing from a range of stakeholder knowledge and experiences. This approach would align with the competence-based training for future sustainability leaders advocated for in sustainability education literature. In practice, the field is dominated by techno-scientific approaches with superficial or peripheral attention paid to issues of social justice and community engagement. In this article, we explore how this imbalance in the literature reflects a breakdown between the ideals of sustainability training and the reality of training at the nexus and describe obstacles that may be contributing to this breakdown, including a prejudice towards the idea of “objective” science, institutional incentives, and disciplinary culture. To address these concerns, we introduce a research project focused on assessing the training of future researchers at the FEW nexus and exploring how these programs train students in particular views of what is important at the FEW nexus, such as technological solutions, stakeholder collaboration, and/or issues of equity and justice. It will also provide recommendations for creating open learning environments that are competence-based, and that incorporate multiple methods, acknowledgments of limitations, and alternate ways of knowing.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank our Global STEWARDS cohort and faculty mentors for their feedback on this manuscript. We would additionally like to thank Kelsey McKee and Shirley Vincent for their generous feedback during the revision process.

Funding

All authors were supported by NRT-INFEWS: UMD Global STEWARDS (STEM Training at the Nexus of Energy, WAter Reuse and FooD Systems) that was awarded to the University of Maryland School of Public Health by the National Science Foundation National Research Traineeship Program, Grant number 1828910.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA

    Ellen J. Platts

  2. Urban and Regional Planning and Design Program, School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA

    Bridget Kerner

  3. School of Public Health, Maryland Institute of Applied Environmental Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA

    Nick Adams & Jan-Michael Archer

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  1. Ellen J. Platts
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  2. Bridget Kerner
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All authors contributed to the study conception and design, literature review and analysis, drafting of the manuscript, and revision. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Ellen J. Platts.

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Platts, E.J., Kerner, B., Adams, N. et al. FEW and Far Between. Sci & Educ 31, 1383–1397 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-022-00344-0

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