NEXUS-NESS stands for “NEXUS Nature Ecosystem Society Solution” The extended title is “Fair and Sustainable Resource Allocation Demonstrator of WEFE Nexus Economic, Social and Environmental Benefits in the Mediterranean Region”.
The NEXUS Nature Ecosystem Society (or NEXUS-NESS) solution aims to co-produce and co-test with stakeholders WEFE Nexus management plans for fair and sustainable allocation of resources. NEXUS-NESS will deploy trans-disciplinary methods and multi-sector scenarios by integrating large scale WATNEEDS and river basin scale FREEWAT ecosystem-hydrological models for building a dedicated service to operationalize the proposed WEFE Nexus approach, namely the NEXUS-NESS Service. This new service will transfer and test science-driven WEFE Nexus knowledge to address real case study issues. The NEXUS-NESS solution will interlink the WEF Nexus components with a three-fold conceptualization of the Ecosystem component (Environment, Economy, Engagement/Society). NEXUS-NESS will adopt and test the proposed WEFE Nexus bottom-up approach in four different climatic, environmental, socio-economic and cultural demonstration sites employing Living Lab and Responsible Research and Innovation principles. Four Nexus Ecosystem Labs in Italy, Spain, Egypt and Tunisia will be set up. A WEFE Nexus Innovation Ecosystem Approach supported by a novel Multi Stakeholder and User Platform will effectively engage all stakeholders, including the private sector for creating long-lasting Innovation Ecosystems that are based on collaboration among academia, industry, different levels of the public sector and citizens.
NEXUS-NESS major goals are three: - Identify biophysical and socio-geographic domains (basically finalizing the pre-defined case study boundaries, both physical and regional/administrative to have full picture of the stakeholders to be engaged) where WEFE Nexus strategies are needed for achiveing water, energy, food and ecosystem security and initiating four Nexus Ecosystem Labs (NELs) in Italy, Spain, Tunisia and Egypt adopting Living Lab principles; - Develop WEFE Nexus scenarios to address specific/regional Grand Challenges of the four NELs co-identified with the regional stakeholders and co-produce with stakeholders WEFE Nexus management plans for fair and sustainable allocation of resources by applying WEFE Nexus data, knowledge and tools into real case conditions and show the multiple benefits if transition to the « As-it-is » to the « As-it-should-be » condition; - Implement a WEFE Nexus Innovation Ecosystem Approach (IEA) by applying the Responsible Research And Innovation (RRI) principles through the RRI Roadmap in the 4 NELs to prepare and support stakeholders in a cultural and behavioural change to achieve the desired WEFE Nexus innovation (moving towards the « As-it-should-be » condition).
NEXUS-NESS also included a dedicated project component on an assessment of the policies of the four sectors that are now still overlapping and not working in synergy. NEXUS-NESS will provide a state of the art review of policies for the four NELs to analyze the EU/international policies as respect the national policies in the four countries/NELs. This policy assessment will integrate the the « As-it-is » to the « As-it-should-be » condition to understand and share with the stakeholders how to transition to WEFE Nexus strategies also by identifying policy/governance levels that shall innovate. The “policy barriers” will be, thus, co-identified and discussed with stakeholder and constitute a further important part of the NEXUS-NESS solution. The project also includes the creation of a WEFE Nexus Forum that will work within and in synergy with the Nexushare technological platform.
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