Workshop: Food, Energy and Water Nexus in Sustainable CitiesBeijingOctober 20-21, 2015

Nada Marie Anid, Ph.D.Dean

School of Engineering and Computing Sciences

Overarching Goal of the Workshop

stimulate basic research on the interdependence of systems involving agriculture, water and energy,

identify barriers to sustainability in food production, transport, distribution, use and access in urban environments.

bring improved understanding on how best to study FEW couplings and stressors, with attention to systems-based approaches to analyze fundamental principles underlying various socio-economic, physical, and natural processes operating within built environments.

Specific Goals and Objectives

The FEW workshop “Food, Energy, and Water Nexus in Sustainable Cities”: Seeks to facilitate and enable multidisciplinary partnerships

among researchers at the forefront of scientific research in sustainability in the United States and China.

Is convened to explore scientific challenges of mutual interest, while addressing fundamental research questions of global significance in the fields of sustainability, engineering, social and natural sciences and cyber, physical and information systems.

Objective 1 and Outcomes:Objective 1: To build a research platform that supports active engagement and joint approaches to global FEW challenges, with attention to urban centers.

Outcomes under objective 1: Determine priority FEW themes for research collaborations in the US and

in China, with respect to megacities and/or the built environment. Define scientific, engineering, and data challenges that affect the food,

energy and water complex system, as they relate to urban centers. Discuss the role of infrastructure and technological innovations in

addressing / fostering optimal use of resources in cities. Identify key actors to support implementation of an integrated approach

to resource management and discuss how the integration may be achieved.

Objective 2 and Outcomes:Objective 2: To form a global FEW research and education community and provide some initial groundwork for the formulation of some U.S.-China FEW partnerships.

Outcomes under objective 2: Develop a mechanism to connect the research and educational efforts of

all participants and facilitate the formation of partnerships. Leverage the capacity of all leading institutions in education and

service/outreach to help engage participants across the two nations. Determine best models for the promotion of open data and data sharing

across participating institutions and entities.

Workshop SessionsSESSION 1: FEW Nexus: Sustainability Challenges This session will advance the understanding of the interactions among FEW resources

recognizing their inter-related nature and feedback mechanisms. Participants will also consider sustainability challenges, responses to stressors and coupling affecting FEW resources as part of a dynamic and interrelated structural system.

SESSION 2: Impacts of Urbanization and Anthropogenic Disruptions on Vital FEW Resources Increased disruptions to, and competition for, resources that sustain life have a

significant impact on the livelihoods of large populations and the environment. Advancing the understanding of the interactions among FEW resources requires a systems-based approach that recognizes their inter-related nature and feedback mechanisms. For example, 71% of global freshwater resources and 30% of total energy consumed globally are used for agriculture and food production. This session will highlight technological breakthroughs and ecological deterioration of water bodies that are vital for fisheries and other activities, as a result of growing urbanization and agricultural development. Restoration approaches to sustainable FEW resources and environments will be proposed.

Workshop Sessions (cont.)

SESSION 3: Research Advances on Systems-Based Analysis for Complex FEW Systems This session will explore research advances for FEW systems protection, in particular

the integration of heterogeneous data and uncertainties for systems-based modeling and analysis of FEW systems. Researchers will also address challenges in the analysis and protection of FEW resources utilizing mathematical modeling and GIS techniques.

Session 4: Sensors and information systems for real-time monitoring and analyses of FEW systems This session will focus on advances in the integration of IT and cyber-physical systems

for real-time water quality monitoring and analysis. The effective management of FEW resources implies increased coordination among public agencies, city officials, farmers, and consumers as well as synergistic activities to optimize resource use. Advances in sensors and other information systems for real-time monitoring can enhance FEW resources management by supporting analyses of FEW system interactions.

Key Deliverables:

The main workshop’s deliverable will be a white paper that: defines scientific, engineering and data challenges in

understanding the food, energy and water systems and their inter-relations and feedback mechanisms.

The report will provide a synthesis of the discussion regarding an integrated and cohesive framework for research, ultimately leading to more efficient FEW systems as they operate within urban centers throughout the globe.

Workshop Programming Team

The workshop’s programming team is led by: New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) and Peking University (PKU),

who initiated their U.S.-China EcoPartnership collaboration in 2013 the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and its Institute for

Sustainability (AIChE-IfS, Dr. Darlene Schuster), Wuhan University (WHU) (Dr. Xiahui Cui), along with HDR, Inc.

The organizers leverage previous and ongoing work, along with existing research collaborations and networks, including: the U.S. - China EcoPartners working on food, energy and water systems; the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’ Institute for Sustainability, the World Environment Center (WEC)