Analysing the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus Using the Network of Action Situations (NAS) Approach

The Water-Energy-Food (WEF) nexus has gained growing interest in recent years as a promising approach to overcome governance failures in dealing with complex resource management challenges. The nexus approach acknowledges and attempts to uncover the interconnectedness between multiple sectors in order to manage and govern them in an integrated and sustainable manner. Nexus focuses on benefits from synergies and the prevention of trade-offs rather than on the sectors themselves. Various qualitative and quantitative methods from different disciplines have been used to understand nexus issues, but just few of these take into account the role of institutions on actor interactions and the influence of adjacent action situations which prepare the ground for decisions with immediate relevance for the WEF nexus. This paper introduces an analytical framework using the Network of Action Situations (NAS) approach rooted in the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework. The approach tries to capture WEF nexus interactions and governance deficits by analyzing the effect of institutions at and across different levels on action situations, and the interactions within the network of action situations. The value and the potential of the approach introduced is illustrated for a typical case with a problem constellation which is quite typical for many regions in the world. It is a case of a lake-river-cascade of multifunctional water use in the canton of Zurich, Switzerland with governance gaps and coordination problems regarding the WEF nexus. These include the allocation of water for environmental and touristic uses and for energy and food production. The results show the value of the approach by demonstrating the ways in which institutions limit or support synergies and how adjacent actions situations shape decisions with immediate relevance for the WEF nexus in decisive manners.