SIM4NEXUS is a 4-year, €7.9M EU Horizon 2020 project that aims to improve decision-making around the water-land-food-energy-climate nexus through an integrated modeling approach. The project involves 25 partners across 15 European countries and will develop nexus models by combining existing thematic models from different domains using complexity science methods. These models will be applied in 10 case studies at regional to global scales to assess policy initiatives and trade-offs. The project will also create a serious game to educate stakeholders and decision-makers about sustainable resource management.

1. SIM4NEXUS:
A novel approach towards
improving decision-making for
resource efficiency, based on the
water-land-food-energy-climate
Nexus
WssTP Water-Energy-Food-
Biodiversity Working Group
Chrysi Laspidou
Associate Professor
Civil Engineering Dept.
University of Thessaly
24/11/2016

2. SIM4NEXUS project
• H2020 project SIM4NEXUS
• Sustainable Integrated Management FOR the
NEXUS of water-land-food-energy-climate for a
resource-efficient Europe
• Grant of € 7.9M
• 4 year project (2016-2020)
• Started June 2016
• 25 partners from 15 European countries
• Co-ordination: Wageningen University & Research
• Core team: University of Exeter, University of Thessaly

3. Project Objectives
SIM4NEXUS has four objectives:
1. To adopt existing knowledge and develop new
expertise on the Nexus,
2. To reduce uncertainties of how policies,
governance and institutions affect complex
changing environmental systems,
3. To showcase the implementation by a network of
regional and national case studies in Europe
4. To valorise the project outputs by suitable business
models.

4. The Nexus for resource efficiency
Target: Resource efficiency
Five Nexus components
• Water
• Energy
• Food
• Land use
• Climate
under Climate Change

5. The Nexus for resource efficiency
Target: Resource efficiency
Instruments:
• Technology
• Economic development
• Social cohesion
• Social innovation
• Governance
• Policy
under Climate Change

6. Previous related research:
Thematic models
Several well-established and developed “thematic”
models” do exist:
• Simulating some (but not all five) Nexus components
• At some scales (e.g. Global)
• Not necessarily targeting resource efficiency
• Some targeting GHG
• Or biodiversity
• Or the economy
• But not all…

7. Thematic models in SIM4NEXUS

8. The main idea(s)
• Using the “thematic models” to identify the links and the gaps in
the Nexus
• With diverse Data Sources and Climate change scenarios
• Running the thematic models
• Combining outputs from the thematic models using Complexity
Science methodologies:
• System Dynamics mainly (previous expertise)
• Cellular Automata
• Fuzzy Pattern Recognition
• Material Flow Analysis
• To develop “Nexus” models for specific Case Studies and scenarios
• To develop a Serious Game for education and decision makers

9. Concept
before integration partial integration
Nexus with
SIM4NEXUS
Common prac ce with silo-thinking,
fragmented policy and decision making
and R&D support
Decision making par ally
integra ng Nexus components
with high uncertainty about results
SIM4NEXUS approach: NEXUS-
compliant R&D and policy-making
thema c models
knowledge
policy & decision making
complexity
science
producing
integrated
knowledge
water energy food land climate
with high uncertainty
All Nexus
components
interac ng
with reduced
uncertainty

10. Structure

11. The Serious Game
SIM4NEXUS to develop a Serious Game
• With an Innovative Knowledge Elicitation Engine (KEE)
• Based on Aqua Republica (an existing serious game
focusing on water developed by DHI)
• http://www.dhigroup.com/upload/publications/scribd/172
629015-Exploring-the-World-of-Aqua-Republica-DHI-Case-
Story.pdf

12. Different Case Studies
• To achieve a detailed understanding of the scientific
interrelations between the components of the Nexus.
• To represent different spatial scales (regional, national,
continental and global)
• To assess the benefits of synergies in policies when decision
makers address the Nexus concerns.
• To assess relevant near-term policy initiatives This assessment will
be accompanied by sensitivity analysis in all the case studies, in
order to reduce uncertainties and increase the reliability of
each proposed scenario.
• To propose the potential for transferability of the case study to
other regions and countries.
• As test beds of the models and the Serious Game

13. Case Studies
With Local stakeholders
• 3 at regional level
• 5 at national level
• 2 transboundary
At higher level (educational)
• 1 at European level
• 1 at Global level

14. Progress
• This 4-year Project started in June 2016
• Nexus interlinkages are being defined
• Case Studies detailed descriptions available
• Questionnaires/Interviews with stakeholders underway
• First Case Study (fast track-exploratory) started (Sardinia), based
on previous work ongoing…
• Emphasis on data exchange chain
• First results expected by the end of 2016

15. Conceptual model

16. System Dynamics Model Snapshot

17. For further information please consult
www.sim4nexus.eu,
follow us at @SIM4NEXUS
Thanks for your attention!
sim4nexus@wur.nl
floor.brouwer@wur.nl
laspidou@uth.gr
L.S.Vamvakeridou-Lyroudia@exeter.ac.uk
This is an ict4water
cluster project
www.ict4water.eu