Summary B4. Water and Food Security Session

1. Summary B4. Water and Food Security Session Water-Energy-Food Security Nexus, including capacity building, is the interconnection where many global challenges are manifested through and thus essential for addressing these challenges in an interlinked way. WEF is key for attaining sustainable development and green economy. Earth Observation Systems could provide the necessary and often lacking information for achieving the purposes of WEF Nexus

2. Water Security Presentation by Gordon Young on water security elements within the broader framework of global security Drivers affecting global water security Population growth, rising incomes, climate change, competing uses, etc Elements of water security Diverse uses of water Water threats: floods, droughts

3. Food Security Presentation by Anik Bhaduri on food security challenges: Water security is essential for food security, water gap may lead to food gap Challenges: Increased inequality in access to water perpetuating poverty Climate change and increasing risks and vulnerabilities Solutions: Nexus approach and better water governance Virtual water imports are positively associated with water scarcity

4. Earth Observations Presentation by Rick Lawford Solutions for water security challenges: Single forum for WEF + Environment Stakeholder participation and interactions Maximize use of Earth Observations Case study of Lake Winnipeg Basin

5. Capacity Building Presentation by Jens Liebe on role of capacity building with WEF Nexus: identify interconnections between sectors and actors promote learning and knowledge sharing across sectors and regions narrow the gap between the availability of solutions and skills and means to use them (e.g. technology) support decision-makers to develop appropriate policies,

6. What role for Earth Observations? Effective tools are needed to support decision-makers in a more timely and coordinated manner. Earth observation is the basis to provide such information From global satellite data and in-situ time series at specific locations, over tools for accessing and using the data, to systems that integrate these data with other information– especially those of food price alert systems Significant investment is needed as sufficient infrastructure for data collection and distribution does often not exist For existing data, the challenge lies ahead to integrate earth observation and monitoring systems for agricultural commodities, and identify new metrics and valid indicators that can be applied across sectors to assess interlinkages