UNS: International Research Coordination Network for Creating Transdisciplinary Nodes of Food-Energy-Water to Support Sustainable Urban Systems

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2021956 (Zhuang). Environmental change, population growth, and accelerating consumption of food, energy, and water (FEW) resources bring grand challenges for urban sustainability worldwide. Often lost in the challenges is the environmental relation to the FEW nexus and the environmental consequences of uncoordinated decision making due to lack of systems understanding of science and technology. Despite dramatic differences in economic and political structure, many countries share common FEW trajectories, a strong science and technology base, and a perceived commitment to urban environmental sustainability. Evolving global change merits the creation of a transdisciplinary international network to develop a global research agenda that addresses the impacts of regional and global FEW systems on urban sustainability as the world transitions from natural ecosystems to managed ecosystems at accelerating rates. The goal of this international Research Coordination Network (iRCN) is to chart a new path forward in developing urban sustainability and resiliency within the framework of the FEW nexus. This iRCN merges research networks existing among countries of different urbanization and income levels, including Argentina, Brazil, Cambodia, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Guatemala, Netherlands, Tanzania, Uganda, Uruguay, and the U.S. The objectives of this iRCN are to (1) build a comprehensive FEW-system database to support global urban sustainability; (2) create a focused FEW network to inspire urban outreach and engagement programs; (3) facilitate the formation of multinational transdisciplinary research teams to address the interests of urban stakeholders; and (4) educate and train a future FEW workforce capable of implementing sustainable urban development.Urban FEW networks are complex systems and emergent, and unpredictable properties are expected. No single group of disciplines can generate comprehensive understanding of the feedbacks and impacts of urban FEW manipulations and variations on the environment. This iRCN will bridge existing international and domestic FEW-system and relevant networks and partnerships in an effort to identify and refine urban FEW challenges, harmonize perspectives, generate opportunities for collaboration, and realize synergies of currently siloed and uncoordinated work for advancing a FEW-focused global agenda of sustainable urban development. The iRCN will facilitate transdisciplinary, multinational communications and accelerate the development and transfer of multisectoral data, standards, analysis tools, new technologies, and a trained workforce among differently urbanized countries. The iRCN will tackle the challenge of communicating science and technology to multinational stakeholders and policy-makers within a complex urban FEW network. Feedbacks from practitioners and the public will be incorporated into research agenda design and planning in order to converge on potential solutions to local problems with global scale implications. The network established through this iRCN will serve as a template for budding FEW-urban research initiatives in Africa, Latin America, and South Asia and help the less urbanized countries avoid traps and negative experiences during the transition to sustainable development. The iRCN will provide unique opportunities for international education, which include an honors student research program on the University of Tennessee campus, multiple study abroad programs for U.S. students, and an annual summer school in China, where U.S. students will interact with students from more than 20 countries. These efforts will contribute to developing a diverse, competitive, and globally engaged workforce, which can effectively communicate FEW-system grand challenges and solutions to the public and stakeholders and translate research innovations into practice across international borders. The iRCN will also provide a structured rationale for economic and environmental policy making.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.