Our interdisciplinary, international team develops holistic solutions that focus on all areas of the Food-Energy-Water (FEW) nexus, enhancing climate resilience and protecting global public health.
Defining the FEW Nexus
What do we mean by food-energy-water systems?
- No food can be grown without water and energy
- Wastewater treatment requires energy and electricity generation requires vast amounts of water
- Energy should be sourced sustainably in ways that don't increase climate change
The FEW nexus approaches sustainable food production by integrating these three essential resources. We can engineer more efficient ways to irrigate crops, such as drip irrigation and rainwater capture. We can integrate renewable energy systems, such as solar arrays, biogas, and small-scale hydropower, so that food is produced with less climate impact. And we can produce a variety of nutritious food that supports public health while nurturing local ecosystems through biodiversity and permaculture forest cover.
Read more about how we integrate FEW resources across our four global locations in this ArcGIS Storymap.
Our Storymap
Register Today: Our Coursera MOOC
Our Global FEWture: Cultivating Food-Energy-Water Solutions is our new Coursera offering.
Through four accessible modules, our global team of experts teaches the systems dynamics, local challenges, and global solutions to providing food, energy, and water amid a changing climate.
The course will be of interest to farmers, community organizers, public health scientists, agricultural scientists, environmental engineers, and students across disciplines. Please join us by enrolling in the first module for free!
Coursera MOOC
UPES Community Garden Wins Grant
In a partnership with the Prince George's County Public Schools and the Town of University Park, we're happy to announce that the University Park Elementary School Community Garden was awarded a Sustainable Maryland Action Grant of $20,000 to support garden development in our first growing season in 2026!
This includes fencing, an outdoor classroom with benches and a white board, and garden tools to get these K-5 students outside with friends, having fun and learning how to grow nutritious food.
The UPES Community Garden is also supported by UMD Arts for All and the Whole Kids Foundation.
Sustainable Maryland
Solutions: Solar-Powered Wastewater Treatment
What if we could use solar-powered, small-scale, off-grid technologies to turn sewage into safe water for reuse and farm irrigation? We can, and we do!
Dr. Clive Lipchin's Laguna Wastewater Treatment is a proven technology that boosts community self-sufficiency and public health by intervening where wastewater meets the natural environment. By safely cleaning wastewater using biotic and abiotic media, the Laguna System closes the loop between waste and wealth.
Laguna Innovation has just been accepted into the Toilet Board Coalition's Accelerator 2026 cohort, a group of 24 businesses that are advancing sanitation and public health, particularly in South Asia.
The Laguna unit in the picture is now shipping from Israel to Nepal, where it will serve a secondary school and support better sanitation and water sufficiency in the Namobuddha Municipality.
Laguna Innovation
Extraordinary Advances in Grape Production
Our partners in Tanzania, CultivAid, have just published their 2025 report on progress in Unlocking the Grape Value Chain. This energetic, innovative team has achieved great advances in just a few years, including:
- 500+ farmers trained across 10 sites
- 65-175% increase in revenue for farmers
- 65-120% grape yield increase
- Grape quality improvement to 22-24 Brix, meeting winery standards
- Nursery space to provide 10,000 grape vine cuttings annually
CultivAid and MUST Plant Campus Farm in Mbeya, Tanzania
In a major upgrade of their growing and teaching capacity, Mbeya University of Science and Technology (MUST) and CultivAid just collaborated on a 3-day farmer training and vegetable planting bonanza.
CultivAid experts taught farmers about drip irritation, pest management, soil fertility, and increasing yields.
This press photo in Swahili gives a sense of the global reach and local impacts of our work.
Tanzania Projects
UMD Global STEWARDS Graduate Research
Our UMD Global STEWARDS graduate students are innovative researchers in Food-Energy-Water science!
This pair of short videos captures the essence of their research: The what, how, and why of FEW nexus science. Check it out!
Nick An, Fahmi Dwilaksono, Ujjwol Subedi, Tiberias Okanga
Asangwing Formukong, Gerry Andhikaputra, Rafian Aziz, John Samura, Qingyue Zheng
UMD Global STEWARDS Graduate Research
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Israel FEWture
Israel Research and Capacity Building
Maryland FEWture
Maryland Research and Capacity Building
Nepal FEWture
Nepal Research and Capacity Building
Tanzania FEWture
Tanzania Research and Capacity Building
Experiential Education
Project-based Learning Opportunities
Community-Driven Capacity Building
Inclusive, Holistic Approaches