WEFE4MED Nexus Award: A Call for Practical Demonstrations of the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE) Nexus in the Mediterranean

WEFE4MED Nexus Award

A Call for Practical Demonstrations of the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE) Nexus in the Mediterranean

The principal aim of WEFE4MED is to promote a W(ater)E(nergy)F(ood)E(cosystems) Nexus-oriented approach to sustainable development in the Mediterranean region. Over the course of the last three years, the consortium behind this project have also sought to build a thriving Nexus Community of Practice (NCoP). 

A central component of this Community is a collection of demonstration sites located across the Mediterranean basin which showcase the utility and socio-economic viability of the WEFE Nexus. 

As WEFE4MED enters its third and final year, this competition represents the culmination of our efforts to shed light upon the work performed by these demonstrators, and to form a lasting NCoP. Moreover, we are pleased to invite demo-projects from the Mediterranean region which address the WEFE Nexus to participate.

In addition to ensuring the visibility of your project(s) on our Knowledge Hub, participation in this competition will provide you with the opportunity to present your work during an international conference co-organised by the WEFE4MED consortium in Q1 2026. 

Demo-sites which have not yet been submitted for publication on the WEFE4MED Knowledge Hub, are also invited to participate in the competition.

For more information, please contact wefe4med.info@cyi.ac.cy

WEFE4MED Nexus Award

Goals
  • Encouraging new stakeholders to join the NCoP as well as promoting its work to a wider audience
  • Increasing the visibility of WEFE Nexus demonstrators in the Mediterranean
  • Underscoring the viability of the WEFE Nexus-oriented approach in the Mediterranean by showcasing regional demonstrators as laboratories for replication, upscaling and policy design
Prize

The winner of the competition will be given a fully funded opportunity to attend the Euro-Mediterranean Water Forum and the closing ceremony of the WEFE4MED project in September/October 2026. 

Eligibility

Demonstrators are initiatives that showcase the implementation of the Water-Food-Energy-Ecosystem (WEFE) Nexus approach in practice. Demonstrators need to have some on the ground-level application, meaning that a new conceptual model or a theoretical study does not count.

In order to be entered to the competition, demonstrators need to satisfy the following criteria: 

  • Geography:  The demonstrator and its corresponding technical installations need to be situated in at least 1 of the 20 states which are currently participating in PRIMA: Algeria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Malta, Morocco, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Tunisia & Türkiye. 

  • WEFE dimension: The demonstrator should incorporate a minimum of 3 out of the 4 WEFE nexus pillars.

  • Stage: Only demonstrators that have begun implementation will be accepted i.e., demonstrators which are still at the proposal stage will not be accepted.

  • Quality: Submitters need to fill out all the fields in the application form prior to submitting their demonstrator. Uncompleted demonstrator submissions will not be published.
Submission
  • How to submit: participants should complete an online submission form.
  • Supporting materials: participants are encouraged to upload complementary documents, reports or papers, images, videos, and other media when filling out the form.
Review Process
  • The winner of the competition shall be selected by an independent panel of experts
  • The winner shall be determined on the basis of the following:

    • Socio-Economic Impact: Which demo has had the most visible impact on local communities?

      Correlates to the demonstrator having resulted in (a) enhanced food production and quality of agricultural produce (SDGs 2 & 12), (b)improved access to clean water for agricultural purposes and personal consumption (SDG 6), (c) improved access to affordable and low-carbon emitting sources of energy (SDGs 7, 9, 12 & 13), and/or (d)improved capacity-building at a local level (SDGs 4, 5, 8, 16 & 17)

    • Environmental Impact: Which demonstrator has had the most visible impact on local ecosystems? 

      Correlates to (a) the demonstrator’s success in up-scaling of low-carbon emitting sources of energy (SDG 13) and (b) improved levels of ecological resilience (SDGs 14 & 15)

    • Potential for scalability: Which demonstrator has the most potential to be replicated elsewhere in the Mediterranean region?

      Correlates to the extent to which the demonstrator accounted for the applicability of the (i) strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats presented by its context, to other parts of the Mediterranean region; (ii) and the potential for uptake of the demo-solution at a policy-making level

Timeline
  • Launch of the call: September 15th, 2025
  • Deadline for submission: November 30th, 2025
  • Evaluation phase: December 1st, 2025 – January 15th, 2026
  • Award ceremony for winning demonstrator: late January/early February 2026