A review of heat wave impacts on the food–energy–water nexus and policy response

This publication examines how heat waves are increasingly disrupting interconnected food, energy, and water (FEW) systems, creating cascading risks that undermine resilience and sustainability. Addressing a gap in existing literature, the study combines bibliometric analysis, a scoping review, and policy analysis to assess how heat wave impacts on the FEW nexus are currently understood and governed. Drawing on 103 academic publications from 2015–2024 and 63 policy documents from the United States, European Union, Japan, China, and India, the analysis identifies dominant research themes, impact patterns, and policy approaches. 

The findings show that agricultural losses are the most frequently reported impact, followed by multi-sector and cross-system disruptions, while community-scale studies, cross-regional comparisons, and the use of high-resolution spatial and temporal data remain limited. The study also identifies key mechanisms driving cascading impacts, including direct heat stress on individual systems, indirect pressures from rising demand and constrained supply, infrastructure-mediated interdependencies, and maladaptation risks stemming from uncoordinated sectoral responses. Policy analysis reveals that most countries rely on sector-based adaptation strategies with limited integration across the FEW nexus and insufficient data and monitoring systems. Overall, the publication proposes an integrated analytical framework to better capture cross-system interactions, highlights critical research and governance gaps, and offers guidance for advancing coordinated adaptation across food, energy, and water sectors under extreme heat.