11 March 2015: The Global Environment Facility (GEF), the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) and the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) announced the launch of Nexus Solutions for Sustainability, a project to identify integrated solutions to energy, water, food and ecosystem security.

The Nexus Solutions project aims to address gaps in achieving agreements and goals on financing for development, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and climate change, particularly regarding how the goals can be addressed jointly, the costs of inaction, and how problems in one area may affect others.

The project will seek to identify integrated solutions in regions facing energy and land use challenges, economic and demographic changes, and increasing climate change. The three organizations will also work together to provide policy guidelines and make strategic recommendations to governments.

During the official launch, held in Vienna, Austria, on 11 March 2015, GEF CEO and Chairperson Naoki Ishii said the project shows the importance of bringing together new types of partnerships to address some of the “world’s most pressing sustainable development issues.” IIASA Director General and CEO Pavel Kabat stressed that sustainable development is about integrated research, synergistic partnerships and interconnected challenges.

The new partnership follows the GEF’s 2020 strategy, which focuses on: enabling transformational change; addressing the drivers of environmental degradation; and supporting stakeholder coalitions and scalable activities. [GEF Press Release] [UNIDO Press Release]