Overview
Urban areas are major consumers of food, energy, and water (FEW). While the water and energy generally originate within an immediate geographic region, the food may be sourced globally. The Washington State University Metro Food Energy Water Seed Grant Research Team seeks to understand how food, energy, and water are interdependent in the context of changing environmental pressures and policies, using the Seattle metropolitan area as a case study.
Far Reaching Impacts
Rapid Regional Changes

Developing a Model
Outcomes
Current Research
- Synthesizing data from interviews with 27 stakeholders from across western Washington who are working on issues related to food, agriculture, land use planning, and energy and water resource management.
- Developing a conceptual model to link regional food demand and supply across geographic scales with regional food trade, pricing and how water, land, energy, and labor interact with agricultural production systems.
- Locating relevant data sources to parameterize the model.
Long-Term Research Goals
- Identify FEW stocks and flows into and out of three nested domains surrounding the Seattle metropolitan area: King County, western Washington, and the State of Washington.
- Assess the water and energy sector implications of increasing the amount of Seattle’s food that is sourced locally versus importing food to meet urban demand.
- Develop a model of FEW resource interdependencies that supports decision-makers in crafting scientifically informed policies to incentivize local versus imported food, energy and water production and use.
Project Team:
- WSU Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources: Liz Allen
- WSU School of Economics: Michael Brady
- WSU Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources: Douglas Collins
- WSU Metropolitan Center for Applied Research and Extension: Brad Gaolach
- WSU School of the Environment: Kevan Moffett
- WSU Center for Environmental Research, Education, and Outreach and the State of Washington Water Research Center: Julie Padowski
- WSU Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources: Kirti Rajagopalan
- WSU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Sasha Richey
Funding for the seed grant to support this work was co-sponsored by the Office of Research, the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences, the Voiland College of Engineering and Architecture, the Center for Environmental Research, Education and Outreach, the State of Washington Water Research Center and the Center for Sustaining Agriculture & Natural Resources.

The Metro Center
WSU Expertise
Leadership and Collaboration
The Metro Center leads the local engagement and outreach activities for this project, including the November 18th Local Food & the Food-Energy-Water Nexus Regional Summit, along with project management, and coordination.
Learn More

WSU Food-Energy-Water Seed Grants Awarded (pdf.)
Presentation at Northeast Regional Urban Extension Conference
Metro FEW Interview Synthesis Report (pdf.)
Past Events

2016 Urban Food-Energy-Water Summit
Contact Us
Perspectives From Stakeholders on the Food-Energy-Water Nexus in Metropolitan Seattle