Indicators of water, food and energy security Nexus approach in agriculture: Application of content analysis

The approach of water, food and energy nexus is a comprehensive view of sustainability; and agriculture plays a key role in the use of these resources and food security. Considering that the identification of the indicators of the water, food and energy security nexus in the agricultural sector is the main criterion for checking the status of the deployment of these resources in order to establish security in the agricultural sector. The gap in this field has caused this article to compile and evaluate the indicators of the approach of water, food and energy security nexus in the agricultural sector. To achieve this goal, the method of qualitative content analysis was used, using MAXQDA 18 software and manual analysis. The research sample included 228 articles related to the research topic, which were published in national and international journals during the years 2007-2022. The findings showed; Water, food, and energy security have eight, fourteen, and ten indicators, respectively, which were categorized into four categories: access, availability, usability, and sustainability. According to the findings, we conclude that these indicators include the dimensions of sustainable development, including economic, social and environmental dimensions, and are interdependent. Therefore, these indicators are a comprehensive tool to measure the approach of water, food and energy nexus in the direction of sustainable development.