Abstract

The Water, Energy, Food, and Ecosystem nexus highlights the interconnections between water, energy, agriculture, and ecosystems, emphasizing cross-sectoral coordination for sustainable development. This study examines the nexus across the twenty-seven European Union member states through the lens of Sustainable Development Goals 2, 6, 7, and 15, using time series data from 2001 to 2023. Countries are first clustered based on Sustainable Development Goal trends using Euclidean distance and Dynamic Time Warping, followed by a comparison of results with an existing classification. Subsequently, a Vector Autoregressive model is applied to analyze interactions among the goals and identify key drivers within the Water, Energy, Food, and Ecosystem nexus. Results show consistent dependencies among the Sustainable Development Goals at both the European Union and country levels, with some country-specific variations aligning with cluster affiliations. These findings enhance the understanding of goal interdependencies and inform policy actions to strengthen underdeveloped linkages, supporting the effective implementation of the Water, Energy, Food, and Ecosystem nexus in the European Union.