Search Results (486)

Digital inclusive finance has grown rapidly in China in recent years, yet its effect on agricultural economic resilience remains debated. This study investigates the effect of digital inclusive finance on agricultural economic resilience, focusing on the mediating role of rural industry integration. Using annual panel data covering 29 Chinese provinces from 2011 to 2021, we employ two-way fixed-effect panel regressions, mediation analysis, threshold analysis, instrumental variable estimation, and spatial econometric models. The results show that digital inclusive finance has a significant negative effect on agricultural economic resilience, and this finding is robust across alternative specifications and instrumental variable estimations. Rural industry integration serves as an important transmission channel, with the indirect effect accounting for approximately one-third of the total effect. The two stages of this mediation pathway are moderated by distinct threshold variables: rural digital infrastructure positively moderates the effect of digital inclusive finance on rural industry integration, while government fiscal support negatively moderates the effect of rural industry integration on agricultural economic resilience. The spatial analysis further reveals that digital inclusive finance generates negative spatial spillovers onto neighboring provinces. Based on these findings, we suggest that the government continue to invest in rural digital infrastructure, guide digital finance toward rural industry integration in underdeveloped regions, and maintain fiscal support at an appropriate level to preserve the vitality of integrated industries. Full article

Rural industrial integration is widely recognized as a pivotal strategy for rural revitalization and sustainable development. However, despite its potential to foster economic growth, its actual impact on the livelihood resilience of individual farm households remains a complex issue that requires empirical validation. Drawing upon the Sustainable Livelihood Analysis (SLA) framework and micro-level data from the China Land Economic Survey (CLES) (2020–2022), this study employs propensity score matching (PSM) and the conditional mixed process (CMP) method to systematically examine the impact of rural industrial integration on household livelihood resilience, its transmission mechanisms, and its heterogeneous effects. The empirical results demonstrate that rural industrial integration significantly enhances farmers’ livelihood resilience, with an estimated net impact of 17.1%. Specifically, the positive influence on learning capacity is found to be more pronounced than that on buffering and self-organizing capacities. Mechanism analysis suggests that livelihood resilience is bolstered through the dual pathways of “external push” and “endogenous pull.” Furthermore, heterogeneity analysis reveals that models involving vertical industrial chain extension and technology diffusion models yield more substantial impacts among various integration forms. Notably, compared to leading enterprises, participation in cooperatives is found to exert a more significant influence on farmers’ resilience. Consequently, to promote sustainable livelihoods, policy interventions should prioritize the integrated development of rural industries by balancing external resource mobilization with the activation of internal drivers, while remaining vigilant against potential development imbalances arising from different organizational structures. Full article

Natural disasters such as floods and earthquakes cause severe physical, social, and economic losses, highlighting the critical need for timely and reliable early warning systems. Conventional water level and structural health monitoring technologies are often costly, limiting deployment to high-priority infrastructure only. This paper presents the development and validation of two low-cost Internet of Things (IoT) systems for multi-hazard disaster monitoring and early warning, explicitly supporting UN Sustainable Development Goals 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure) and 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) by enabling equitable monitoring of rural or minor bridges. The proposed system achieves a significant cost reduction (approximately $300 compared to conventional systems typically exceeding $5000), highlighting its potential for scalable and sustainable deployment. The first system integrates a Raspberry Pi, Pi Camera, Lidar Lite V3, and ADXL355 accelerometer to simultaneously capture floodwater images, measure water levels, and record bridge vibrations, with distance measurements recorded at user-defined intervals and vibration data sampled up to 100 Hz. Laboratory repeatability and uncertainty analyses of the Lidar Lite V3 indicate a root mean square error of ~2.4 cm over a 0–25 cm range, demonstrating stable performance for flood monitoring and sufficient accuracy for early warning applications using low-cost sensing systems. The ADXL355 accelerometer is validated through harmonic excitation tests (0.1–2 Hz) and real earthquake recordings, confirming its suitability for low-frequency structural response monitoring. The second system combines a Raspberry Pi, an HX711 amplifier, and a CDP25 displacement transducer to measure bridge-bearing displacements up to 25 cm, with data acquisition at sampling rates of up to 80 Hz, with laboratory tests demonstrating consistent and repeatable measurements during both loading and unloading cycles. The IoT framework is resilient, incorporating solar power and local data storage to ensure operation during power or network outages. Unlike prior studies focusing on individual sensors, this work delivers a fully integrated multi-sensor platform with formalized early warning logic based on predefined thresholds. The results demonstrate the feasibility of scalable, real-time, low-cost monitoring for disaster risk reduction and infrastructure resilience, providing a sustainable solution for community-scale early warning applications. Full article

The rural collective property rights system reform (RCPRSR) is a pivotal institutional innovation for revitalizing rural resources, optimizing factor allocation, and advancing urban–rural integration—a core goal of sustainable land use planning. This study evaluates the reform’s impact on county-level urban–rural integration using panel data from 1106 Chinese county-level administrative units during 2013–2020. Treating the staggered rollout of reform pilots as a quasi-natural experiment, we employ a multi-period difference-in-differences approach. The results show that the RCPRSR significantly promotes urban–rural integration, a finding robust to a series of sensitivity checks. The policy effects exhibit marked heterogeneity: the dividends of narrowing the urban–rural development gap are more pronounced in poverty-stricken counties and areas with lower baseline integration levels. Mechanism analysis reveals two pathways—population agglomeration and industrial structure optimization—through which the reform operates, specifically manifested as enhanced county population carrying capacity, accelerated tertiary industry development, and deepened secondary–tertiary industrial integration. These findings provide empirical evidence for optimizing rural property rights reform and advancing sustainable urban–rural development. Full article

The key path to achieving global sustainable development is a low-carbon economy, which is of great significance for implementing the United Nations’ 2030 SDGs 7, 11, 12, and 13. Utilizing provincial panel data of 30 Chinese provinces spanning 2006–2024, this study explores the influencing pathways and intrinsic mechanisms of urban-rural integration (abbreviated as U-R integration) toward green low-carbon sustainable growth. Empirical results demonstrate that U-R integration prominently boosts regional low-carbon growth, and such conclusions pass multiple reliability verification procedures. Heterogeneity assessments demonstrate that the impact is most pronounced in eastern zones, whereas it proves insignificant or even adverse in central, western, and northeastern locales. The influence of U-R integration is notably stronger in less urbanized districts relative to highly urbanized ones. Mechanism analysis suggests that energy structure transformation and industrial structure transformation play an intermediary role. Further extended analysis shows that Internet development features a unique threshold characteristic; once the threshold is exceeded, it markedly strengthens the catalytic role of U-R integration. Furthermore, spatial spillover estimates reveal that U-R integration drives local low-carbon progress while delivering remarkable positive externalities to adjacent provinces. Accordingly, this paper proposes adopting region-specific strategies, reinforcing institutional arrangements and factor mobility support for central, western, and northeastern areas, and advancing U-R integration in line with local realities. Full article

Amid the coordinated advancement of the digital economy and rural revitalization, Digital Rural Construction (DRC) has increasingly emerged as a critical catalyst for agricultural modernization and sustainable development. Faced with dual challenges of land resource constraints and agricultural green transformation, improving the Agricultural Land Green Utilization Efficiency (ALGUE) has become essential for achieving high-quality agricultural development. Based on panel data from 29 Chinese provinces from 2012 to 2023, this study employs the super-efficiency SBM model to quantify ALGUE. A comprehensive four-dimensional evaluation system—encompassing digital infrastructure, service capacity, human capital quality, and practical application—is constructed, and the entropy method is used to measure the level of digital rural construction. By applying two-way fixed effects models, mediation analysis, and heterogeneity tests, this study systematically examines the impact of digital rural construction on ALGUE and its underlying transmission pathways. The results demonstrate that: (1) Digital rural construction significantly enhances ALGUE, and this finding remains robust under multiple sensitivity checks. (2) Pronounced heterogeneity exists in two dimensions: the promotion effect is stronger in economically developed regions and in regions with higher agricultural mechanization intensity, while it is weaker in less developed and low-mechanization regions. (3) Mechanism analysis reveals that digital rural construction promotes ALGUE through two channels. The first involves accelerating the transition of the primary industry toward intelligent and high-value-added models, thereby optimizing resource allocation and reducing environmental pressure. The second operates by fostering regional economic growth in an inverted U-shaped nonlinear pattern that supports agricultural green transformation. By integrating DRC and ALGUE into a unified framework, this study identifies two mediating channels and reveals heterogeneity across economic development levels and agricultural structures. These findings provide empirical support and policy implications for digitally driven green agricultural development. Full article

Protecting and preserving the agricultural heritage, folk culture and ecological environment of traditional villages is a key element in advancing the strategy for comprehensive rural revitalisation. This paper constructs a theoretical framework for tourism symbiosis, examines the level of tourism symbiosis in the 13 national-level traditional villages of Jia County, and proposes strategies for tourism development. This study employs the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method, alongside spatial analysis techniques such as the Hotspot Analysis, to reveal the levels of tourism symbiosis in traditional villages and their spatial distribution. The results indicate that traditional villages are distributed along the Yellow River, with a linear clustering pattern particularly evident in the central region of Jia County; the overall level of symbiosis exhibits a spatial pattern of higher levels in the north and lower levels in the south, with uneven levels across various dimensions; The traditional villages are categorised into four symbiotic models: comprehensive advantage-led, cultural corridor-dependent, ecological and cultural tourism potential, and low-development conservation. Based on these categories, strategies are proposed to deepen the exploration of local culture, promote industrial integration and regional collaboration, prioritise ecological conservation and environmental restoration, and establish distinctive brands through the rational utilisation of surrounding resources. The research framework and conclusions of this paper provide methodological references and practical insights for the concentrated and contiguous protection of traditional villages, as well as for research on rural revitalisation and sustainable development. Full article

In this study, the relationship between land-finance intensity and female educational attainment is examined. A provincial panel dataset for China from 2002 to 2023 is constructed. Two-way fixed effects and mediation models are estimated to identify the underlying mechanisms, and panel threshold models are adopted to test the conditional constraints imposed by government intervention and urbanization. A clear tradeoff is revealed by the findings. On average, land-finance intensity is positively associated with female educational attainment. A dual transmission pathway is identified by mediation analysis: local public education expenditure is significantly increased by land finance, which directly promotes female education, while the urban–rural income gap is simultaneously widened, thus restricting further educational progress. Nonlinear effects are also detected. The positive link between land finance and education is weakened in regions with strong government intervention or high urbanization. Regional heterogeneity is demonstrated by estimation results: the positive effect is strongest in western China, moderate but significant in eastern China, and insignificant in central China. Accordingly, a differentiated spatial governance strategy should be implemented by policymakers. Land revenues should be allocated to basic educational infrastructure in less urbanized regions, and the reduction in urban–rural opportunity gaps should be prioritized in developed regions. Full article

Examining the effect of digital village construction (DVC) on agriculture–culture–tourism integration (ACTI) is important for understanding sustainable rural development. Using panel data from 30 Chinese provinces from 2012 to 2022, this study employs a two-way fixed-effects model to examine the impact of DVC on ACTI, along with its mediating mechanisms and heterogeneous effects. Results show a significant inverted-U-shaped relationship between DVC and ACTI. This finding remains robust across a series of tests. Mechanism analysis reveals that industrial structure upgrading and urbanization play partially mediating roles with the same inverted-U-shaped characteristics. Heterogeneity analysis indicates that DVC presents a linear positive effect in central and western regions and in areas with low DVC levels, while an inverted-U-shaped pattern is observed in eastern regions and in areas with high DVC levels. These findings suggest that DVC strategies should account for both regional differences and development stages. Full article

Smallholder poultry farming contributes enormously to rural livelihoods, food security, and nutrition in South Africa, yet the poultry industry remains constrained by limited participation and low ICT utilisation. This study investigated the socioeconomic and demographic factors influencing decisions and choices of smallholder poultry farmers towards the adoption of ICT and market engagement in Jozini Local Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal. A cross-sectional research design was used to collect primary data from respondents. Data were collected through face-to-face surveys from 162 participants, who were randomly selected. Descriptive statistics were employed to profile the use and extent of ICT, while the multivariate probit model was used to analyse the determinants of ICT adoption and market engagement. The findings revealed that most farmers own ICT tools such as mobile phones (98.15%), which they mainly use for communication purposes (98.77%) rather than for accessing production and market related information. Smallholder characteristics like age, faming experience, marital status, and household size significantly influenced farmers decisions and choices to adopt ICT and participate in markets. The study recommends improving the traditional extension through digital integration and farmer support by means of training on ICT and formal market linkages. These interventions can significantly market participation and profitability in smallholder poultry farming, stabilising rural economic development. Full article

Agricultural economic resilience plays a pivotal role in the integrated development of agriculture and rural areas, and carries great significance for ensuring national food security and advancing sustainable agricultural development in the context of complex risks and challenges. Using panel data covering 41 cities in the Yangtze River Delta region from 2011 to 2023, this paper empirically investigates the impact mechanism of fiscal support for agriculture on agricultural economic resilience. The results demonstrate that fiscal support for agriculture in the Yangtze River Delta exerts a significant positive effect on agricultural economic resilience, especially with a pronounced promoting influence on resistance capacity. Mechanism analysis indicates that fiscal support for agriculture indirectly affects agricultural economic resilience through channels including agricultural industrial agglomeration and the urban–rural income gap. Accordingly, to strengthen agricultural economic resilience, it is necessary to optimize the allocation and expenditure structure of fiscal funds, adopt differentiated strategies with dynamic and timely adjustments, allocate funds to boost agricultural industrial agglomeration, enhance investment in human capital to narrow the urban–rural income gap, and facilitate sustainable agricultural development. Full article

The digital economy is reshaping urban development and may contribute to more inclusive and sustainable cities. Using the 2016 and 2017 China Migrants Dynamic Survey (CMDS), this study constructs a city-level digital economy index covering digital industrialization, industrial digitization, and digital infrastructure, and examines its effects on migrants’ settlement intentions. The results show that the digital economy significantly promotes migrants’ settlement intentions, with digital industrialization as the primary driver. The positive effect is more robust for long-term settlement intention, whereas its association with hukou transfer intention is less stable. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the effect is stronger among women and highly educated migrants, but weaker among migrants with rural hukou. It is also more pronounced in cities with lower ecological quality and varies across regions and city sizes. Mechanism analysis suggests that the digital economy promotes settlement intentions mainly through social integration and income enhancement, thereby supporting more stable and sustainable urban living by facilitating migrants’ long-term integration into host cities. Digital industrialization plays a stronger role in the social integration channel, whereas industrial digitization is more strongly linked to income enhancement. These findings suggest that digital development can contribute to inclusive and sustainable urbanization in the digital era by improving employment quality, narrowing the digital divide, strengthening migrants’ social integration, and promoting more differentiated urban governance. Full article

The expansion of China’s digital economy (DE) has begun to reshape agricultural production in ways that extend beyond efficiency gains, raising important questions about its implications for the long-term sustainable intensification of cultivated land use (SCU). Drawing on panel data from 31 provincial-level regions between 2011 and 2023, this study examines how digital development influences cultivated land sustainability from the perspectives of productivity, resource efficiency, and system resilience. The results indicate that digital advancement is closely associated with higher land productivity and more efficient input use, with digital industrialization playing a particularly pronounced role. Its contribution to land system resilience, however, appears more limited, likely because ecological stability and structural risk-buffering mechanisms respond slowly to technological change. Further analysis suggests that agricultural industrialization (AID) and Rural financing capacity (RFC) function as important transmission channels through which digital development shapes land-use outcomes. Notably, the effects are not uniform. The influence of digital development becomes more evident after 2015, when digital infrastructure and policy support deepened nationwide. Regional differences are also apparent: while the eastern region has already absorbed much of the early digital dividend, stronger marginal gains remain possible in central and western China, where agricultural modernization and digital integration are still unfolding. These findings underscore the importance of strengthening rural digital infrastructure, enhancing farmers’ digital capabilities, and improving digitally enabled financial services to support sustainable land use, particularly in less-developed regions. Full article

Efficiently converting natural capital into economic assets is a critical challenge in urban–rural transformation, yet the interactive mechanism between institutional land reform and physical spatial restructuring remains underexplored. While traditional frameworks emphasize institutional design, this study identifies a “Spatial-First” mechanism where physical reconfiguration serves as a spatial mediator to catalyze property rights breakthroughs. Using an entropy-weighted coupling coordination model, we analyzed policy dynamics in Nanhai District, China, a unique “dual-pilot” zone, from 2020 to 2024. The results indicate a nonlinear leap in the Coupling Coordination Degree (D) from 0.100 to 0.978. We interpret this surge as a policy-driven shock during the intensive pilot phase, where substantive spatial integration (0.719) effectively bypassed high transaction costs inherent in collective tenure, outpacing institutional progress (0.281). However, an Ecological Lag was observed; the disproportionately low weighting of the ecological carrier index (7.09%) suggests that current gains are primarily driven by green industrialization rather than the expansion of absolute ecological stock. This study concludes that while spatial tools can effectively unlock natural capital value in the short term, long-term sustainability necessitates a strategic shift from administrative-led economic efficiency to market-based ecological restoration. Full article

In ecologically fragile and geomorphologically complex mountainous regions, ensuring a smooth transition from poverty alleviation to multidimensional sustainable rural development remains a key issue in regional governance. Focusing on the Qinba Mountains, a typical former contiguous poverty-stricken region in China covering 18 prefecture-level cities in six provinces, this study uses 2009–2023 prefecture-level panel data to examine the spatiotemporal evolution and driving mechanisms of coordinated rural revitalization. An integrated framework of “multi-dimensional evaluation–spatiotemporal tracking–attribution diagnosis” is developed by combining the improved AHP–entropy-weight TOPSIS method, the Coupling Coordination Degree (CCD) model, spatial Markov chains, spatial autocorrelation, and the Geodetector. The results show pronounced subsystem asynchrony. Livelihood and Well-being Security (U5) improves steadily, while Level of Industrial Development (U1), Civic Virtues and Cultural Vibrancy (U3), and Rural Governance (U4) also rise but with clear spatial differentiation; by contrast, Quality of Human Settlements (U2) fluctuates in stages under ecological fragility. Overall, the coupling coordination level advances from the Verge of Imbalance to Intermediate Coordination, yet the regional pattern remains uneven, with eastern basin cities leading and western deep mountainous cities lagging. State transitions display both policy responsiveness and path dependence: the probability of retaining the original state ranges from 50.0% to 90.5%; low-level neighborhoods reduce the upward transition probability to 25%, whereas medium-to-high-level neighborhoods raise the upward transition probability of low-level cities from 36.36% to 53.33%. Spatial dependence is also evident, with Global Moran’s I increasing, with fluctuations, from 0.331 in 2009 to 0.536 in 2023; high-value clusters extend along the Guanzhong Plain–Han River Valley corridor, while low-value clusters remain relatively locked in mountainous border areas. Driving mechanisms show clear stage-wise succession. At the single-factor level, the explanatory power of Road Network Density (F6) declines from 0.639 to 0.287, whereas Terrain Relief Amplitude (F1) becomes the dominant background constraint in the later stage (q = 0.772). Multi-factor interactions are generally enhanced. In particular, the traditional infrastructure-led pathway weakens markedly, with F1 ∩ F6 = 0.055 in 2023, while the interaction between terrain and consumer market vitality becomes dominant, with F1 ∩ F7 = 0.987 in 2023. On this basis, three major pathways are identified: government fiscal intervention and transportation accessibility improvement, capital agglomeration and market demand stimulation, and human–earth system adaptation and ecological value realization. These findings provide quantitative evidence for breaking spatial lock-in and improving cross-regional resource allocation in ecologically constrained mountainous regions. Full article