Habitat International最新文献

Farmland use challenges reflect the current complexities facing China's agricultural economic development. This study focuses on 70 counties in Hubei Province of China, with the objective of exploring the spatial relationship between green transition of farmland use and agricultural economic growth. Furthermore, it seeks to quantify their effects and assess regional heterogeneity. Here are the findings: (1) There is a notable positive spatial correlation observed between agricultural economic growth and the various subsystems as well as factor layers of the green transition of farmland use. (2) The optimization of the quantity and form of farmland has a positive promoting effect on agricultural economic growth in both the local county and adjoining counties. In contrast, the spatial pattern, ecological function, intensive use, and environmental friendliness of farmland have a negative effect. (3) The influence factors of the green transition of farmland use on agricultural economic growth show significant spatial heterogeneity, with the overall effect degree being in the following order: northern hillock, central plain, western mountain range, and eastern hills. The influence on neighboring agricultural economic growth also exhibits significant spatial differentiation, with the overall effect degree following this order: eastern hills, northern hillock, central plain, and western mountain range. Targeted suggestions are proposed to promote the green transition of farmland use and achieve sustainable agricultural economic growth.

Although the spatial patterns of cultural ecosystem services (CES) are often considered in land use management, there is a noticeable disparity in research coverage compared to biophysical ecosystem services (BES). Moreover, there is a lack of research focusing on human perceptions of CES. To address this gap, this study proposed a CES-BES framework that integrates spatial patterns, driving factors of CES, and their interactions with BES, based on the general framework of social and ecological systems. To alleviate the dual pressures of ecological degradation and cultural preservation, this study utilized the constructed CES-BES framework to offer land use recommendations aimed at promoting sustainable development in the Horqin Sandy Land. CES and BES were quantified through a combination of questionnaire surveys, SolVES model and process modeling, including aesthetic, biodiversity, cultural, economic, future, and historical values, as well as net primary productivity, crop production, wind protection, and sand fixation. The results revealed that CES in the Horqin Sandy Land exhibited a discernible pattern of "high in the west and low in the east." Notably, the factors perceived by respondents exerted a more substantial influence on CES than non-perceptual factors. Female respondents showed relatively lower sensitivity to CES overall, but higher sensitivity to biodiversity. Han respondents tended to prioritize biodiversity, while Mongolian respondents were more sensitive to cultural and historical values. Herders exhibited higher sensitivity to biodiversity, while respondents from other occupations showed higher sensitivity to cultural and future values. The influence of land use, topography, and accessibility on different CES was generally similar. All CES showed a positive correlation with elevation, slope, and distance to water, while they showed a negative correlation with distance to roads. Based on the results, the Horqin Sandy Land has been divided into five regions, with development recommendations provided for each region to ensure sustainable development. This study provides a novel perspective and methodological framework for CES supporting territorial spatial governance and land use management, contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of CES.

China has responded to the sustainability challenges via a range of policies with evolving objectives in the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YEB) since the 1990s. However, the multi-scale analysis of YEB's comprehensive sustainability and the human-environment nexus amid policy impact remains unexplored. A comprehensive review and forecast of historical and future sustainability pathways under policy impacts are imperative. Here, we systematically examined sustainability under ten National Policies (NPs) and Regional Development Policies (RDPs), forecasting Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) in the 21st Century using the entropy weight method and machine learning models. We found that RDPs have contributed to 1.6 times increase in human development from 2000 to 2018 across dimensions of demography, economy, and society in YEB. However, it also revealed that the west-east disparity has widened from 0.14 to 0.19 during this period. Conservation efforts and national initiatives for ecological civilization have led to environmental improvement in the YEB, especially after the RDP3 in 2014, when the eastern provinces, like Shanghai, have already surpassed the peak inverted U-shape curve of the environmental-human nexus. Among the SSPs, SSP1 shows the most sustainable scenario with the lowest ecological footprint at 6.2 hm² per capita and the highest value of regional sustainability and environmental subsystem. To achieve SSP1, an iterative, inclusive, and context-specific Science-Policy-Practice dialogue is essential. This enables feedback loops and collaboration among policymakers, scientists, and practitioners to foster regional sustainability by studying the implications of historical and future pathways.

Urban sprawl has been a great challenge to current sustainable development goals, especially in urban agglomeration areas. Based on the nighttime light and WorldPop population grid data from 2011 to 2020, this study established a multidimensional evaluation system of urban sprawl intensity in the Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration (YRDUA) with a "scale-density-structure" framework. The Dagum Gini coefficient, spatial Markov chain, and econometric analysis were applied to analyze urban sprawl intensity. The results suggested that: (1) the urban sprawl intensities of the cities in the YRDUA became more imbalanced over the decade; (2) the mild sprawl cities were dominant in the study area, but the moderate and severe sprawl cities were mostly located in the west and the only inland province--Anhui; (3) the spatial distribution of urban sprawl intensity indicated "club convergence" and strong spatial correlation effect, but poor stability; and (4) land resource mismatch and population urbanization were the main explanatory variables for urban sprawl intensity, with large cities more sensitive to the former, and medium cities to the latter. These findings can provide important policy implications to sustainable development and compact growth.

Metropolitan areas, which are considered the most dynamic regions for economic and social development, are undergoing intense evolution within their rural areas. However, few studies have comprehensively explored their functional evolution. This study employed multi-source data and multiple methods to measure the evolution characteristics and mechanism of rural areal functions (RAF) in Xi'an metropolitan area of China from 2000 to 2020. The results indicate that these functions were significantly improved. The spatial pattern presents a multi-functional circle structure extending outward with “economic development, agricultural production, and ecological preservation” as the dominant functions, and emerged in urban-, rural-, and integration-oriented evolution patterns. The relationship among sub-functions become more coordinated, with shifting from an agriculture-centric to a multi-functional development model. Furthermore, it was observed that the external pull mechanism, internal push mechanism, and regulatory mechanism of policies and markets work collectively to drive functions' evolution. Finally, suggestions are proposed based on 3 types of evolution-oriented, to provide reference for other metropolitan rural areas even lagging villages to explore the development path and realize rural revitalization.

Globally, rural land transfer (RLT) is a common phenomenon with recurring characteristics. As the most populous country on Earth, China’s RLT affects the stability and sustainability of global food production. Studies to date examining RLT and subjective welfare changes among rural residents, and few studies have explored the perspective of middle-aged rural residents. This paper empirically explores the impact of land transfer out on the living satisfaction of middle-aged rural residents using ordered probit regression models, based on the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) data. The findings reveal that RLT has a significant negative impact on the living satisfaction of middle-aged rural residents. Group regression tests based on household income structure and security ability show that land attachment is an important mechanism by which land transfer out affects the living satisfaction of middle-aged rural residents. The higher the intensity of dependence on the land, the more significant the inhibitory effect of land transfer out on living satisfaction. However, RLT has no significant effect on the living satisfaction of female middle-aged rural residents. Additionally, expanding social networks and use of the Internet to access more sources of information are conducive to mitigating the negative effect of land transfer out on the living satisfaction of middle-aged rural residents. Lastly, the negative effect of land transfer out on the living satisfaction of middle-aged rural residents is significant in the eastern district or the region with lower willingness to migrate. Overall, our research can offer ideas for understanding the living satisfaction of middle-aged rural residents and exploring the improving path of the social network size and Internet information channel use on the living satisfaction of middle-aged rural residents under the rural revitalization background. Further, it can provide scientific reference for rural land use management, land policy decisions related to land transfer out initiatives, and ultimately contributing to a well-structured approach towards rural revitalization.

Zimbabwe's capital city, Harare, faces severe infrastructural challenges. The city is presented with major constraints in its ability to adequately provide services for its growing population while losing essential streams of revenue required for infrastructural maintenance and development. This occurs in the context of the decentralization from the Zimbabwean national government to its cities. Cities like Harare are tasked with mandates to govern but are not provided the adequate financial means nor support to sustain their population or aging infrastructure. In this paper, we study this issue by conducting a broad literature review on decentralization and unfunded urban mandates, before narrowing our focus to decentralization and urban governance in sub-Saharan Africa. We then interrogate Harare as a case study, drawing on two rounds of interviews in 2015 and 2022 to identify key aspects of Harare's infrastructure crisis, which we tie to its unfunded mandates. We conducted 51 semi-structured expert interviews, and 4 extensive focus groups with a total of 32 people in order to revisit key themes that were prevalent during the first round of interviews. This was complemented by a review and analysis of national and city budgets and other relevant reports to demonstrate trends on revenue generation, capital expenditure and dynamics around intergovernmental fiscal transfers (IGFTs). We offer novel insights into Harare's infrastructure crisis, while also raising several urban financing and decentralization themes that are applicable from a global perspective.

Marketplaces are regarded as essential public spaces, providing not only access to fresh produce but also functioning as important social infrastructures. Marketplaces also strengthen urban-rural linkages, and their functioning is important for the livelihoods of urban and rural dwellers. However, many marketplaces closed down or had to adhere to various restrictions in response to the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak. This paper provides an assessment of the impacts and perspectives of the COVID-19 pandemic on urban-rural linkages in the Musanze District in Rwanda. In addition, the study presents policy measures in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic that the Government of Rwanda put in place in 2020 that impacted the urban-rural flow of people and goods, with severe implications for market vendors’ livelihoods. This paper also answers on how have COVID-19 related policy reactions in Rwanda influenced urban-rural linkages, learning from Musanze District. Combining research conducted at markets in the Musanze District before and during the COVID-19 pandemic movement restrictions, this paper provides recommendations on market infrastructure upgrades necessary for markets to become more resilient and better functioning in preparation for any new public health crisis occurring.

The “conflict-coordination” theoretical model of regional land use transitions put forward by Long (2022) offers a fresh perspective for understanding the process of regional land use and the decision-making dynamics involved. However, being a novel theory, empirical evidence supporting this theoretical model is currently lacking. Consequently, this paper aims to validate the theoretical model using the lower Yellow River basin in China as a case study, focusing on the interconversion between cropland and rural settlements. The findings reveal that the rural land use transitions primarily manifest as an initial conversion of cropland to rural settlements, followed gradually by the reverse conversion of rural settlements back to cropland. The conversion of cropland to rural settlements prior to 2015 are regarded as the land use conflict phase, resulting in conflicts between construction departments and cropland protection departments, and deviation from national cropland protection goals. The conversion of rural settlements to cropland between 2015 and 2020 is regarded as the land use conflict-coordination phase, which mitigated pressure on cropland protection and resolved conflicts between the above-mentioned departments. The land use conflict phase was driven by socio-economic factors such as urbanization and rural economic development, whereas the land use conflict-coordination phase was primarily driven by cropland protection policies. This paper effectively elucidates the “conflict-coordination” theoretical model of regional land use transitions and provides a framework for evaluating rural land management policies in China.

The Sustainable development goals (SDG) aim for reducing poverty (SDG 1) and to upgrade all slums (SDG 11). The first indicator in SDG 11 describes the proportion of the urban population residing in slums. However, the currently available data is based on national estimates that follow globally varying methodologies and concepts. In this paper, a uniform approach is implemented to obtain slum population estimates in eight different cities from three continents. The approach relies on earth observation datasets on the spatial extent of the slums and one of the most accepted gridded population dataset: WorldPop. The results shed light on the distribution of population in slums around the world. Nevertheless, the question of the accuracy of these population numbers arises. Therefore, a broad range of literature data containing population counts is gathered for the cities investigated, for varying years and for different spatial scales. The literature data is compared to results obtained by the presented approach. The comparison yields a plausibility assessment for different cities, indicating varying levels of deviation. We find in all cities a clear bias in estimating the slum population - mostly underestimations -, even though some cities reveal a significantly better fit to the data. In conclusion, this study provides a methodology to systematically assess the accuracy of globally available datasets in the context of slums and thereby to highlight the large uncertainties which can empirically be observed.