LB 41-352 - The impacts of changes in livelihoods, lifestyles, and connectivity of Chinese rural households on local ecosystems

The livelihoods and lifestyles of Chinese rural households, and their connectivity to cities, have fundamentally changed with rapid urbanization. While numerous studies have been conducted to investigate how urbanization affects ecosystems, few studies have examined the impacts of such changes on ecosystems in rural areas, particularly in China. The study examines how the livelihoods, lifestyles, and connectivity of Chinese rural households affect local ecosystems from 2010-2018, based on the Continuum of Urbanity theoretical framework. We used data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) to measure livelihood, lifestyle, and connectivity, and quantified an enhanced vegetation index (EVI) using remotely sensed data as an indicator of local ecosystems. We applied network analysis and structural equation modeling to measure the network associations of livelihood, lifestyle, and connectivity, to EVI change, and to understand how rural household engagement in agricultural or non-farming activities drives EVI change. We found that although rural households were mainly engaged in agricultural production, increasingly more households were involved in non-farming activities, which was driven by shifts in livelihoods and lifestyles of rural households, and that this had positive effects on rural ecosystems. Specifically, this effect is likely due to the reduction of intensity in land management by households. In contrast, connectivity to cities had a negative impact on rural ecosystems, possibly due to downsized families and labor shortages that cannot support more non-farm jobs, thus increased dependence on farm income. It appears that vegetation cannot be easily restored after the disturbance of agricultural activities. Further analysis showed that land expropriation and pension plan policies and land leasing may promote non-farming activities of rural households, and thereby affect local ecosystems. We have developed a conceptual framework to summarize the indirect impacts of urbanization on rural ecosystem change that promotes urbanization as an opportunity for sustainable development in rural areas. This initiative can further advance the understanding of complex relationships between urbanization and non-urban ecosystems and identify new pathways toward more sustainable futures.