Abstract
Taking Longnan, in the western Qinling Mountains region of Gansu province, China, as our study area, and using the Sixth National Population Census alongside household survey data, we analyze changes in household livelihoods, and consequent regional effects, following the instigation of the “Grain for Green” program in 1999. Our results show rural livelihood changes with respect to natural assets (e.g., reduction of arable land, planting structure changes), human assets (e.g., labor quality improvement, fluidity of population), financial assets (e.g., income channels widening, income increasing), physical assets (e.g., optimized production tools), and social assets (e.g., information network development, increased outreach opportunities). We suggest that increased household livelihoods play an important role in improving land space utilization efficiency, resource conservation and use, and the ecological environment. However, owing to the natural environment, there are also some problems, such as “hollows” in rural production and living spaces, as well as local environmental degradation. To address these issues, regions such as the western, mountainous, impoverished area of our study should establish a policy of using ecosystems, as well as agriculture, for development in order to improve household livelihoods, build an efficient spatial structure, and providing support for the creation of a resource-saving societal system.
Highlights
IntroductionThe concept of “livelihood”, as proposed by Chambers and Conway [1], refers to a means of securing a living, and includes peoples’ livelihood capabilities and activities, as well as their tangible assets (stores and resources) and intangible assets (claims and access)
The concept of “livelihood”, as proposed by Chambers and Conway [1], refers to a means of securing a living, and includes peoples’ livelihood capabilities and activities, as well as their tangible assets and intangible assets
Since the implementation of the Grain for Green program from 1999, it has proven to be beneficial to the ecological restoration and the poverty alleviation of local households from the present perspective
Summary
The concept of “livelihood”, as proposed by Chambers and Conway [1], refers to a means of securing a living, and includes peoples’ livelihood capabilities and activities, as well as their tangible assets (stores and resources) and intangible assets (claims and access). It may be defined depending on the research angle; for Scoones (1998), whose Institute of Development Studies paper focuses on sustainable livelihoods, a livelihood comprises “the capabilities, assets (both material resources and social resources), and activities required for a means of living” [2]. The two agree on the goals of the diversity of household livelihood and the sustainability of rural areas
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