Urban-rural Interaction Research Articles

Cultural Heritage in Urban-Rural Interaction: A Case Study of a Rural Community

This paper explores the specific mechanisms and effects of cultural heritage in the process of urban-rural interaction through a case study of a rural community. The study finds that urban-rural interaction not only promotes economic development and social progress in rural communities but also plays a significant role in preserving and innovating cultural heritage. Key practices identified include organizing traditional cultural activities, introducing educational resources, and developing cultural industries such as cultural tourism and traditional handicrafts. The active participation of community residents, supported by local governments and social organizations, is crucial. Governments provide policy and funding support, while social organizations offer resources through project cooperation. However, challenges such as cultural homogenization and unequal resource distribution need to be addressed. The paper recommends strengthening community cultural education, diversifying forms of urban-rural interaction, and fostering multiparty cooperation. These strategies can enhance the sustainability of cultural heritage and provide valuable insights for other rural communities seeking to leverage urban-rural interaction for cultural preservation and development.

Retain in the City, Return Flow, or Blind Direction: A Study on the Differentiation Mechanism of Migrant Workers’ Migration Willingness under the Background of China’s Strategy for Integrated Urban–Rural Development

Against the backdrop of urban–rural integration development in China, the government has further strengthened its support for rural migrant workers’ urban employment and entrepreneurship, as well as their urbanization. Nevertheless, influenced by the current urban–rural development environment and public policies, a portion of rural migrant workers have evolved into two distinct groups: those with clear intentions to settle in cities or return to their hometowns and those trapped in a “neither-nor” situation, who are unable to fully integrate into urban life or seamlessly return to the countryside. This study, based on field investigations conducted in 21 cities across seven major geographical regions in China, reveals a ternary differentiation in migration intentions among rural migrant workers: “Retain in the cities”, “Return flow”, and “Blind direction”. In advancing the urban–rural integration strategy, the “clearly-oriented” groups, choosing to stay or return, can serve as dynamic forces in reconciling resources between urban and rural areas, thereby fostering closer urban–rural ties. Conversely, the “aimless wandering” group, characterized by stagnation, confusion, frequent mobility, and recurrent unemployment, poses numerous negative impacts on urban–rural interaction and coordination, hindering the in-depth integration of urban and rural areas to some extent. Drawing upon the internationally recognized Push-Pull Theory and Social Integration Theory within the field of population migration, this study conducts an empirical analysis of large-scale sample data to explore the characteristic factors and formation mechanisms underlying the “staying”, “returning”, and “blind direction” intentions, with a particular focus on the internal dynamics shaping and evolving the “aimless wandering” group. Finally, grounded in the empirical findings, this study advocates a collaborative approach between the Chinese government and various sectors of society to address the issue by promoting employment guidance, enhancing security measures, and other initiatives that encourage rural migrant workers to either stay in cities or return to their hometowns. It aims to provide policy recommendations for a definitive resolution of the rural migrant worker issue during the crucial period of urban–rural integration development.

Editorial: Carbon emission governance in the evolution process of urban-rural interaction

Editorial: Carbon emission governance in the evolution process of urban-rural interaction

Migration choices for farming households in rural areas: Why new countryside locations are important for the inhabitants of traditional agricultural areas in central China

AbstractIn the urbanisation stage of bilateral urban–rural interaction, China is adopting various policies to achieve rural revitalisation and provide diverse destinations to which farmers can migrate. Most previous studies have focused on urban destinations; thus, new countryside locations are not as well understood in this context. This study focused on first migration practices to examine new countryside destinations for farmers in China. This study established a conceptual framework to explain the diverse migration destination options based on three aspects: human capital, economic characteristics, and social characteristics. Based on survey data from farming households in a traditional agriculture area in Xinxiang, a multiple logit model was used to examine why new countryside destinations were adaptive first migration destinations. The results indicated that farmers were influenced by land capital and low initial household incomes. Specifically, many farmers were attracted to new countryside locations close to their original villages because of the need for cultivated land and farming, thus providing a logical first move in the rural–urban migration process. Poorer households were willing to first improve their living conditions in this way. This suggests that new countryside construction can help achieve rural revitalisation.

How Semi-Urbanisation Drives Expansion of Rural Construction Land in China: A Rural-Urban Interaction Perspective

The expansion of rural construction land in China has led to ecological consequences under the context of rural depopulation, despite government land use controls. While previous studies have investigated the local factors contributing to the expansion of rural construction land, the semi-urbanisation of urban immigrants distant from rural areas has received less attention. To better understand the connections between the semi-urbanisation in the urban areas and the construction land expansion in rural areas, this study constructed a network/spatial lag of N/X (N/SLX) model that incorporated the network lagged term of the socio-economic traits of semi-urbanised migrants to analyse how urban semi-urbanisation influenced rural construction land. Our findings suggest that both the income of rural-urban migrants and the difficulty of obtaining urban household registration are positively correlated with the expanding extent of rural construction land. Conversely, the living expenses of migrants and city economic development are negatively correlated with that of rural construction land. Considering our findings, we propose that policies facilitating the settlement and integration of rural out-migrants into cities and proceeding urbanisation based on county towns are crucial to curb the inefficient expansion of rural construction land.

Capital intervention mechanism of rural spatial transformation in urban fringe areas from the perspective of urban-rural interaction: The case of Gangtou Village in Guangzhou City

Capital intervention mechanism of rural spatial transformation in urban fringe areas from the perspective of urban-rural interaction: The case of Gangtou Village in Guangzhou City

Research on the Innovation of Institutional Mechanisms for Urban-Rural Integration Development in Henan Province in the Context of New Urbanization

Abstract Promoting the integrated development of both rural and urban locations in the context of new urbanization is a major strategic initiative for comprehensively building a socialist modernized country and achieving coordinated development across regions. The first section of this essay focuses on the significance of modern urbanization and urban-rural combined development, as well as their interactions and internal dynamics. Second, using the province of Henan as an example, it constructs an indicator evaluation system, calculates indicator weights using the entropy value method, and analyzes the development comprehensive evaluation index in order to assess the degree of new urbanization and urban-rural integration development. In the end, a coupling degree of coordination model is constructed to examine the coupling cooperation between new urbanization and urban-rural combined development. Specific suggestions are given to innovate institutional systems that promote urban-rural integrated growth in Henan Province. The overall urban-rural integrated Henan Province’s development index exhibits an upward trend between 2010 and 2020; the comprehensive index increased from 0.1548 to 0.8628, with an average annual growth rate of almost 23.84%.In Henan Province, the value of coupling among the two systems of new urbanization and urban-rural integrated development has grown from 0.932 to 0.985, which is at a high degree of coupling. Urban-rural interaction will be realized, and the efficiency of urban-rural coordinated growth will be increased if the urban-rural built development approach in Henan Province is implemented based on local conditions, scientific positioning, and accelerating the melding of production and urbanization.

Why small towns are shrinking: The spatial heterogeneity of small towns shrinkage and the impact of it from the perspective of rural-urban interaction in China.

Small towns play a crucial role in bridging urban and rural territory systems. While numerous studies have identified the characteristics and causes of small town shrinkage (STS), there remains an unexplored perspective on the reasons for their shrinkage from the perspective of the rural-urban relationship. To address this research gap, we investigated the relationship between STS and rural-urban interaction (RUI) in China. We hypothesized that a negative relationship existed between the degree of STS and the intensity of RUI. Using geo-statistical methods, such as the multi-scale geographical weighted regression (MGWR) model, the hypothesis was tested using Henan Province in China as a case study. The results indicated that the phenomenon of STS was observed extensively across the study region, with a 59% geographical overlap between the high-value area of STS and the low-value area of urban-rural interaction. Three distinct sub-types of STS regions were identified: shrinking regions along geographical borders, shrinking regions adjacent to metropolitan areas, and shrinking regions in ecologically fragile areas. The factors influencing STS demonstrated spatial heterogeneity and multi-scale characteristics. The findings will improve our understanding of urban shrinkage from a multi-level perspective and offer policy makers guidance for the sustainable development of small towns based on local conditions.

Throwing the urban and the rural together: unconventional ecological farms in China

Amidst the backdrop of heightened rural–urban interactions, this article delves into the burgeoning phenomenon of unconventional ecological farms in Dali, a Chinese city that is usually perceived as being on the periphery of the urban world. Employing the planetary urbanization thesis in conjunction with the notion of throwntogetherness, this article explicates the trajectories that underpin the emergence of these peri-urban establishments in a way that displays instances of urbanization. Additionally, this article reveals how ostensibly capitalist moments are intricately interwoven with, and fundamentally contingent upon, the coming together of two reconfigurative forces: (1) the changing aspirations and lifestyle preferences of Chinese urban dwellers, and (2) the increasing emphasis on environmental sustainability in urban governance, a trend that has gained momentum in the country over the past decade. In doing so, this article elucidates the dynamics of rural–urban relationships in contemporary China and highlights the efficacy of a relational approach to unveil the complexities of rural transformations.

How should rural development be chosen? The mechanism narration of rural regional function: A case study of Gansu Province, China

Several major changes in China's land policy, economic system, and development strategy have contributed to the continuous transformation of rural patterns and urban-rural relations. The deepening of urban-rural interaction has led to an increasing complexity of rural territorial functions, and the importance of territorial multifunctional mechanisms in the dynamic process of rural development in China has been highlighted. However, the current choice of a rural development model lacks comprehensive thinking that combines the functional mechanisms of rural areas with the elements of the development environment. In this paper, we define and identify the functions of rural areas in Gansu Province, China, and analyze and construct a rural development model by analyzing the interaction between the mechanisms of rural regional functions and the “rural revitalization” strategy. We find that under the control of “rural revitalization,” a sustainable development tool, the countryside is constantly developing into a multifunctional complex, and its development mode should be dynamically adjusted according to functional changes. Finally, we summarize the general evolutionary cycle of the multifunctional system of rural regions and attempt to extrapolate the dynamic developmental village type classification process of “rural revitalization” from the perspective of rural regional functions in China.

The Research on the Practice Path of the Interdisciplinary Art Education with "Urban-Rural Linkage"

With the methods of questionnaires and interviews, this paper propose the imlementation path of “urban-rural linkage” interdisciplinary art education in primary and secondary schools. On the basis of the core elements of the compulsory educaiton “Art Curriculum Standards”(2022), this paper structurally analyze the current situation of interdisciplinary art education in primary and secondary schools, such as experience foundation, teaching difficulty and teachers' and students' willingness. Both in urban and rural, it is necessary to integrate the strength of aesthetic education, to establish an interdisciplinary art education alliance, to implement the interdisciplinary art education cooperation mechanism with "urban-rural interaction", to expanding interdisciplinary art education teaching methods, to integrate local culture and to enhance interdisciplinary ethical awareness, and to explore the road of art education with Chinese Characteristics.These strategies can effectively meet the requirements of the core literacy of art curriculum standards and of the cultivation with interdisciplinary thinking and creative practice, promote the omplementation of comprehensive art education policies in urban and rural primary and secondary schools, and balance the use of uban and rural art education resources for interactive activities.

Comparing the role of social connectivity with friends and family in depression among older adults in China: evaluating the moderating effect of urban-rural status.

Social connectivity and support can reduce depressive symptoms. Few studies have examined urban-rural differences in the relationship between social support and depressive symptoms in the context of urbanization for Chinese older adults. The overall aim of this study is to examine urban-rural differences in the relationship between family support and social connectivity on depression among Chinese older adults. This cross-sectional study used data from the 2010 Sample Survey on Aged Population in Urban/Rural China (SSAPUR). Depressive symptoms were measured using the Geriatric Depression Scale short-form (GDS-15). Family support was measured by structural, instrumental, and emotional support. Social connectivity was measured using the Lubben Social Network Scale-6 (LSNS-6). Descriptive analysis was conducted using chi-square and independent t-tests to examine urban-rural differences. Adjusted multiple linear regressions were conducted to examine the moderating effect of urban-rural status on the association between types of family support and social connectivity with depressive symptoms. In rural areas, respondents who felt their children exhibited filial piety (β = -1.512, p < 0.001) and had more social connectivity with family (β = -0.074, p < 0.001) were more likely to report fewer depression symptoms. In urban areas, respondents who received instrumental support from their children (β = -1.276, p < 0.01), who thought their children exhibited filial piety (β = -0.836, p < 0.01), and who had more social connectivity with friends (β = -0.040, p < 0.01) were more likely to report fewer depression symptoms. In the fully adjusted regression model, social connectivity with family was associated with decreased depressive symptoms, although to a lesser degree among urban-dwelling older adults (urban-rural interaction effect, β = 0.053, p < 0.05). Social connectivity with friends was similarly associated with decreased depressive symptoms, although this effect was greater among urban-dwelling older adults (urban-rural interaction effect, β = -0.053, p < 0.05). The results of this study suggested that older adults both in rural and urban areas with family support and social connectivity were associated with fewer depression symptoms. Differences observed in the role of family and friend social connectivity by urban-rural status may provide practical information for developing targeted social support strategies for improving depressive symptoms among Chinese adults, and call for further mixed-methods research to disentangle mechanisms behind these differing associations.

Mesoscale Structure in Urban–Rural Mobility Networks in the Pearl River Delta Area: A Weighted Stochastic Block Modeling Analysis

Understanding the spatial structure of a megaregion with urban and rural areas is crucial for promoting sustainable urbanization and urban–rural integration. Compared to the city network (or the network of urban areas), however, fewer studies focus on the network connecting rural areas or on the comparison of regional structures between urban and rural networks. Using weighted daily mobility flows from the massive mobile-phone signaling data, this study constructs an urban–urban mobility (UUM) network and an urban–rural mobility (URM) network in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region. A weighted stochastic block model (WSBM) was adopted to identify and compare the latent mesoscale structures in the two networks. Results investigated a gradient community mesoscale structure nested with typical core–periphery (CP) structures in the UUM network and an asymmetric bipartite mesoscale structure mixed with CP hierarchies in the URM network. In a comparison of the different spatial configuration of urban/rural nodes and groupings of their roles, positions, and linkages, the study yielded empirical insights for renewed urban–rural interaction and potential planning pathways towards urban–rural integration.

The Impact of Empowerment Practice on the Rural Collective Economy: Empirical Evidence from Rural Communities in China

As a vivid practice of urban-rural interaction, empowerment is playing an increasingly salient role in rural revitalization around the world. Yet, existing studies on empowerment practices are still insufficient. This paper examines how empowerment practices affect the economic development of rural communities in China. This study constructs an integrated variable to measure the practice of rural empowerment in China. Data for this study were obtained from the community data of the China Rural Household Panel Survey (CRHPS) in 2017 to empirically verify the impact of empowerment practices on the rural collective economy. The results indicate that empowerment practice has a significant role in promoting the economic development of rural communities. Regarding the heterogeneity of the number of leaders, the fewer rural community leaders there are, the less empowered a village will be. For the heterogeneity of the income of the rural collective economy, the higher the income is, the more significant the promoting effect of empowerment on rural communities will be.

Emergent rural–urban relations in Covid‐19 disturbances: Multi‐locality affecting sustainability of rural change

AbstractThe recent Covid‐19 pandemic highlighted rural–urban interactions, in particular the fact that cities are dependent on the accessibility of non‐metropolitan and rural spaces and vice versa. This article seeks to understand how these interactions contributed to emergent relational spaces of rurality during the Covid‐19 crisis. The article analyses politicised mobilities between localities and rural–urban linkages that are tied to the sustainability of rural change. The study focuses on two countries: Estonia and Finland, exploring thematic narratives on second‐home practices and related politics during the outbreak of the Covid‐19 crisis. The explored regions were the South Savo region in Finland and the island of Saaremaa and northern coastal villages in Estonia. The analysis indicates ways in which the mobility restrictions and disturbances triggered by the Covid‐19 pandemic attributed certain demands and hopes to rural areas and led the shift in rural–urban interactions. The article contributes to the understanding of co‐existences between im/mobilities and multi‐local living and sustainability in rural change.

Understanding the spatiality of the rural poor's livelihoods in Northeast China: Geographical context, location and urban hierarchy

The livelihoods approach has become dominant for understanding poverty issues and advising on development policies. Spatial perspectives have been increasingly recognised to be important for understanding the increasing complexity and dynamics of livelihoods with regional development, urbanisation and close rural-urban interactions. This study further develops this perspective by highlighting the concepts of geographical context, location and urban hierarchy and adopts a multi-scalar analytical approach. The study examines the rural poor's livelihood strategies in Jilin Province of China based on two surveys conducted with about 3000 households in total and multiple logistic regression analysis. Our results demonstrate that half of the rural poor depend on incomes and livelihood strategies without labour input. From a macro-spatial view, the rural poor living in the Western and Eastern Areas, which have more challenging geographical contexts, are more dependent on subsidy income. From a micro-spatial view, rural livelihoods change, with spatial patterns depending on distance to urban areas and the type of these areas; small and medium-sized urban areas are more important for the rural poor's livelihoods. Geographical context makes these urban effects on rural livelihoods spatially more heterogeneous. Spatial understandings of livelihoods research help to better target and tailor poverty alleviation policies.

Urban Rural Interaction: Processes and Changes in the Marina Oriental of Cantabria (Spain)

Since the middle of the last century, especially since the seventies, processes have been generated and consolidated that have changed the image of certain rural environments in Spain, especially coastal, with new forms of organization and territorialities that break the traditional model. The Cantabrian territory, like other areas of the Spanish coast, has seen its territories and landscapes altered in terms of its demographic, economic, and urban structures. The variation over the easternmost area of the Autonomous Community of Cantabria is significant, affected by various growth processes of both cities in the region, as well as others adjacent and connected, such as the urban agglomeration of Bilbao, influencing this space that we call Marina Oriental de Cantabria. The justification and objectives are to know how the coastal geographical situation, good communications, and proximity to Bilbao have configured this space to become a functional part of the metropolitan agglomeration that is generated around this city. An investigation focused on the analysis of the intensification and the effects of the urbanization process of a rural and rururban area, from an integrative, transversal, and multiscale approach, supported by inductive and hybrid methodology, with quantitative and qualitative methods. Through this study, the evolution and problems of these spaces will be known, to analyze the processes that have occurred and continue to occur and, thus, propose measures to reduce the negative effects. The main results and conclusions of the research are manifested in transformations on a legacy space, which has been productively redefined, being one of the most changed since the middle of the last century.

Enhancing conceptual and practical understandings of small-scale farming resilience in the metropolitan countryside of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Rural-urban complexity can be seen across the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Region where land use, and economic and environmental policies have generated conflicts. In this context, agriculture has become juxtaposed with other functions and interests, which has resulted in a mosaic of diversified land use. These rural-urban interactions also provide opportunities to develop different types of knowledge that allow communities to develop resilience in an environment of spatial changes. The aim of this article is to analyse rural change and farming resilience in the Eastern Rio Metropolis, based on primary research undertaken in 2017 and 2018. The results provide useful insights for understanding the nature of rural-urban interactions in a metropolitan countryside that could, in turn, inform policies for promoting local and regional quality food systems and small-scale farming strategies.

Ecological area: An elastic space for urban-rural interaction

&lt;p&gt;The present report is based on a consideration of the environmental, economic, and social challenges facing urban and rural areas in Latin America, many of which are the result of structural changes experienced by the region in recent decades. The main purpose of this document is to demonstrate the urgent need to link urban and rural spaces to meet the challenges that will move the Latin American region towards sustainable development. Focus on ecological areas, such as resilient urban-rural systems that interact in a sustainable manner. This is reflected in the author’s experience and the cases recorded in the literature. To this end, an integrated approach is proposed between natural (ecosystems) and socio-economic components (communities) in rural and urban areas and between them, characterized by semi-rural and semi-urban arrangements. As a conclusion, a reform is proposed to overcome the adaptive sectoral actions in the current development model, which is characterized by exclusivity, inefficiency, and unsustainability.&lt;/p&gt;

Preventive measures focused on the urban-rural interface protect rural food-producing communities from SARS-CoV-2.

Rural food-producing communities are fundamental for the development of economic activities associated with sustainability and food security. However, despite the importance of rurality in Colombia, preventive strategies continue to be implemented homogeneously, without considering the dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 in rural food-producing communities. To model real areas in Colombia involving rural and urban populations that have intrinsic SARS-CoV-2 transmission dynamics. Characterize rural-urban interactions by means of a parameter that provides different scenarios and allows us to identify interactions capable of preventing SARS-CoV-2 transmission in rural food-producing communities. The dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 infection was modeled in five case studies (Boyacá, Caquetá, Cundinamarca, Santander and Sucre) considering urban and rural areas and their interaction (connectivity) in the urban-rural interface. For this purpose, an epidemiological compartmental model considering a classification of individuals according to their economic activity and their epidemiological status was assessed. Preventive measures focused on the urban-rural interface impact the number of deaths in rural areas. Hence, it is possible to assume that the dynamics of the disease in rural areas depend on the constant interaction with infected individuals from urban areas, which occurs due to the food production dynamics in the urban-rural interface. Preventive measures should focus on places of high transmissibility and risk for rural communities, such as the urban-rural interface. This work highlights the importance of national heterogeneous preventive measures and the protection of rural communities from the social and economic impacts of SARS-CoV-2.