Chinese-style rural modernization constitutes a vital component of China's modernization process. In this new stage of comprehensively advancing rural revitalization and integrated urban-rural development, its theoretical construction and practical exploration urgently require deepening and innovation. With the continuous advancement of globalization, urbanization, industrialization, and digitalization, the research on rural modernization has exhibited new trends and characteristics marked by interdisciplinary convergence. This paper systematically traces the phased evolution and key domains of China's rural modernization, analyzes structural obstacles in rural areas amid shifting urban-rural relations and pathways to overcome them, and explores the reshaping mechanism of rural economic and social space by in-situ urbanization and rural digitalization. Simultaneously, anchored in a comparative global perspective on rural modernization practices, it further examines China's localized explorations in rural gradient division of labor, diversified development pathways, and agricultural industrial system innovation. At the institutional and governance levels, this paper focuses on the practical bottlenecks and mechanism innovations in rural land transfers and the market-based allocation of urban-rural factors, while delving into the construction of multi-stakeholder modern rural governance system. The study concludes that China's rural modernization currently faces practical challenges including sluggish industrial upgrading, ineffective governance, and insufficient endogenous driving. Future research should strengthen the theoretical construction of Chinese rural modernization by grounding in the local characteristics like the “small-scale farming in a large country” model, breaking through from Western theoretical dependence, and establishing an autonomous theoretical paradigm. Its research framework should revolve around core dimensions such as theoretical innovation and spatial restructuring, human-earth coordination and urban-rural integration, and dynamic transformation and governance innovation, systematically elucidating the connotations, mechanisms, and pathways of rural modernization. Methodologically, it should promote integrated innovation across disciplinary paradigms. Practically, it should emphasize the precise alignment and implementation effectiveness of policies. This approach aims to provide theoretical support and practical solutions for comprehensively promoting the modernization of rural areas with Chinese characteristics, and contributing Chinese wisdom to the sustainable development of rural areas worldwide.
Rural industrial transformation plays a pivotal role in rural modernization. However, leveraging rural industrial transformation to drive modernization involves numerous uncertainties. Grounded in the theoretical framework of “factor restructuring-structural upgrading-functional leap”, this study meticulously constructs a five-dimensional evaluation system for rural industrial transformation, encompassing efficiency, marketization, integration, greening, and technology dimensions. The spatial panel Durbin model and the spatio-temporal geographically weighted regression model are applied to analyze the spatial interaction effects among 273 prefecture-level cities in China from 2010 to 2022. The following findings are obtainedas follows: (1) Spatially, the high-value areas of rural industrial transformation have shifted from Jiangsu, Shandong, Hebei, and southern Liaoning to the Yangtze River Delta, forming a “unipolar agglomeration” pattern centered on southern Jiangsu, while the high-high agglomeration areas of rural modernization have remained stably locked in Guangdong, Fujian, Zhejiang, southern Liaoning, and eastern Hubei. (2) There are dimensional differences in the transmission mechanism. Efficiency and market-oriented transformation generate positive spillover effects through industrial chain diffusion. However, integration exhibits negative spatial spillover owing to the siphoning effect, and technologization is locally locked by the dual constraints of geography and the system. (3) Concerning the spatial heterogeneity of the mechanism, the coefficients of efficiency and marketization increase from the northeast to the southwest in accordance with topographic fragmentation and traffic accessibility. The coefficients of integration and greening decrease from the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region to the periphery due to policy gradients and market attraction. Technology forms a high-value zone in the northeast and the west as a result of environmental coercion.
As the main body of agricultural production, the transformation of the scale and structure of the rural population has a profound impact on farmland non-grain production in China. Exploring the impact mechanism of rural population transformation on farmland non-grain production is crucial for formulating targeted prevention and governance strategies. Therefore, this study revealed the phased characteristics of rural population transformation, as well as the correlation between the spatiotemporal evolution and pattern characteristics of farmland non-grain production and rural population transformation. The results indicated that rural population transformation in China from 2000 to 2020 was characterized by an accele-rated decrease in both total rural population and agricultural employment, coupled with rapidly intensifying aging, and a slowdown in the growth of average education years and the downsize of farmer households. Based on regional characteristics, the transformation of rural population in China can be clustered into three areas: rural employment non-agricultural area, rural population aging area, and rural education popularization area. Spatially, non-grain production in China showed a distribution pattern of “higher in the Northwest and Southeast, lower in the Northeast and North China; increasing in the Northwest and Southwest, decreasing in the Northeast and North China”. Temporally, a downward trend was observed before 2015, follow-ed by a significant annual increase of 0.44 percentage points thereafter, particularly in areas with widespread rural education. The spatio-temporal pattern of farmland non-grain production was primarily shaped by the total rural population, agricultural employment, total dependency ratio, and rural aging, showing spatio-temporal differences in these effects. Farmland non-grain production was strongly inhibited by a shrinking rural population, an increasing dependency ratio, and intensifying rural aging. A reduction in agricultural employ-ment exacerbates the shift toward non-grain use of cultivated land, particularly in areas experi-encing significant rural non-agricultural employment growth and widespread educational attain-ment. Imple-menting three key measures—establishing a collectively managed farmland trans-fer platform, increasing rural pensions, and creating more local non-farm job opportunities—can effectively curb the trend of farmland non-grain production.
Analyzing and understanding the complex mutual-feedback relationship between rural land use and industrial transitions is of great significance for deciphering the intrinsic dynamics of rural territorial systems and formulating effective rural development policies. This paper firstly constructs a theoretical framework for the mutual feedback between rural land use and industrial transitions; to this end, it establishes respective evaluation index systems and, finally, employs a linkage equation model and a mediation effect model to examine their interactive effects. The results found that: (1) Rural land use and industrial transitions exhibit a direct positive interaction. Specifically, a positive interaction exists between arable land use transition and agricultural transition, as well as between construction land transition and the integration of secondary and tertiary industries. Every 1% increase in the transition level of arable land will promote a 0.559% increase in the transition level of agriculture; every 1% increase in the transition level of agriculture will bring about a 0.594% increase in the transition level of arable land; every 1% increase in the transition level of construction land leads to a 0.560% increase in the transition level of the integration of the secondary and tertiary industries; and every 1% increase in the transition level of the integration of the secondary and tertiary industries leads to a 0.190% increase in the transition level of construction land. (2) Land use transition also exerts an indirect influence on industrial transition. Specifically, arable land use transition indirectly affects the integration of secondary and tertiary industries, with a mediation effect size of 0.138; and construction land use transition indirectly influences agricultural industry transition, with a mediation effect size of 0.231. Rural development policies should be oriented towards actively leveraging the mutual feedback between land use and industrial transitions. The goal is to foster their positive interaction, optimize the interactive pathways, and ultimately transform this synergy into an intrinsic driver for rural transition, thereby advancing rural revitalization.
The integrated urban-rural development is an inevitable requirement of Chinese modernization. Rural population is the key subject in promoting rural modernization and urban-rural integration, and the study of rural population rheology is not only related to the coordinated development of rural human-land relations, but also the core issue in efficiently promoting rural construction. The rural population under the guidance of tourism development is being influenced by the flow of multiple factors, showing the phenomena of diversification of subjects, diversification of structure, and polymorphism of distribution. Through a systematic review of domestic and international literature on rural tourism destinations population research, it is found that there is a lack of a theoretical framework for the population rheology in rural tourism destinations from the perspective of rheology, and that the expression of spatial and temporal population rheology at a fine scale through the integration of multi-source data remains underdeveloped. This study establishes a theoretical foundation for population rheology in rural tourism. First, we define its scientific connotation and development trends. Second, we integrate theories from rheology and computational social science to construct a multi-phase analytical framework. This framework, grounded in the integration of multi-source social, temporal, and spatial data, comprises four phases: scale, structure, quality, and trend. Finally, we propose key future research directions, including multidimensional differentiation, spatiotemporal characteristics, influencing factors, evolution patterns, dynamic mechanisms, and guiding policies for population rheology. The aim is to provide theoretical and practical references for optimizing population structure, facilitating orderly flow, and promoting rational distribution in rural tourism destinations, thereby contributing to rural revitalization, urban-rural integration, and the modernization of agriculture and rural areas.
Exploring the optimization and reorganization of rural territorial functions in China, as well as the organizational mechanism, in the new period is of great practical significance for promoting urban-rural integrated development and comprehensive rural revitalization. Based on analyzing the evolution of rural territorial functions and organizational characteristics with in the dynamics of urban-rural relationship in China, this paper defines the conceptual connotation of rural organization, explores the organizational demand logic for rural territorial function optimization and reorganization, and deeply analyzes the organizational mechanism of rural territorial function optimization and reorganization oriented towards urban-rural integration. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) China's urban-rural relationship has experienced four stages: the establishment of urban-rural division and dualism, the aggravation of urban-rural dualism and imbalance, the overall planning and coordinated development between urban and rural areas, and the integrated urban-rural development. Correspondingly, the functional characteristics of rural areas have evolved in four stages: from a singular focus on agricultural production to serve industrial development; to functional differentiation driven by urban-rural factor circulation; to diversified transformation in line with integrated urban-rural planning; and finally, to compound, coordinated development aimed at urban-rural integration. With the intensification of urban-rural interactions, rural social organization exhibits a complex duality: on the one hand, a trend toward high organization and reorganization; on the other, a trend toward disorganization and a weakening of traditional organizational systems. (2) Rural organization is to meet the needs of rural development and the requirements of the times. Various types of actors integrate scattered individuals or resources in rural areas into a structured and orderly system, so as to realize the optimal allocation and restructuring of urban and rural resources and elements. The diverse forces within the state, the market and the countryside accelerate the realization of rural organization by integrating and utilizing urban and rural elements, reshaping rural regional structures and deconstructing and reorganizing spatial organization. The organizational demand logic for the optimization and reorganization of rural territorial functions is reflected in the cross-border reorganization and optimal allocation of urban and rural elements, and the improvement of rural organization to adapt to the changes of internal and external environment of rural areas. (3) Under the background of urban-rural integration, the jointly strengthening of rural basic functions by production entities, the extension of industrial chains to enhance rural economic functions, the innovation of property rights system to explore rural characteristic functions, and the co-governance of multiple entities to promote the coordinated development of rural functions, jointly constitute the core organizational mechanism for the optimization and reorganization of rural functions. Rural organization has reshaped the interface relationship of the exchange of urban-rural elements, and promoted the optimization and reorganization of rural territorial functions, as well as the two-way flow of value between urban and rural areas.
Urban-rural integration has accelerated factor flows, giving rise to a reverse commuting pattern where individuals live in cities but work in villages. Leveraging mobile signaling data and SVM algorithms, this study develops a “function-role” taxonomy to decode commuter patterns and spatial dynamics in Guangzhou. Key findings include: (1) Urban-to-rural reverse commuting in Guangzhou involves nearly 350,000 people daily, accounting for approximately 12.30% of rural employment, emerging as a new commuting type. (2) Urban-to-rural reverse commuting exhibit long distances yet avoid extremes, featuring intra-suburban flows dominated, supplemented by central-to-inner and inner-to-outer suburb movements, with rare cross-ring flows from outer suburban to inner rural areas. (3) Rural multifunctionality and urban amenities jointly shape five commuter types via SVM classification: rural consumption-oriented business operators, rural consumption-oriented service workers, industrial enterprise operators, industrial enterprise service workers, and public service providers. (4) Urban-rural residency gaps require upgraded rural services; prioritize local consumption industries with urban industrial relocation; optimize job-housing layouts for efficient resource flow. This study reveals urban-rural reverse commuting patterns, analyzes their characteristics and underlying causes, and proposes corresponding solutions. Key policy implications include job-housing optimization, rural functional transformation, and the reallocation of services under urban-rural integration.
The classification and interaction of production-living-ecological (PLE) spaces in rural areas present urgent spatial issues in advancing the modernisation of rural areas with Chinese characteristics. Using finely detailed 2023 POI data, high-precision land use data, and agricultural enterprise density data, this paper applies a coupling coordination model and a bivariate spatial autocorrelation model to analyse the distribution and coordination of PLE space functions in Yanling County, Henan Province, a region notable for its advanced agricul-tural industrialization. In addition, it employs a multi-scale geographically weighted regression model to identify the driving factors behind the coordination level of PLE space functions. The study found that: ① The PLE space functions in Yanling County's villages exhibit a radial layered structure centred on the county seat, with production functions forming a “one centre with multiple points” layout, living functions showing a decreasing gradient from the center, and ecological functions maintaining a high-value, ubiquitous distribution. ② The coordination level of village PLE space functions shows a layered graded coordination with spatial differentiation. ③ The values of PLE space functions and their coordination levels have significant spatial correlation and heterogeneity, with production and living space functions highly integrated and positively correlated with coordination levels, while the ecological space shows a significant negative correlation, presenting a dispersed pattern; ④ The distance from the central town, road density, population density, nighttime light index and distribution of agricultural enterprise impact the coordination level of village PLE space functions significantly and exhibit multi-scale geographic differentiation mechanisms. Overall, the study's conclusions contribute to a more fined classification and mechanistic analysis of village PLE space functions, providing a scientific reference for efficient micro-scale land use and for delineating the “Three Zones and Three Lines”.
Specialized villages and towns (SVTs), as micro-scale carriers of industrial clusters in rural areas, represent a critical pathway for achieving agricultural and rural modernization and serve as a key driver for implementing the rural revitalization strategy. Henan Province, a major agricultural region in China, provides a typical case for exploring the spatial agglomeration mechanisms of rural industries through its development of SVTs. However, current research has primarily focused on global driving factors and linear relationships, while the spatial heterogeneity across regions and nonlinear mechanisms remain underexplored. To address this gap, we examine 254 provincial-level “One Village, One Product” (OVOP) demonstration villages and towns in Henan Province, employing kernel density analysis, multiscale geographically weighted regression (MGWR), and XGBoost machine learning to systematically investigate their spatial distribution patterns and underlying driving mechanisms.The findings reveal three key insights: (1) The spatial distribution of SVTs exhibits a “gap ring-shaped” agglomeration pattern centered around Zhengzhou, the provincial capital. High-density clusters are concentrated in the border areas of Xuchang, Luohe, and Kaifeng, with agglomeration intensity decreasing radially from the ring zone toward both the core and peripheral regions, forming a spatial gradient structure characterized by “initial enhancement followed by decline”. (2) The MGWR results indicate that natural factors, such as elevation, exert a stable and significantly inhibitory effect across the study area. In contrast, socioeconomic factors demonstrate pronounced spatial heterogeneity and “regional adaptability”: factors like distance to the provincial capital and urbanization rate suppress the formation of specialized villages in economically developed regions (e.g., central and northern Henan), while exhibiting a facilitative effect in less developed southeastern Henan. (3) The XGBoost model further uncovers nonlinear mechanisms, identifying distance to the provincial capital as the most critical driver. Most socioeconomic variables exhibit an “inverted U-shaped” relationship with the distribution of specialized villages, indicating a threshold effect where marginal benefits peak within a specific range before transitioning to suppression. High-value concentration zones predominantly occur in the “urban-rural transitional interface”, defined by an optimal interplay between distance to the provincial capital and other factors, highlighting this zone's dual advantages of market accessibility and land availability for specialized village development.
Globally, rural development is becoming increasingly complex, attracting attention to the concept of rural resilience. This study systematically reviews the academic history of rural resilience research, explores its diverse interpretations and practical implications, and identifies four key findings: (1) The concept of resilience has undergone three significant transitions, exhibiting a multi-faceted and interdisciplinary nature, with rural resilience inheriting it. (2) The diverse understanding of rural resilience can be categorised into three types according to the varying degrees of normativity: neutral perspectives, positive stances, and discourse critiques. Neutral understanding stems from ecological resilience, emphasising resilience as a process; positive stance is influenced by psychological resilience, emphasising resilience as a state or “quality”; discourse critique focuses on resilience as a discourse, highlighting its political and economic logic. (3) There are three different practices of rural resilience globally: self-governance, hybrid-drive, and government-leadership. (4) Spatial justice, bottom-up development approaches, and diverse agencies are universal propositions for different practices of rural resilience, centred around arguments such as the politics of scale, local empowerment, materiality, and more-than-human geography. The diversification of rural resilience cognitions and the differentiation of practices fundamentally reflect the divergence in rural development pathways. This study calls for a closer examination of China's unique institutional and policy practices, an expansion of rural resilience understanding from social and cultural geography perspectives, and an interpretation of rural resilience within the framework of new development pathways. These efforts aim to enhance the academic framework of rural resilience studies and provide theoretical support for the modernisation of rural China.
The integration of smallholders into modern agriculture represents a crucial pathway for rural revitalization. However, the impact of this integration on changes in cultivated land use, particularly on non-grain conversion, remains unclear. Based on micro-survey data from Sichuan Province, this study systematically examines the effect of smallholders' integration into modern agriculture on non-grain use of cultivated land and its underlying mechanisms from the perspective of rural industrial convergence. The findings reveal that farmers' deeper participation in rural industrial convergence effectively prevents cultivated land from being shifted to cash crops or abandoned, while exacerbating its conversion to non-agricultural and landscaping uses. When cultivation decision-making rights are transferred to convergence entities, large-scale entities show a stronger preference for grain cultivation, whereas small-scale entities tend to opt for non-grain uses. Rising land rents generally strengthen the non-grain inclination of convergence entities. When farmers retain decision-making rights, their level of participation in convergence activities suppresses non-grain conversion. This effect is mediated by the synergy between non-agricultural income growth and agricultural social services, and it varies nonlinearly with the degree of participation. Agricultural socialized services significantly positively moderate the shift toward grain-oriented planting structures. Heterogeneity analysis indicates that farmers' participation in production and processing links promotes grain-oriented land use, whereas involvement in sales and services leads to the opposite. Participation in industrial chain extension models significantly restrains non-grain conversion, while engagement in tourism expansion and technology penetration models exacerbates it.
The persistent constraints of locational disadvantages and inefficient factor allocation have long hindered the development of underdeveloped mountainous villages. Exploring their counter-adversity transformation pathways is of great significance for advancing Chinese-style agricultural and rural modernization as well as common prosperity. This study integrates the theoretical perspectives of “negative lock-in” and “resource-focused action” to construct a comprehensive analytical framework. Using Yanbo Village in Guizhou Province as a case, the study applies qualitative research methods to examine the stage-based evolution and driving mechanisms of its counter-adversity transformation. The findings reveal that: (1) The counter-adversity transformation of Yanbo Village in overcoming negative lock-in can be divided into three stages: breakthrough, expansion, and elevation. Resource-focused action evolved from basic resource bricolage, to systematic resource choreography, and eventually to multidimensional resource orchestration, forming a diversified development system aligned with local realities and market demands. (2) The village's transformation has relied on a synergistic mechanism of “internal resource integration and external resource acquisition”, which has driven the optimization of resource structures and the conversion of development potential across four dimensions: human capital, benefit distribution, governance, and external support. (3) The essence of Yanbo Village's counter-adversity transformation does not lie in the external infusion of a single resource, but rather in a systemic process grounded in local agency, characterized by multi-resource synergy and the progressive optimization of development mechanisms. This transformation embodies a logic of internal integration, external linkage, and collaborative value enhancement. This study expands the theoretical understanding of rural transformation under the dilemma of negative lock-in and provides practical insights for the development of similar regions.
Preventing and mitigating the risk of relative poverty is both a key entry point for establishing a long-term governance mechanism and essential for creating standardized anti-poverty systems in underdeveloped mountainous areas. This paper constructed a multidimensional analysis framework for relative poverty risk among rural households based on the human-land-industry dimensions. Taking Shizhu County in Chongqing as an example, this paper measured the relative poverty risk of rural households from 2013 to 2023, and explored the spatiotemporal variations and structural characteristics of relative poverty risk. The interdependencies among risk categories were analyzed, and the evolution trend of relative poverty risk was simulated. The study shows that: (1) From 2013 to 2023, the overall relative poverty risk of rural households remains stable, with notably high financial risk and natural risk, and rapid growth in labor capacity shock and financial risk. (2) Households engaged in traditional farming and self-operated livelihood exhibited higher relative poverty risk, while those reliant on policy support experienced a sharp increase in such risk. Rural households in remote mountainous areas faced higher risk level, whereas those in alpine regions showed a declining trend. (3) The risk structure was predominantly characterized by dual weaknesses and external disturbance types. The transition from physiological vulnerability, geographical disadvantage, and market competitiveness to relation advantage/disadvantage drove the evolution of rural households' risk structures, reflecting the dynamic changes in relative poverty risk patterns. (4) Significant correlations and transmission characteristics were observed between labor capacity shock, health risk, and financial risk, as well as between natural risk and operational risk. (5) Policy interventions should prioritize mitigating financial and natural risks, alleviating educational and policy-related pressures, and addressing the risks faced by independent and traditional farming households. Additionally, policies should aim to prevent the escalation of risks among migrant laborers and policy-dependent households, while continuously enhancing preferential support for households in remote mountainous areas.
This study investigates whether specialized agricultural development can resolve the structural paradox confronting China's hilly and mountainous areas, which function simultaneously as “economic depressions but ecological highlands”. We treat geographical indication (GI) certification as a quasi-natural experiment and employ a staggered difference-in-differences model to assess the economic and ecological effects of GI certification for agricultural products in hilly and mountainous areas. Our analysis employs a comprehensive county-level panel dataset (2004-2021) covering 1,373 hilly counties, which integrates socio-economic statistics with satellite remote sensing data. The results demonstrate that GI certification generates significant synergistic effects. Certified counties exhibit an average increase of 1.7% in rural per capita disposable income, accompanied by a 10.7% rise in forest coverage and a 0.3% improvement in the biodiversity index. These findings remain robust to an array of robustness checks, including parallel trend tests, placebo tests, and variable substitution tests. Mechanism analysis reveals that economic benefits primarily derive from GI-induced fixed-asset investment and employment multiplier effects generated through industrial linkages. Ecological improvements are mainly attributable to optimized land-use structure and enhanced environmental consciousness among stakeholders.Notably, these synergistic effects exhibit spatial heterogeneity and governance dependency. Economically advanced hilly and mountainous areas demonstrate stronger economic performance but face potential ecological trade-offs, whereas government-led governance models prove more effective in achieving balanced outcomes. The findings confirm that well-designed specialty agriculture can benefit both economies and ecosystems. We recommend establishing county-led management platforms, creating tailored local policies, strengthening green standards with digital tracking, and promoting industrial integration. This integrated approach will sustain the gains and advance rural revitalization.
Supply chain synergy is a critical frontier research issue that needs urgent attention in the study of rural e-commerce development and growth in the field of geography. This study adopts methods such as coupling coordination analysis to measure the level of supply chain synergy development in each region of the country, reveals its spatial differentiation through exploratory spatial data analysis, and explores the mechanism by which supply chain synergy affects the development of rural e-commerce on this basis. The study indicates that the development level of the production segment in e-commerce supply chains shows significant regional differentiation, with high-value areas concentrated in the eastern coastal regions. The high-value areas of the distribution segment highly overlap with provincial capital cities, while the delivery segment exhibits a pattern of regional heterogeneity but intra-provincial homogeneity. The level of supply chain collaborative development exhibits a clear gradient distribution pattern, with significant differences between different regions, and high-coordination areas are primarily concentrated in economically developed regions dominated by the three major urban agglomerations. The results of the regression analysis indicate that the level of regional supply chain collaborative development has a robust and significantly positive impact on the development of rural e-commerce. Supply chain collaboration exhibits a negative spillover effect, and there is strong regional heterogeneity between the eastern and western regions.
