Against a new round of spatial planning for territories, space governance has become an important analysis element for human geographers (
Journal of Geographical Sciences, Volume. 30, Issue 8, 1325(2020)
Land use transition and rural spatial governance: Mechanism, framework and perspectives
The pattern for utilization of rural space is closely related to rural transformation development (RTD). The problem of rural space utilization is an important manifestation of the uncoordinated relationship between land use patterns and rural development status during a transformation period. Considering the rural space utilization issue, this article seeks to analyze the interaction mechanisms between land use transition (LUT) and rural spatial governance and then build a rural spatial governance analysis framework based on LUT. Also, the paper explores the internal relationship between rural spatial governance and rural vitalization and discusses the research prospective of the interaction. The study found that: (1) Rural space utilization has systemic problems such as limited development space, ill-defined ownership and poor organization, which have become important obstacles for rural development. (2) The uncoordinated relationship between LUT and RTD is an important reason for the dilemma surrounding rural space utilization. (3) The LUT provides a basis for determining the timing of rural spatial governance, specifying spatial governance objectives, and clarifying rural spatial governance methods. (4) The construction of a comprehensive analysis framework of “matter-ownership-organization” of rural space based on the LUT has created conditions for the orderly promotion of rural spatial governance. (5) Rural spatial governance which facilitates the integration of urban-rural development is an important foundation for rural vitalization. (6) Interaction analysis of LUT, RTD and rural spatial governance is conducive to facilitating research on the operational mechanism of rural regional systems and to expanding the research field of rural geography.
1 Introduction
Against a new round of spatial planning for territories, space governance has become an important analysis element for human geographers (
Unreasonable use of rural space, as a basis for rural development, is an important factor that restricts rural development and hinders the development of urban-rural integration. The current consolidation of rural “production-living-ecology” spaces requires comprehensive consideration of rural development goals (
Land use transition (LUT) research, with the trend for studying the pattern of land use morphologies at its core, has gradually become an important branch of land use change research (
At present, rural spatial governance focuses mostly on rural physical space, however, there is a lack of research on non-physical fields such as the social relationships underpinned by rural physical space, organization and ownership of rural space (
2 Rural space utilization problems in the transformation period
2.1 Limited space for rural development
The characteristics of disorder, inefficiency and depopulation associated with rural space utilization lead to a situation where there is limited space for rural development. Limited “production-living-ecology” spaces in rural areas have become the core factor that inhibits RTD. The marginalization of rural production space presents phenomena such as abandoned farmland, extensive management, and disorderly occupation (
The efficient combination of rural “production-living-ecology” space is an important prerequisite for improving the structure and function of the rural regional system (
2.2 Unclear ownership of rural space
Rural spatial ownership is a concentrated embodiment of the rural spatial value attribute. Spatial ownership and the benefit of the distribution mechanism are the core elements that determine the flow direction of the rural spatial value. At present, rural space ownership in China has problems such as the unclear relationships between (1) short-term ownership and long-term ownership (
The unclear ownership of rural public space is likely to impact negatively on responsibilities and rights, and to hinder the rehabilitation of the rural residential environment. Rural public space has the risk of being dominated by a limited number of rights or falling into “the tragedy of the commons,” which will cause a waste of rural public resources and social relationship conflicts. The unclear ownership of rural space on the farmers' contracted land is mainly manifested by the uncoordinated relationship between the short-term and long-term ownership. The unclear ownership affects the psychological expectations of the farmers' additional investment in farmland, which will become an important obstacle to the sustainable transition of farmland and the cultivation of new agricultural business entities (
2.3 Inefficient organization of rural space
Organization of rural space is an important component to consider for modernization of the rural governance system in the new era (
The spatial organization system for towns and villages represents the core for constructing the urban-rural settlement system. An efficient and reasonable settlement system for towns and villages is an important guarantor for optimization of the rural regional function (
The disorder of social organization is also an important manifestation of the lack of efficient organization in rural space. At present, the migration of rural laborers has further accelerated the disintegration of traditional rural societies (
3 Analysis of the rural space utilization problem from the perspective of land use transition
3.1 The uncoordinated coupling relationship between LUT and RTD intensifies the problem of rural space utilization
The LUT provides a new perspective for the study of regional human-land interaction and the laws of socio-economic development. Research on LUT can reflect the trend of regional land use patterns and summarize the trends in regularity from drawing on land use change (
The problem of rural space utilization can be analyzed at depth from consideration of the uncoordinated coupling between land use morphologies and rural development status. The change process associated with conflicts in regional land use morphology is an internal mechanism that drives the evolution of land use morphologies (
3.2 Analysis of the rural space utilization conflict based on LUT
It is difficult for rural space to support the spatial needs of RTD, mainly due to the limited amount of land and the unreasonable structure. The dominant morphology of land use can more readily present the characteristics of the land use pattern. The limited per capita farmland area has caused a tension in human-land relations, indicating that the rural agricultural production space is tightly constrained by the pattern of farmland use (
The unclear ownership of rural space is an important manifestation of the lagging of rural LUT behind the RTD. Rural spatial ownership can be clarified by the ownership pattern of land use. The ownership problem of rural farmland use morphology provides important evidence of the change of the recessive morphology of farmland use lagging behind the RTD (
The inefficient organization of rural space directly results in the inefficient use of rural land. As one of the important elements of land use morphologies, land use efficiency provides a breakthrough for analyzing rural spatial organization problems by determining the efficiency of different land types in rural areas (
4 The interaction between land use transition and rural spatial governance
4.1 The interaction mechanism between LUT and rural spatial governance
Compared with the uncertainty of the trend of land use change, the study of LUT pays more attention to the tendency and regular change processing of regional land use morphology. Land use transition corresponds to a change of land use morphology with the succession process, in the stage of socio-economic development, highlighting the coupling characteristics of land use change and rural development (
Land use transition is an important symbol for identifying the characteristics of the RTD stage and provides a time reference for implementing precise policies for rural spatial governance (
Figure 1.
Consolidation of unreasonable use of land can provide an important starting point for optimizing the structure of rural space and for improving the function of rural space. To meet the practical needs of constructing a modern rural governance system and solve the new situation and the problems that occur in the utilization, development, organization and management of rural space, it is necessary to strengthen comprehensive land use management methods such as beginning from the dominant and recessive morphologies of land use, and to incorporate the issues of physical space utilization, ownership and organizational efficiency into the field of the comprehensive land consolidation.
We need to expand the traditional rural land consolidation fields, to focus on the goals for comprehensive management of rural space, to start from the management of rural physical space and build a modern comprehensive management system for rural space. The governance of the land use physical structure, ownership and the organizational system can be taken as the starting point for the construction of the “matter-ownership-organization” trinity for comprehensive governance of rural space, and this is beneficial for discussing the direction for rural governance based on LUT. Besides, we also need to probe into a comprehensive governance path based on rural LUT, and to further the process of interaction between LUT and the management of rural space, and its profound impact on RTD, and highlight the goal of sustainable rural development.
4.2 The effect of interactions between LUT and rural spatial governance
The evolution pattern of rural land use morphology is the bridge connecting LUT and rural spatial governance. The recessive morphology of land use is the key to rural spatial governance. The recessive morphology of land use is beneficial to further enrich the connotation system of rural spatial governance. Aimed at various kinds of problems in the current rural space utilization, the transition of land use morphology is used as a breakthrough to provide a better solution for the comprehensive management of rural space. This is conducive to restructuring the rural spatial system, optimizing the rural land use pattern, and promoting the rural LUT into a virtuous circle (
Based on the LUT process, the characteristics of the RTD stage are identified, which determines the starting node and timing relationships for rural spatial governance. In the process of LUT, conflicts and contradictions in regional land use patterns arise which prompt villages to select and consolidate the land use types (
According to the different types of coupling patterns in different regions, we can further establish acceptable governance measures according to local conditions, and then form a rural spatial governance path of “when to govern, what to govern and how to govern.” The goal of rural spatial governance based on LUT is determined, so that the physical structure, ownership and organizational system of rural space are included in the scope of comprehensive governance. As a result, rural spatial governance has shifted from a previous focus on physical space governance to comprehensive governance that takes into account physical aspects, ownership and organization, such that the capacity and efficiency of rural spatial governance are enhanced. The successful implementation of rural spatial governance will aid to optimize and adjust the pattern of rural land use morphologies, which constitutes the interactive process of LUT and rural spatial governance.
5 Construction of the “matter-ownership-organization” governance system
5.1 The relationship between rural space “matter-ownership-organization” governance and LUT
A comprehensive governance system comprising “matter-ownership-organization” in rural space provides feasible solutions to the structural problems of the rural regional system. Starting from the optimization of physical space, rural spatial governance attempts to solve the structural imbalances and functional deficiencies in rural space and provides strategic support for breaking through the space constraints in the process of RTD. Based on rural physical space governance, supported by rural space ownership governance and organizational governance, rural spatial governance provides an effective way to build a comprehensive rural spatial governance system. The governance of rural physical space is closely related to the ownership and organizational governance of rural space. Promoting multidimensional governance of rural space on a collaborative basis will be an important breakthrough to solve the current problem of rural space utilization.
The construction of a comprehensive governance system of “matter-ownership- organization” based on LUT has created conditions for the orderly promotion of rural spatial governance. The optimization of land use structure and quantity adjustment are the core elements for promoting rural physical space governance. Also, the key to ensuring the effectiveness of rural physical space governance is to carry out targeted “production-living-ecology” land improvements based on local conditions. The objective for rural space ownership and organizational governance is to solve the socio-economic relationship problems brought by rural space. This is closely related to the recessive morphology of land use, which has also become a determinant of whether the rural spatial governance can play a central role. Therefore, the development of rural spatial ownership and organizational governance requires a scientific evaluation of the transition trend of rural land use patterns (
5.2 The governance of rural physical space
The governance of rural physical space can help to exploit the potential of rural space development, improve the level of supporting rural infrastructure, reverse the defilement and degradation trends of rural space, and expand the capacity of rural space utilization (
In terms of living space, we should focus on the consolidation of “hollow villages”, renovate empty rural homesteads and other empty lands, strictly control the area of homesteads and coordinate the planning and design of new housing. It is also important to improve rural infrastructure and public service facilities to optimize the spatial pattern of rural living space (
5.3 The governance of rural space ownership
By clarifying the relationships between property rights and ownership rights for people in the rural space, the distribution mechanism for the rights for development and utilization of the rural space is established. Defining the boundary between public and private spaces and establishing a clear ownership system for rural spaces can create opportunities for optimizing the social relations for rural spaces, stimulating rural innovation and mobilizing rural development momentum. The governance of rural space ownership needs to be based on the current land management system, such that we can try to establish an innovative way to realize ownership, and promote the participation of multiple rural subjects into the governance of rural space ownership (
It is necessary to earnestly promote reform of the rural land regime, optimize the regime of rural land property and management, implement the “three separated rights” regime of rural contracted land and homesteads, and facilitate the confirmation, registration, and certification of rural contracted land and homesteads to stabilize and clarify land rights (
5.4 The governance of rural spatial organization
Rural spatial organization includes both the physical space and spatial relations. The lack of efficient organization of rural space leads directly to ineffective rural space management and control, and the measures and control methods of rural spatial governance become difficult to implement. Therefore, taking the issue of rural spatial organization as a breakthrough, finding an effective means to strengthen the capacity of rural spatial organization is an indispensable and important step in the construction of a modern rural governance system. An important means for efficiently organizing rural space is to scientifically formulate the organizational mode and utilization method of each land type based on the rural LUT trend, transform the traditional rural land use organization system, and then realize an effective concentration and efficient use of rural space (
To solve the problem of ineffective organization in rural areas, an efficient organization scheme for rural space can be constructed based on the perspectives of a farmland, homestead, industrial and mining land, and village settlement system (
Figure 2.
6 Discussion
6.1 Rural spatial governance and rural vitalization
Promoting the integration of urban-rural development and rural spatial governance is an important foundation for rural vitalization. The key to the integration of urban-rural development is to break down the systemic obstacles of the flow of elements, structural integration and functional intercommunication in the existing urban-rural regional system (
The interaction of urban and rural development elements is the sticking point of overcoming the bottleneck of rural development and promoting rural vitalization. Beginning from matter, ownership and organizational governance, rural spatial governance re-establishes the processing capacity and rights distribution of the different elements of rural space and changes the recessive morphological characteristics of the socio-economy carried by rural space. Therefore, from the perspective of the interaction between urban and rural factors, rural spatial governance has changed the spatial configuration of urban and rural development elements, endowing rural development with much-needed resources, which is conducive to ensuring the energy required for rural development (
In the modern era, in order to construct the spatial linkage mechanism of urban-rural space, we should re-examine the value system of rural space, the complementary function space and the value of the urban-rural linkage system. In the process of urban-rural integrated development, the non-coordination of the urban-rural development pattern and the disharmony of urban-rural relations will further promote a new round of rural spatial governance and RTD (
6.2 The prospective of the interaction between LUT and rural spatial governance
The interaction between LUT and rural spatial governance provides an effective tool for promoting RTD, and for improving the structure and function of rural regional systems. This section focuses on the analysis of the internal logical relationship between LUT and rural spatial governance, and mainly discusses the internal mechanism and effects of the interaction between rural spatial governance and LUT (
Figure 3.
Under the guidance of LUT research, based on strengthening the “matter-ownership-organization” governance of rural space, strengthening research on the driving mechanism and regional model of RTD will be an important direction for promoting theoretical research to serve practical needs. At present, with regard to the construction of a theoretical analysis framework for the coupling of LUT and RTD, the identification of the coupling nodes of the interaction between the two, and research on the evolution process and interaction mechanism based on the coupling nodes are still at the exploratory stage. This article further demonstrates the internal relationship between LUT and rural spatial governance and its impact on RTD. Orderly RTD has the common purpose of deepening LUT and rural spatial governance. Rural LUT research has become an important basis for revealing the interaction status and predicament of rural spatial governance and RTD. Rural spatial governance is an important means to optimize the coupling relationship between LUT and RTD, and it is conducive to strengthening the internal mechanism of the two. Therefore, the effective integration of LUT, RTD and rural spatial governance under a unified analytical framework will help deepen the study of the operational mechanism of the rural regional system and provide a reference on vitalization practices to rural villages and communities.
7 Conclusion
The orderly development and utilization of rural space is the material basis for the sustainable development of rural areas in China. At present, the use of rural space has systemic problems such as limited development space, unclear ownership and poor management, and this has become a significant obstacle to rural development. The dilemma concerning rural space can be explained by analyzing the coupling relationship between LUT and RTD. The LUT focuses on the trend in the change process for the dominant and recessive morphologies of rural land use, which provides a valuable perspective for analyzing rural space utilization problems. The LUT is an important concept for identification of the characteristics of the RTD stage, and provides a basis for determining the timing of rural spatial governance, selecting spatial governance objectives, and clarifying rural spatial governance methods.
The integrated governance system of “matter-ownership-organization” of rural space provides a feasible solution to solving the structural problems of the rural regional system. The construction of a comprehensive governance system for rural space based on the LUT provides conditions for orderly promotion of rural spatial governance. Through rural physical space governance, exploiting the rural space development potential, improving the supporting level of rural space infrastructure, and reversing the trend of pollution and degradation of rural space, all help to expand the utilization capacity of rural space, and break the dilemma of having limited rural development space. Also, by clarifying the property rights relationship for rural space, we can define the ownership rights among the inhabitants, establish the mechanism for distribution of rights with respect to the development and utilization of the rural space, establish the boundaries between public and private spaces, and build a clear ownership system for the rural space. An important means for efficiently organizing rural space needs to be based on rural LUT trends with a scientifically based formulation for the various types of organizational models and utilization methods, and reform of the traditional rural land use organization system in order to achieve effective accumulation and efficient use of rural space.
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Dazhuan GE, Guipeng ZHOU, Weifeng QIAO, Mengqi YANG. Land use transition and rural spatial governance: Mechanism, framework and perspectives[J]. Journal of Geographical Sciences, 2020, 30(8): 1325
Category: Research Articles
Received: Mar. 20, 2020
Accepted: May. 21, 2020
Published Online: Apr. 21, 2021
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