Constructing a Defense Against Poverty Reversion Through University Practice in the Context of Rural Revitalization: A Case Study of the Dianfanghe Community

Abstract

Against the backdrop of the rural revitalization strategy after poverty alleviation in China, this paper takes the Dianfanghe community in Zhaochuan Town, Shangnan County, Shangluo City, Shaanxi Province as the research object and explores the role of universities in constructing a mechanism to prevent poverty reversion. A mixed-methods approach was adopted for 646 households, combining field surveys, household surveys, and spatial analysis to identify key vulnerabilities. The study found that there are five dimensions of the risk of poverty reversion in the community after poverty alleviation: unbalanced human structure, fragile physical capital, constraints of the natural environment, single source of income, and weak social capital. To address these risks, a three-party collaborative monitoring mechanism involving the government, universities, and society was proposed, which effectively enhanced the community’s risk resistance ability. This model provides a replicable paradigm for universities’ participation in consolidating poverty alleviation achievements in the new era and has important reference value for similar mountainous communities.

1. Introduction

Against the backdrop of remarkable progress in the global poverty alleviation cause, consolidating poverty alleviation achievements and preventing the risks of returning to poverty have become common challenges faced by the international community. Data from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) shows that approximately 12% of the population who have been lifted out of poverty globally face the risk of returning to poverty due to factors such as climate change and economic fluctuations [1]. As the world’s largest developing country, after eliminating absolute poverty in 2020, China entered the “post-poverty alleviation era”, and the rural revitalization strategy has become the core task of the new stage. However, issues such as unbalanced regional development, the urban–rural gap, and the vulnerability of industries may still lead to households that have been lifted out of poverty returning to poverty. In this context, constructing a scientific and effective monitoring mechanism for preventing the return to poverty has become a crucial link in consolidating the achievements of poverty alleviation and promoting rural revitalization.

International experience has shown that multi-subject collaboration and technological innovation are important paths for monitoring the prevention of returning to poverty. For example, India integrates the resources of universities through the “National Rural Livelihoods Mission” (NRLM) to provide skills training. Brazil relies on the “University Social Responsibility Program” (PRONASU) to encourage universities to participate in community development [2]. In the United States, land-grant universities support the upgrading of rural industries through agricultural extension services [3]. These practices indicate that universities, as carriers of knowledge and technology, play an irreplaceable role in monitoring the prevention of returning to poverty. However, existing research mostly focuses on the government-led monitoring system, and there is insufficient exploration of the systematic participation mechanism of third-party forces such as universities. Especially in the Chinese context, how to effectively connect university resources with local needs remains an urgent problem to be solved.

Some scholars conducted in-depth research on the issue of returning to poverty in China. Due to the dynamic repeatability of returning to poverty, the risk of returning to poverty objectively exists in the process of continuously consolidating poverty alleviation achievements, and even affects the process of rural revitalization. Zhang [4] analyzed the risk of returning to poverty from the perspective of income and clarified that a standardized early warning mechanism for returning to poverty can effectively prevent the occurrence of returning to poverty. Bao [5] used the accident chain theory and catastrophe theory to analyze the problem of returning to poverty in China and constructed an early warning model for returning to poverty in China. Fan [6] believes that in exploring the early warning mechanism for returning to poverty, the most important thing is to prevent the risk of returning to poverty in the early stage. In practice, taking Jian’ou City, Fujian Province as an example, Fu [7] briefly analyzed the current situation of preventing the recurrence of poverty in targeted poverty alleviation and proposed that by establishing a sound dynamic management system, systematic guarantee can be provided for the realization of the early warning mechanism for the risk of returning to poverty. Through the analysis of 35,000 poverty-stricken households with established files in Guizhou Province, Ma et al. [8] found that health and labor force factors are important reasons for the recurrence of poverty among residents and can be regarded as the key monitoring points for the early warning of returning to poverty. In terms of constructing the defense line for early warning of returning to poverty, Wang et al. [9] believe that the government is still the main body for preventing the recurrence of poverty, and there is an urgent need to form a large-scale relief pattern with the coordinated participation of multiple forces, such as the government, the market, and society. Wu [10] believes that it is necessary to clarify the main responsible body for preventing the recurrence of poverty and mobilize and support relevant parties to participate in the monitoring and relief of the recurrence of poverty. Therefore, as a third party participating in the construction of the defense line for early warning of returning to poverty, colleges and universities can play the role of a central bridge, enrich the monitoring and relief system for returning to poverty in a low-cost and high-efficiency manner, and form a “large-scale relief pattern”.

In conclusion, constructing an information platform for preventing the risk of returning to poverty and establishing an early warning mechanism and monitoring system for preventing returning to poverty can defuse the risk of returning to poverty in a timely manner. At the same time, an effective monitoring and prevention line for returning to poverty can not only prevent the recurrence of poverty after poverty alleviation and promote the construction of beautiful rural areas in local places, but can also provide a set of databases, which is convenient for scholars to explore the path of returning to poverty, provide a reference for returning to poverty in other regions, and provide a reliable backup for rural development for China’s rural revitalization strategy. It also contributes a data-supported poverty alleviation theory to the world’s poverty alleviation work.

Taking the Dianfanghe community in Zhaochuan Town, Shangnan County as an example, this paper uses the method of case analysis. Starting from the revitalization plan of poverty-stricken villages after poverty alleviation, it explores the risk factors of villagers returning to poverty after poverty alleviation. With college students as the main body of practice, it focuses on studying the monitoring mechanism of villagers returning to poverty. It prominently solves the problems such as the shortage of monitoring personnel, the backward processing technology after monitoring, and the difficulty of effective information feedback. It provides an effective method for the early warning of returning to poverty in the new stage of rural revitalization and constructs a monitoring system with the participation of multiple parties for poverty-stricken households returning to poverty.

2. Research Method

This study comprehensively applied multiple research methods to analyze the risks of returning thoroughly and deeply to poverty and prevention mechanisms in the context of rural revitalization. Taking the Dianfanghe community in Shangnan County, Shaanxi Province as the research object, it ensured the scientific nature and reliability of the research results. The specific research methods are as follows:

• Literature research method: Systematically combed through domestic and foreign literature on risks of returning to poverty, rural revitalization, and universities’ participation in poverty alleviation. By consulting academic databases, government reports, policy documents, etc., the existing research achievements and practical experiences were mastered, the forefront trends and deficiencies of current research were understood, providing a solid theoretical foundation and research ideas for this study.
• Field investigation method: The research team conducted on-site investigations in the Dianfanghe community multiple times. On the one hand, they observed the actual situation of the community’s natural environment, infrastructure construction, industrial development, and residents’ living environment to obtain first-hand visual materials and gain a deeper perceptual understanding of the community. On the other hand, they had face-to-face exchanges with local government staff, community cadres, and residents to understand their perceptions of consolidating poverty alleviation achievements and risks of returning to poverty, as well as the difficulties and demands they faced in actual production and life.
• Questionnaire survey method: Questionnaires were designed and distributed to 646 households in the Dianfanghe community. The questionnaire content covered various aspects, such as the basic situation of residents’ families, labor force status, sources and levels of income, property status, understanding and participation in policies, and difficulties and risks faced. Through large-scale questionnaire surveys, a large amount of data were collected and analyzed using statistical methods, so as to accurately grasp the overall situation of community residents and quantify the various dimensions of the risk of returning to poverty. After collecting a sufficient number of questionnaires, the contradictory ones were removed, and finally, 634 valid questionnaires were obtained.
• Spatial analysis method: With the help of spatial analysis tools such as the geographic information system (GIS), the geographical spatial data of the Dianfanghe community were processed and analyzed. Spatial elements such as the community’s geographical location, topography and geomorphology, land use types, and resource distribution were analyzed, and the relationships between these elements and the community’s industrial development, residents’ lives, and risks of returning to poverty were studied.
• Case analysis method: The Dianfanghe community was selected as a typical case for in-depth analysis. By thoroughly analyzing the development process, problems faced, measures taken, and achievements obtained by the community during the poverty alleviation and rural revitalization processes, experiences and lessons were summarized, and a prevention mechanism for the risk of returning to poverty and a development model suitable for mountainous communities were explored.

In order to ensure the reliability of the data, during the survey process, the accuracy of the data is ensured through “double-blind data entry” (students and village cadres enter the data independently) and cross-validation (randomly selecting 10% of the questionnaires for rechecking). In response to communication barriers, dialect translation and picture-assisted surveys are adopted.

3. Tailoring Beautiful Countryside Construction to Local Conditions

The essence of the Beautiful Countryside Initiative is to build a democratic rural area with a clean and tidy appearance and a civilized rural atmosphere on the basis of developing productive forces and moving towards common prosperity. The School of Architecture of Chang’an University carried out poverty alleviation work in the Dianfanghe community, Shangnan County. In recent years, multiple practice teams repeatedly visited the countryside, leveraging the disciplinary and technological advantages of affiliated universities to assist the designated poverty-stricken county in strengthening the top-level design of industrial development. From poverty alleviation to rural revitalization, they helped the local government complete the construction plans for rural industries and the human settlement environment. The location of Dianfanghe community is shown in Figure 1.

3.1. General Overview of Regional Resources

Identifying regional resources is a prerequisite for the Beautiful Countryside Initiative. Through three years of continuous practical investigations by university students, a comprehensive understanding and an in-depth exploration of the rural resources in the Dianfanghe community have been achieved. This enabled the discovery of its development limitations and the excavation of its inherent value, thus avoiding resource damage and waste during the planning and construction process. The Dianfanghe community is located in the southern part of Shangnan County, in the Dianfanghe River Basin. It was formed by the merger of the original Shuanglong Village and Matigou Village. Its geographical location is relatively remote, situated in a mountainous area.

• Rich natural resources but constrained agricultural development: The total area of the Dianfanghe community is 26.6 km², with a forest area of 22.03 km², endowing it with abundant forest resources. The community is adjacent to Wudang Mountain and complements Jinsi Gorge, boasting excellent tourism resources. However, the cultivated land area in the village is scarce, with 1.47 km² of basic farmland, 0.41 km² of non-basic farmland, 0.42 km² of water area, and 0.11 km² of homestead area. Among them, approximately 47.2% of the land is suitable for construction, 14.6% has conditional construction restrictions, 28.4% is unsuitable for construction, and about 9.8% is particularly unsuitable for construction. The limited developable area and geographical constraints make it difficult to develop agricultural industrialization.
• Severe population outflow and unbalanced structure: The villagers’ settlements in the community are mainly distributed in Matigou, Tayugou, and Songshugou, which are relatively suitable for construction. The Dianfanghe community has a total of 646 households, mainly consisting of agricultural population. The non-agricultural population ratio has been increasing year by year due to the growing number of people going out to work. The current residents in the village are mainly the elderly, resulting in a severe shortage of labor force. The population structure shows an imbalance in the male–female ratio and a significant trend of a declining birth rate and an aging population. The male–female ratio is approximately 4.9:1 and the birth rate of newborns is low, with the population under 18 years old accounting for less than 10%, and the population over 65 years old exceeding 15%.

Overall, the Dianfanghe community was gradually declining. Its remote location, poor cultivated land resources, unexploited rich natural scenery resources, and population shrinkage, which aggravated the hollowing-out of the community, were all unfavorable to its sustainable development. During the poverty alleviation period, a development plan that capitalized on local advantages and circumvented disadvantages became the key to revitalizing the “declining” village.

3.2. Spatial Planning and Development Strategy Analysis

• Dialectically learning from the experience of poverty alleviation, we can customize space planning by combining the professional abilities of colleges and universities with the implementation level of the local government. By examining successful case studies from various regions, such as Zhaojia Village in Pingshui Hamlet, Jintang County, Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, Shanchuan Village in Gaojiatang Hamlet, Ji’an County, Zhejiang Province, and Yuangudui Hamlet in Weiyuan County, Gansu Province, we can plan for the industrial development type and prospects of the Dianfanghe community. This includes developing characteristic industries, spatial planning modes, and sustainable development of villages while integrating ecological and spatial components. We can classify different types of available spaces into four categories: Characteristic Protection, Space Fusion Class, Industry Driven, and Agglomeration and Promotion, as shown in Figure 2. We can optimize the service radius of each space through simulation planning, with “Agglomeration and Promotion” and “Space Fusion Class” providing public activity support for the entire Dianfanghe community. Meanwhile, “Characteristic Protection” and “Industry Driven” can help to ensure intensive use of ecological and land resources and strengthen the governance of human settlements in the village.

Figure 2. Spatial and ecological integration division.

Figure 2. Spatial and ecological integration division.

• Deeply analyze the current situation of the community and closely carry out the overall strategic analysis according to the survey results. Through the analysis of SWTO’s development strategy, the opportunities, strengths, weaknesses, and challenges faced by the construction and development of the Dianfanghe community’s beautiful countryside are clarified, as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3. SWTO development strategy analysis.

Figure 3. SWTO development strategy analysis.

Under the background of the formulation and implementation of the Central Committee′s poverty alleviation policy, the planning and construction seize the favorable regional location and policy conditions. The Dianfanghe community takes industrial poverty alleviation as the top priority in poverty alleviation, makes full use of the existing natural resources and cultural resources, and strives to develop characteristic agriculture according to the idea of combining “long, medium, and short”. According to local conditions, the development of Chinese herbal medicine planting, chestnuts, pig breeding, and edible fungus are four industries. The “Internet“ is embedded and applied to all links of the industrial chain, characteristic agriculture is regarded as the main industry in the countryside, and excellent planting technology is used to attract local villagers back to the village for employment. Under the premise of protecting the ecological environment, the village infrastructure construction is improved, the quality of the village living environment is improved, and the villagers’ production vitality and awareness of environmental protection are enhanced.

3.3. Rural Industrial Development Layout

Drawing lessons from the whole country and taking root in the local area, the strategy adjusts the direction of rural development and industrial structure on the premise of the multi-level and high-dimension analysis of the man–land relationship and its interactive impact, and truly realizes the in-depth layout of rural industrial development according to local conditions with “one village and one policy”. At the university, I assisted the Dianfanghe community to formulate the overall industrial development goal of “strong ecology and extension of three industries”. Based on the rural ecological construction, I expanded the scale of the agricultural breeding industry, guided and developed the pollution-free and high-value-added characteristic agricultural product processing industry, enhanced the value of the overall agriculture, and promoted the transformation of agriculture and forestry to informatization and service. At the same time, the Dianfanghe community, as a designated support village of colleges and universities, cooperates with colleges and universities to build a sketch or group building base. The school provides the publicity and design of featured cultural and creative products for the community to achieve mutual benefit and mutual assistance, achieve a new experience of village–school cooperation, and ultimately drive the further development of the village.

• The Dianfanghe community puts ecological priority into practice, protects the natural environment, and promotes the development and cultivation of income-increasing industry through project demonstration, led by talented people, led by branches, and by collaboration among colleges and universities. The characteristic industrial area, ecological planting area, and green breeding area planned by the Dianfanghe community should be based on the construction of ecological civilization. The promotion of the construction of a rural ecological civilization should not be false, and there is no shortcut to take. It is necessary to abandon the idea of seeking quick success and instant benefits, make steady progress, and actively play the role of university think tanks to prepare special plans for the construction of rural ecological civilization. Create a blueprint to the end.
• The rural characteristic planting industry is based on protecting the ecological environment, improving the existing agricultural planting structure, and increasing the yield and value of crops, which is important to support for achieving high-quality development of China’s rural economy and society. Zhao [11]. pointed out that for rural areas with a long history of farming and breeding and regional characteristics, advantageous agriculture can be industrialized through agricultural industrialization development, reducing production costs and other means to form a multi-benefit linkage mechanism for mutual benefit and win–win. At present, through the “Government-Enterprise–school-agriculture” union, the Dianfanghe community makes a comprehensive analysis of natural conditions and geographic information and develops the characteristic planting industry in combination with the planting requirements and characteristics of the planned crops. It mastered the planting techniques of Fructus trichosanthis, chestnut, edible mushroom, and Qinchuan pig, and conducted proper planning and segmentation of the planting area, as shown in Figure 4.
• The agricultural processing industry is not only the main intermediate industry connecting industrial cities and rural areas, but it is also an important means to develop modern agriculture and promotes farmers to increase their income and become rich [12]. The agricultural processing industry connects farmers, villages, and agriculture at one end, and industries, cities, and citizens at the other. It is China’s rural industry with the largest volume, the largest correlation with industries, and provides the largest economic benefits to farmers. The Dianfanghe community focuses on developing a pollution-free and high-value-added characteristic agricultural product processing industry and guides local villagers to participate in standardized processing by taking advantage of resources adjacent to the ecological cultivation area and green breeding area. Supplemented by the cultural and creative design of colleges and universities and the extensive publicity of “Internet” mode, the Dianfanghe community meets various sales needs of the market and creates a characteristic planting boutique village.
• Ecotourism is an effective way to further develop a variety of rural industries. Based on the unique natural ecological environment, ecotourism can be developed in combination with rural planting experience, mountain forest adventure, natural culture education, and artwork derivation. According to the results of internships and the group construction experience of college students, the whole experience zone of the Dianfanghe community is improved and adjusted, the process of ecotourism is constantly optimized, the effective linkage between industries is realized, the sales of rural products are promoted, and the new experience of multi-cultural tourism adapted to a wider group is created, as shown in Figure 5.

3.4. Planning for the Construction of Human Settlements

Relying on the characteristics of college architecture, focusing on adapting to the level of rural economic development, and coordinating with the local culture and local customs, we completed the reconstruction planning of the Dianfanghe community’s village appearance. For the existing environmental problems, the planning strategy of “three treatments, one measure” has been formulated. Rectification has been carried out from the three aspects of residential buildings, river passages, and public facilities, and protection measures have been formulated for the ecological environment.

• The protection and inheritance of rural characteristic residential architecture culture is the guarantee of revitalizing rural civilization. The residential buildings in traditional villages are constructed to the local topography and climate changes. The impact of modern life civilization leads to the phenomenon of the cultural convergence of architectural features. Therefore, protecting architectural features with local characteristics is an important means to protect regional civilization features, slow homesickness, and attract the population. The renovation and design of the Dianfanghe community buildings are completed in three parts: the transformation strategy of traditional residential buildings, the design strategy of newly built single-family residential buildings, and the transformation strategy of townhouses in resettlement sites.
• Water environment protection plays a decisive role in the process of ecological environment management, and river management is one of the main means of water environment protection. It is necessary to recognize the importance of coordination between river management and ecological protection. The government cooperated with colleges and universities to carry out a thematic study, comprehensively considering the surrounding environment of river treatment work, planning and organizing the design from multiple perspectives, taking the water body of three streams in the Dianfanghe community as the main treatment object, dredging the river, improving the water quality, repairing the riverbank as the means, improving the sewage treatment level as the perfect measure, and strengthening publicity to enhance the villagers’ awareness of water resource protection. This promotes the water environment protection of the Dianfanghe community.
• To develop rural tourism, the construction of rural public toilets should match it. Around these problems, colleges and universities provide planning consultation, the construction of a reasonable number of garbage recycling points, and public toilet sites in the village.
• Establish and improve community environmental management organizations, and actively carry out environmental protection measures. While developing the economy, we should also pay attention to the coordination role of the ecosystem. In principle, we should carry out village construction activities in an orderly and reasonable way, improve the efficiency of intensive use of land and resources, promote the large-scale development of agricultural production, and avoid the damage to the ecological environment caused by extensive development. With the help of technical guidance from colleges and universities, the community grassroots level strictly controls the discharge of pollutants in the process of breeding and planting, conducts harmless treatment of household garbage or sanitary landfills, strengthens the publicity measures for environmental protection, increases the awareness of villagers to consciously protect, and realizes the transformation from discharge control to conscious protection.

4. Tailored Analysis of Rural Poverty Risk

Starting from the development planning of the Dianfanghe community, this paper analyzes the risk of returning to poverty in rural areas. The risk of returning to poverty refers to the reason why farmers who have been lifted out of poverty fall into poverty again. Scholars have not conclusively defined the risk types of returning to poverty [13]. It is proposed that livelihood capacity risk, livelihood capital risk, and livelihood strategy risk are the main livelihood risks faced by people who have been lifted out of poverty. From the perspective of system factors, some scholars divided poverty return risks into two categories: systemic risk and non-systemic risk [14]. Geng [15] believes that poverty return risks can be divided into capacity loss risk, policy poverty return risk, environmental poverty return risk, and developmental poverty return risk. In addition, several indicators are integrated to represent the vulnerability of the livelihood capital of poverty-stricken households with exposure, sensitivity, and adaptability [16], and then the anti-poverty risk of poverty-stricken households can be the feedback. It can be seen that the current assessment of the risk of returning to poverty still needs to be tailored to the case. The research of the Dianfanghe community adopts the framework of sustainable livelihood and deconstructs the risk of returning to poverty into five dimensions, namely human risk, material risk, natural risk, income risk, and social risk. The index system of these dimensions has been relatively complete [17,18,19].

The risk assessment of returning to poverty requires regular quantitative research and statistics, but most of the poverty-stricken villages have few workers and low educational levels, so they are unable to complete the risk assessment of returning to poverty. Students can intuitively feel and objectively analyze the local poverty alleviation situation and the risk of returning to poverty because they have no direct interest relationship with the local government and villagers. Next, the risk of poverty return was calibrated with the help of sustainable livelihood framework indicators, and the poverty return rate was used to summarize, as shown in

Table 1. Analysis of risk factors of returning to poverty in Dianfanghe Village.

Risk Indicator	Risk Type	Survey Results in the Village	Rate of Poverty Reduction	Comprehensive Assessment
Loss exposure	human resources risk	Labor flows out, and most of the village is old and infirm	High	The problem of population loss deserves special attention
	material risk	The government retrofitted the dilapidated houses	Low
	natural risk	Better climate, strictly prevent forest landslides, mountain floods, and fire	Middle
	revenue risk	Planting and breeding momentum is good and stable sales	Middle
	social risks	The level of understanding of policy is not high	Middle
Sensibility	human resources risk	Support the elderly, requirements for raising children are lower	Middle	The industrial countryside is highly dependent on policy
	material risk	Public facilities are improved and roads are smooth	Low
	natural risk	New mountain slope protection and protection awareness strengthened	Low
	revenue risk	The family income source is relatively single	High
	social risks	Policy fluctuation, no sales promotion	High
Adaptability	human resources risk	Young children aging seriously, and population imbalance	High	The main concern for resilience is old age and young children
	material risk	Households are hoarding food, durable goods	Middle
	natural risk	The index of cultivated land is low and the index of forest land is sufficient	Middle
	revenue risk	The government subsidizes the industry	Middle
	social risks	The villagers trust the leadership and the village is well organized	Low

. Among them, the data were obtained through a questionnaire survey. The questionnaire design follows the Likert 5-point scale. The reliability was tested by the Kendall′s coefficient of concordance, and the principal component analysis method was used to extract the key risk factors.

4.1. Manpower Risk

Human capital is a “form of capital” including knowledge, skills, health, etc. Education is an important way to form and accumulate human capital, which has become a hot spot in anti-poverty research [20]. Li [21] believes that to consolidate and expand the achievements of poverty alleviation and reduce the poverty return rate, it is necessary to focus on breaking the intergenerational transmission of poverty and improving the education level and human capital accumulation of children from poor families. Human risk is the result of multiple factors superimposed on the human capital of poverty alleviation households, including quantity, quality, development potential, and drag situation [22]. The quantity and quality factors of human capital in poverty alleviation households are mainly reflected in the indicators of labor loss and the health status of family members, which directly affect the exposure of human capital. The calculation formula for the labor force outflow rate (LFOR) is as follows:

$$LFOR={\displaystyle \frac{\mathrm{Number} \mathrm{of} \mathrm{migrant} \mathrm{workers}}{\mathrm{Working-}\mathrm{age} \mathrm{population}}}$$

(1)

According to the survey of Dianfanghe Village, there are 646 households in the Dianfanghe community, with a total population of 1947, being mainly an agricultural population. Most of the local young people have been working or doing business in cities and towns all year round. Most of these people found relatively stable sources of income and have long working experience, so they still chose this way of income even after the poverty alleviation campaign began. At present, the number of migrant workers in the village is increasing year by year, and the proportion of the non-agricultural population is constantly increasing. There is a serious shortage of labor force in the village. The loss of the labor force caused by migrant workers is the main source of manpower risk for the poverty-stricken households in Dianfanghe Village. After the Ministry of Education issued the Notice on Supporting and Exploring the Development of Summer Care Service to pay attention to the problem of the “difficult care” of students in summer, the schooling rate of school-age children in Dianfanghe Village was 100%, and no children dropped out or abandoned school, so the villagers did not need to worry about the basic education of their children. What should be paid more attention to is that the main labor force in Dianfanghe Village is not highly educated, and when it is affected by the external impact or the drag factors of the family, the adaptability reflected by their bearing capacity and recovery degree may be insufficient.

4.2. Material Risks

In terms of material capital, “secure housing” is not only one of the basic requirements and core indicators of poverty alleviation for poor households in the stage of poverty alleviation, but also one of the key elements to be monitored in the stage of consolidating and expanding the achievements of poverty alleviation, and it is also an important material capital for ensuring that families will not return to poverty when they suffer from risk shocks. According to the different forms of material capital enjoyed by poverty alleviation households, private property and public facilities are the main sources of material risks. The damage degree of housing structure and the loss of fixed households properly measure the physical capital exposure of the poverty-stricken households; the concerning degree of household property loss and grain yield reduction measures the sensitivity; and the adaptability of public infrastructure and the ownership of durable goods are considered.

Since the beginning of the battle against poverty, the facilities of Dianfanghe Village have been relatively complete, the housing safety problem has been guaranteed, and the road traffic problems in the town and county need to be improved. According to the living environment construction plan, after the construction, the river and public health conditions of Dianfanghe Village will be further improved, and the adaptability of the poverty-stricken households to material capital will be significantly improved from the perspective of public infrastructure.

4.3. Natural Risks

Agricultural production and management are greatly affected by natural factors and natural risks bring great difficulties and uncertainties to the countryside. Cheng [23] believes that location conditions, natural resource endowment, and resource exploitation have become potential environmental risk factors for poverty alleviation areas. Wang [24] judged that the risk of returning to poverty caused by environmental emergencies caused by environmental risks was an important threat to the future sustainable development of rural society. For poverty-stricken households in mountainous areas, the area of woodland and cultivated land is an important natural capital for resisting natural risks, which directly affects the survival ability of the poverty-stricken households under natural risks. The degree of exposure to natural capital vulnerability is measured by the frequency of natural disasters and the degree of environmental pollution, and the degree of concern for poverty alleviation households facing natural disasters and environmental pollution can measure its sensitivity.

Dianfanghe Village is located in the river basin of Dianfanghe, with a total area of 26.6 km², 82.8% of which are forest hills. The farmland area is only 7%, the ratio of basic farmland to non-basic farmland is 3.6:1, and the water area is 0.42 km². The villagers′ natural capital is mainly forest and mountain areas, with poor cultivated land resources and rich natural scenic resources. Villagers are not very alert to environmental pollution, so it is necessary to strengthen the protection of drinking water sources and solid waste disposal. There are many mountains and forests in the community, but the community is not well protected against mountain floods and fires, the distribution of transformer boxes is insufficient, the village is prone to lack of power supply due to bad weather, the number of communication base stations is small, and the signal in some areas may be weak or even interrupted due to disasters. All these problems deepen the exposure to natural risks in the community.

4.4. Income Risk

Income capital and human capital are the leading factors of poverty alleviation risk. Agricultural income and non-agricultural income of poverty-stricken households can be used to quantify their exposure to income capital vulnerability, measure their sensitivity to income fluctuation and non-agricultural employment difficulty, and assess their adaptability to the situation of credit sources and income.

The main income types for the villagers in Dianfanghe Village are family planting industry and migrant work, and the other family income types take up little or no proportion, so there is a certain income gap. Participating in the local poverty alleviation industry can improve the family income level to improve the family economy. In contrast, households that only participate in characteristic poverty alleviation industries have a single source of income. If the planting industry or sales are hit, it will have a great impact on the family income, which intensifies the sensitivity of income risk. Farmers are generally subsidized by the government for the industry, and there is no credit problem.

4.5. Social Risks

Social risk can be measured around the possession of social capital. Liu [25] believes that social capital is a unique resource endowment in rural areas, and an in-depth analysis of the impact of social capital on poverty vulnerability is of great significance for consolidating the existing achievements in poverty alleviation and preventing the return to poverty. Niu [26] believes that giving play to the advantages of social capital can effectively prevent the return to poverty and consolidate the achievements of poverty alleviation.

Dianfanghe Village has access to electricity and Internet access, and the government′s policies can be communicated smoothly and effectively. Meanwhile, the village committee will fully consider the opinions of relevant villagers through visits or online communication in making public affairs decisions. The neighborhood in Dianfanghe Village is friendly, the social network among families is stable, and there is no correlation between the income level and the trust level of people around. In general, the social risks of the poverty-stricken households in Dianfanghe Village are low among the five types of risks.

5. Multi-Participation in the Establishment of a Poverty Return Monitoring System

In March 2020, the Poverty Alleviation Office of The State Council issued and promulgated the Guiding Opinions on Establishing a Monitoring and Supporting Mechanism to Prevent the Return of Poverty, which pointed out that the monitoring procedures for the return of poverty mainly take the form of “independent reporting by rural households, regular visits by rural cadres and timely screening by relevant industry departments”. To improve the current situation of insufficient risk monitoring personnel and low-risk identification level, as well as to establish and improve the regular monitoring system of risk prevention of poverty return, but at the same time, to prevent poverty return monitoring without a support mechanism in place, as well as the “image project” and “political performance project”, it is particularly important to introduce the third party to participate in monitoring.

5.1. Division of Risk Monitoring Responsibilities

The establishment of the poverty return monitoring system must clarify the risk monitoring responsibilities of multiple subjects, strengthen the multiple sources and multiple ways among multiple participants, achieve double the results with half the effort, comply with efficient and accurate legal provisions, and each component of the system must have a corresponding operation process. The risk of returning to poverty has five main sources from the poverty alleviation households. The monitoring work of the risk of returning to poverty must also target the source subjects and promote the multi-subject detection system dominated by the Party Committee, the practical operation of the grassroots government, the poverty alleviation households as the center, and the participation of the third-party social organizations. Among them, the grassroots government is the main force to monitor the risk of returning to poverty, the poverty alleviation households themselves are the biggest undertakers of the risk of returning to poverty, and the third-party social organizations, such as university practice teams, enterprises, and factories that produce and sell poverty alleviation commodities, are direct perceivers for farmers when the risk of returning to poverty increases.

Rural grassroots party organizations should promote the organizational coverage and work coverage of the risk monitoring of poverty return, encourage poverty alleviation households to participate in the decision-making process of relevant policies, promote democracy, and pool the huge power of prevention and monitoring of poverty return. Grassroots governments should coordinate the allocation of existing poverty risk monitoring resources, implement the guidelines and policies of the Party Committee, identify and trace the source of poverty alleviation risks, and take integrated actions of “discovery-monitoring-help” to timely resolve the risk of poverty return. Farmers themselves should reasonably and legally avoid the risk of returning to poverty, actively respond to the attention of grassroots governments and social organizations, check whether there is a risk of returning to poverty in their personal life, production, and work conditions, and improve their ability to develop and resist risks. Social organizations should focus on the adjustment and transformation of farmers’ lifestyles or business strategies to make up for the lack of risk monitoring by the government and farmers. For example, universities should provide education, science and technology, culture, and other services to poor areas and people out of poverty in the form of a college student “summer social practice and college students” teaching support group. We will give full play to the strengths and strengths of social organizations in monitoring and managing poverty reduction. We will stablish a monitoring system of multiple participation in poverty reduction as shown in Figure 6.

5.2. Risk Monitoring and Response

The instability of income and the vulnerability of poverty alleviation families to withstand risks determine that the return to poverty is dynamic. In the period of poverty alleviation, the identification mechanism of registered poor households has been relatively mature, but to know whether the poverty-stricken households return to poverty, this dynamic monitoring mechanism is not perfect. The identification of the risk of returning to poverty should also be shifted from a static perspective to a dynamic one. The monitoring mechanism for households at risk of returning to poverty should also adopt relative dynamic monitoring, rapid feedback, long-term continuous, more accurate help, and prevention of returning to poverty. The traditional poverty return risk monitoring mechanism takes household monitoring, data system screening, and “looking back” as the main processes, but mainly relies on human monitoring and lacks dynamic response ability. Detailed and effective dynamic monitoring of poverty return risk requires a sound, complete, and scientific–technical system. Meanwhile, the analysis of poverty return risk trends requires the integration of multiple monitoring methods, high-quality personnel, a data information platform, multi-party collaboration, and dynamic linkage to ensure the accuracy and timeliness of poverty return risk monitoring. Ensure that monitoring subjects, such as grassroots governments, social groups, and farmers themselves, clearly understand the risk information.

• Multiple monitoring means the five-sense perception system of the poverty return monitoring system. Expand the way of collecting risk information, dreg the way of the independent declaration of farmers, carry out the visit of grassroots cadres and the investigation activities of colleges and universities alternately, use the information-sharing platform to collect the information of agricultural products processing, sales, and price fluctuations in the market, and then university researchers will give the risk information of poverty alleviation households to weight value, combine and quantify, and make statistical analysis with the help of auxiliary software. Assess the risk level of returning to poverty for each household lifted out of poverty. For timely feedback of high-risk information to the monitoring platform, contact local village cadres for review and focus. In addition to the existing monitoring tools for the risk of returning to poverty, the university students should make reasonable use of the practice activities of three trips to the countryside during summer vacation to publicize and teach the villagers to use information and communication tools and realize multi-dimensional, low-cost, long-distance, highly interactive, timely, and efficient perception collection of risk information through telephone, and WeChat, both through public account and the website, to comprehensively improve the traditional single monitoring means.
• Talent team construction is the heart blood supply system of the poverty monitoring system. The three steps of household monitoring, data system screening, and “looking back” put forward higher requirements for the personal quality and objective analysis ability of the monitoring personnel, as well as the data processing system and social influence of the monitoring side. The construction of a talent team should not be limited to one monitoring subject. The grassroots government, social organizations, and poverty alleviation households themselves should strengthen the knowledge training related to the risk of returning to poverty, actively promote the establishment of cooperation with colleges and universities, and equip the corresponding professional personnel, such as planting, animal husbandry, water conservancy, weather, and disaster information personnel. We set up a team of poverty monitoring staff composed of village cadres, representatives of poverty alleviation households, heads of grassroots governments, and technicians from social organizations to conduct real-time consultations on the risks of poverty alleviation, and regularly monitor and report on the situation to promptly defuse the risks of poverty alleviation.
• The information-sharing platform is the nervous response system of the poverty return monitoring system. Information-sharing platforms should first formulate relevant systems for data reporting and updating, rely on network systems and big data to share data among industry departments to achieve rapid response and accurate verification, and strictly adhere to the poverty reduction red line. Information-sharing optimizes the visiting efficiency of grassroots cadres, increases the review and decision-making basis of competent departments, and improves the accuracy of the support force. The sharing of poverty risk information adheres to the principle of mutual benefit and symbiosis, that is, different monitoring subjects coordinate monitoring, complement each other, and promote each other. It is necessary to build a scientific and effective information management platform with the idea of overall and comprehensive management, achieve real-time contact with stakeholders, and provide data support for the distribution of poverty alleviation industries, policy incline, and to bring attention to the adjustment of social groups. Using the technology of information processing and data sharing in colleges and universities rationally, the “cloud” system is applied in practice to input the information data of poor families, comprehensively check the situation of poor families, and precisely determine the targets of poverty alleviation. Through the “targeted poverty alleviation cloud” system of Guizhou Province, relevant data from 19 departments, including education, human resources, social security, housing and construction, civil affairs, water conservancy, land, agricultural social security, and forestry, etc., have been connected and shared, and an information-sharing platform for the Dianfanghe community has been established.

5.3. System Supervision and Management

While the arrangement of risk monitoring is matched with the task of poverty return monitoring, it is necessary to conduct assessment and supervision on each monitoring subject in the process of poverty return risk monitoring, maintain the order of risk monitoring, and ensure the monitoring effect. After clarifying the responsibility of the monitoring subject, the implementation of the monitoring system needs to be supervised and assessed to escort it, and the perfect poverty return risk-monitoring system should also make clear provisions on the scope, plan, and method of supervision. At the same time, the supervision and assessment should be classified, summarized, and filed, which can ensure the overall continuity of the monitoring work, and provide valuable experience for the construction of a talented team and the further improvement of the risk-monitoring system of poverty return.

Multi-level and multi-directional supervision and management of the poverty reduction system are completed through “information platform follow-up investigation”, “overall coordination and verification of the three-party report”, “retrospective investigation and covert visits”, etc. At present, the Internet technology is developed, the information means are diversified, the network media platforms are out, and the effective use of the big data platforms is to monitor the risk of poverty return reform and innovation supervision and management methods as well as the internal demand and inevitable choice to promote the modernization of government governance capacity. Through this platform, accurate information on households at risk of returning to poverty is collected regularly or irregularly, and multi-dimensional whole-course tracking analysis is conducted on whether local responsibility subjects carry out risk intervention measures, formulate governance plans, and solve the problem of returning to poverty. At the same time, through the township cadres, village cadres, and summer practice survey of college students’ group visit records, one should check the three survey reports about the clear poverty alleviation truth. Using the “look back” mechanism, professional institutions, third parties, or relevant government departments will form a look back investigation and secret visit team to make irregular return visits to the households out of poverty and grasp the relevant situation of the households out of poverty in a timely fashion.

In the monitoring system of poverty return risk, different monitoring subjects should follow the periodic summary and reporting system of monitoring and the ineffective monitoring accountability system in the monitoring process to improve the executive power and sense of responsibility of monitors. For the monitoring party that reports the risk information of the poverty-stricken households and makes an accurate analysis to prevent the poverty-stricken households from returning to poverty, typical representatives are selected to reward them and play the role of exemplary leadership and motivation. In such an environment, the potential risk of returning to poverty can obtain timely and accurate feedback. Assessment and supervision will make the monitoring of the risk of returning to poverty more efficient and stable. At the same time, we will further improve the risk-monitoring system with diversified, coordinated, and joint participation, consolidate the achievements in poverty alleviation, and help the rural revitalization strategy move forward steadily.

In summary, college students serve as carriers and coordinators of activities in universities, while universities function as the adhesive and technical support for society, government, and rural areas, forming a framework for poverty reduction. The practical tools for college students include investigation, interviews, research reports, and information-sharing platforms. The analysis path involves completing practical reports through investigation and interviews, and these reports serve as a reference data source for poverty alleviation by the government. The practical reports by college students can also be shared as data sources for poverty alleviation in society.

6. The Discussion and Thinking of Building a Line of Defense to Return to Poverty

6.1. The Paradigm Innovation of Universities Participating in Poverty Alleviation Monitoring

China’s current poverty return risk-monitoring system remains incomplete. Although many studies established multi-subject participation systems involving higher-level departments, grassroots governments, poverty alleviation individuals, and third-party social organizations, innovative solutions are still needed to enrich the monitoring framework. Establishing a poverty return monitoring system through university students’ practical research activities can serve as a follow-up program for universities to support poverty-stricken villages. This initiative not only promotes rural cultural tourism development, but also mobilizes enterprises, alumni, and other stakeholders to participate in poverty alleviation monitoring and construction activities in rural revitalization through university information-sharing platforms. Government and relevant departments can obtain periodic and authentic poverty reduction survey data, providing a basis for adjusting and revising rural revitalization plans. University students’ practical research fills gaps in the existing monitoring system and enriches poverty return monitoring and assistance mechanisms in a cost-effective and efficient manner.

6.2. Sustainable Pathways for Dynamic Monitoring Mechanisms

Under faculty guidance organized by universities, students conduct field research in poverty-alleviated villages. Years of multi-team practices have proven this approach to be feasible and highly practical. Poverty return surveys enable students to immerse themselves in grassroots communities, listen to residents’ voices, and carefully document their opinions—a quintessential “from the masses, to the masses” practice. This activity helps contemporary youth understand their responsibilities in a prosperous era and recognize that rural revitalization concerns everyone. Universities should be encouraged to implement the educational goals of cultivating virtuous talents for the nation and transforming student practice reports into research references valuable to rural poverty alleviation, local governments, and society at large. By integrating students’ practical needs with the demand for professional monitoring personnel, universities can create a mutually beneficial system that promotes the establishment of a poverty return early-warning mechanism under rural revitalization.

6.3. Limitations of the Study

As third-party participants, universities act as critical bridges in poverty return monitoring systems. However, existing oversight mechanisms have limited capacity to regulate university poverty alleviation efforts. The authenticity, timeliness, and value of technical information provided by universities lack formal review and evaluation processes. Delays in data processing or insufficient long-term support from university technical departments could undermine the normalized operation of multi-component monitoring systems, highlighting over-reliance on third-party technical and personnel contributions. Strengthening oversight of third-party entities will therefore be essential for ensuring system sustainability.

To enhance student engagement, universities could integrate poverty return prevention practices into mandatory social practice credits, supported by government–school–society tripartite supervision mechanisms. Additional strategies include developing specialized poverty return monitoring courses, forming interdisciplinary practice teams, and establishing targeted scholarships. These measures will comprehensively improve students′ institutional, technical, and practical capabilities to provide sustainable support for rural revitalization.

6.4. Future Research Directions

The proposed multistakeholder poverty reemergence monitoring system is crucial for preventing rural poverty reoccurrence. Universities play an essential role in providing intellectual and human resources, strengthening the monitoring system, and promoting rural revitalization. However, several aspects need further exploration:

• To ensure the long-term viability of the monitoring system, rural areas′ political and economic challenges need to be considered. The system should be designed with built-in mechanisms for continuous maintenance and updates. For example, a long-term funding mechanism can be established, involving government subsidies, social donations, and self-financing from rural communities. In addition, a task force can be created to regularly review the monitoring system and adapt it to changing political and economic landscapes.
• Community participation should be more than a token. Community workshops and training sessions can be organized to educate community members about the monitoring system and its importance. By involving community members in the design, implementation, and evaluation of the monitoring system, it can be ensured that the system meets their real needs. For instance, community representatives can be included in the decision-making process regarding the selection of monitoring indicators and the allocation of resources.
• Effective monitoring can reduce the risk of poverty reemergence. When the monitoring system detects potential risks, relevant entities can take targeted actions. For example, if the system identifies a decline in the income of poverty-alleviated households, the government can provide financial support or vocational training. To better understand the real-world impacts of the monitoring system, future research should collect more in-depth data on the daily lives of the poor, covering their access to basic services, employment opportunities, and living conditions.

In summary, university participation in poverty return defense line construction represents an important innovative approach to diversifying poverty risk monitoring under rural revitalization. Guided by faculty, student researchers immerse themselves in grassroots communities to conduct poverty return investigations—a practice that embodies the “from/to the masses” principle while cultivating youth responsibility awareness. University information platforms facilitate multi-stakeholder collaboration in rural poverty alleviation monitoring, fostering mutually beneficial partnerships to build an effective poverty return early warning system under China′s rural revitalization strategy.

7. Conclusions

This study selects the Dianfanghe community in Shaanxi Province, China as a case to conduct an in-depth exploration of the issue of preventing poverty reemergence in the context of rural revitalization. Through research and analysis of the Dianfanghe community, it is identified that the community presents both advantages and challenges in areas such as natural resources, population structure, and industrial development. Based on the sustainable livelihood framework, the study divides the risk of poverty reemergence into five dimensions: human, material, natural, income, and social. By doing so, it assesses and clarifies the risk status of each dimension. Subsequently, a multistakeholder poverty reemergence monitoring system is established. The system defines the risk monitoring responsibilities of various entities, including party committees, grassroots governments, poverty-alleviated households, and third-party social organizations. Through multiple monitoring approaches, talent team building, and the establishment of an information-sharing platform, dynamic monitoring and an effective response to the risk of poverty reemergence are achieved. Systematic supervision and management guarantee the effectiveness of monitoring. The involvement of college students in practical research enriches the poverty reemergence monitoring system, and the information-sharing platforms established by universities facilitate the participation of various parties in rural revitalization.

In future research, it is advisable to enhance the role of universities in poverty reemergence monitoring. Universities should be encouraged to continuously carry out relevant practical research activities and thoroughly explore the value of data. The poverty reemergence monitoring index system should be further refined. Indicators should be dynamically adjusted in light of actual circumstances and newly emerging issues to ensure the scientific and effective nature of monitoring. Nevertheless, certain limitations exist in the implementation of this study. Firstly, due to the restricted research scope with only the Dianfanghe community serving as a case, the generalizability of the research findings in other regions requires further verification. Secondly, during the data collection process, some data may be subject to deviations caused by human factors, objective condition constraints, etc., affecting the accuracy of the research results. Future research could expand the sample size, employ more advanced technological means to improve data quality, and drive the continuous improvement of poverty reemergence monitoring, prevention, and control in the context of rural revitalization.