Rural–Urban Transformation and Regional Development

Dear Colleagues,

Due to rapid urbanisation and industrialisation in the Global South, problems such as youth outmigration, the “hollowing-out” of villages, the wellbeing of left-behind children and empty nesters, and land abandonment have emerged and prevailed in rural areas in the Global South. Moreover, since rural outmigrants have long been marginalised, socially excluded, and discriminated against in cities, many of them have returned to the rural regions where they originated. Their return has also imposed new challenges to the rural healthcare and welfare system.

In order to address these challenges, there have been calls for rural revitalisation since the new millennium. Whilst the economic restructuring and poverty alleviation in rural areas have increasingly become a cause for concern among academics and practitioners, changes in everyday lives of rural residents and the lineage-based rural society and culture have yet to receive adequate attention. This can be extremely problematic as the rural can never really be more than an appurtenance of the city whilst rural civil society remains a dysfunctional “empty shell”. A rural revitalisation should be first and foremost the revitalisation of the rural society and culture. Therefore, this Special Issue “Rural–urban Transformation and Regional Development in the Global South” calls for research on alternative conceptualisations of the rural, further crystallisation of rural residents’ everyday activities (including activities rural residents are currently conducting and what they might do differently to thrive), and pathways toward a more vital rural society. This Special Issue is expected to widen our knowledge by exploring interdisciplinary approaches and theories designed to enable more human-centred approaches to rural planning, policies, governance, and society in the Global South and beyond.

The Special Issue will comprise a collection of original research articles, viewpoint pieces, discussion papers, and review papers on (but not limited to) the following topics:

• Reconceptualisation of rurality;
• Reflections on the rural-urban dichotomy;
• The identity politics of rural-urban migrants and homecoming migrants;
• The everyday activities of rural residents;
• Rural governance, communities, neighbourhoods and social justice;
• Societal and cultural changes in rural areas;
• Rural greenery, landscape features, public spaces, wellbeing and health;
• Rural transport and regional development;
• Rural business and the local economy;
• Rural gentrification and displacement;
• Recreation of rurality and rural tourism development;
• Rural resilience and social life;
• Rural (re)settlement, liveability and environmental sustainability;
• Rural migrants, land use development and sustainable planning;
• Rural financialisation and urban–rural disparities;
• Rural public space, design and sustainable development

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Qiyang Liu
Dr. Zhengying Liu
Dr. Mengqiu Cao
Guest Editors

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