Search Results (118)

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a leading cause of death in Bangladesh, disproportionately affecting low socio-economic status (SES) populations. This review, guided by the WHO Social Determinants of Health framework and Rockefeller-Lancet Planetary Health Report, examined how social, economic, and ecological factors link SES to TB burden. The first literature search identified 28 articles focused on SES-TB relationships in Bangladesh. A second search through snowballing and conceptual mapping yielded 55 more papers of diverse source types and disciplines. Low-SES groups face elevated TB risk due to smoking, biomass fuel use, malnutrition, limited education, stigma, financial barriers, and hazardous housing or workplaces. These factors delay care-seeking, worsen outcomes, and fuel transmission, especially among women. High-SES groups more often face comorbidities like diabetes, which increase TB risk. Broader contextual drivers include urbanisation, weak labour protections, cultural norms, and poor governance. Recommendations include housing and labour reform, gender parity in education, and integrating private providers into TB programmes. These align with the WHO End TB Strategy, UN SDGs and Planetary Health Quadruple Aims, which expand the traditional Triple Aim for health system design by integrating environmental sustainability alongside improved patient outcomes, population health, and cost efficiency. Future research should explore trust in frontline workers, reasons for consulting informal carers, links between makeshift housing and TB, and integrating ecological determinants into existing frameworks. Full article

Rapid urbanization in China has driven substantial rural population out-migration, raising concerns about its implications for the governance of land commons in villages. While existing studies have acknowledged the effects of migration on rural resource management, little attention has been paid to its influence on the self-governance of rural public open spaces (POSs). This study adopts the social–ecological systems (SES) framework to examine how rural out-migration shapes POS self-governance mechanisms. Based on survey data from 594 villagers across 198 villages in Taigu District, partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and a mediation model grounded in the SES framework were employed for analysis. The results indicate that rural out-migration does not exert a direct impact on POS self-governance. Instead, it negatively influences governance outcomes through full mediation by villager organizations, the left-behind population, collective investment in POSs, and self-organizing activities. Notably, the mediating roles of the left-behind population and self-organizing activities account for 67.38% of the total effect, underscoring their critical importance. Drawing on these insights, the study proposes four policy recommendations to strengthen rural POS self-governance under conditions of demographic transition. This research contributes to the literature by being the first to incorporate an external social factor—rural out-migration—within the SES framework in the context of POS governance, thereby advancing both theoretical and practical understandings of rural commons management. Full article

Rural tourism has emerged as an efficient strategy for rural revitalization while having various impacts on rural governance. Previous studies predominantly focused on the social implications of rural tourism and its impact on institutional arrangements while neglecting the influence of rural tourism on collective action in rural governance. This study employed a social–ecological system (SES) framework to investigate the influence of rural tourism on rural collective action, utilizing survey data from 22 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government), 178 villages, and 3282 rural households across China. The findings revealed that rural tourism exerted a positive influence on collective action, primarily through labor force reflow mechanisms. Specifically, the leadership of village cadres had a moderating role in enhancing this positive correlation. Further analysis revealed significant heterogeneity in tourism governance effects: non-plain regions and villages with medium to low economic development levels exhibited substantial improvements in collective action, whereas plain areas and economically advanced villages may manifest potentially negative impacts. Theoretically, this study contributes to elucidating tourism-driven self-governance mechanisms by applying the SES framework, thereby transcending the traditional dualistic debate between state-market and development-governance paradigms. Practically, we propose institutional designs that embed collective action mechanisms into the coupled synergistic development of rural tourism and community governance, thereby activating endogenous motivations for rural self-governance. Full article

Water resources have become a critical factor limiting agricultural development and ecological health in arid regions. The ecological efficiency of agricultural water use (EEAWU) serves as an indicator of the sustainable utilization of agricultural water resources, taking into account both economic output and environmental impact. This paper, grounded in the social–ecological system (SES) framework, integrates multidimensional variables related to social behavior, economic decision-making, and ecological constraints to construct an analytical system that examines the impact mechanism of farmers’ part-time employment on the EEAWU. Utilizing survey data from 448 farmers in the western Tarim River Basin, and employing the super-efficiency SBM model alongside Tobit regression for empirical analysis, the study reveals the following findings: (1) the degree of farmers’ part-time employment is significantly negatively correlated with EEAWU (β = −0.041, p < 0.05); (2) as the extent of part-time employment increases, farmers adversely affect EEAWU by altering agricultural labor allocation, adjusting crop structures, and inadequately adopting water-saving measures; (3) farm size plays a negative moderating role in the relationship between farmers’ part-time engagement and the EEAWU, where scale expansion can alleviate the EEAWU losses associated with part-time employment through cost-sharing and factor substitution mechanisms. Based on these findings, it is recommended to enhance the land transfer mechanism, promote agricultural social services, implement tiered water pricing and water-saving subsidy policies, optimize crop structures, and strengthen environmental regulations to improve EEAWU in arid regions. Full article

As the process of agricultural modernization accelerates, exploring the impact of agricultural mechanization services on production technology efficiency has become a key issue for enhancing agricultural productivity and promoting sustainable agricultural development. The study focuses on cotton growers in the Tarim River Basin and systematically explores the impact and driving mechanisms of agricultural mechanization services (AMSs) on cotton production’s technical efficiency within the framework of the social–ecological system (SES). By employing a combination of stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) and propensity score matching (PSM), the research indicates that the adoption of AMSs significantly enhances the production technical efficiency of cotton farmers. Among the sample that adopted this service, as much as 53.04% of the farmers have their production efficiency within the range of [0.8, 0.9], demonstrating a high production capability. In contrast, the production efficiency values of the farmers who did not adopt such services are more dispersed, with inefficient samples accounting for 11.48%. Furthermore, while the technical efficiency levels across different regions are similar, there are significant efficiency differences within regions. A further analysis indicates that the age of the household head, their education level, the number of agricultural laborers in the family, the proportion of income from planting, and irrigation convenience have a positive impact on farmers’ adoption of AMSs, while the degree of land fragmentation has a negative impact. Therefore, AMSs are not only a core pathway to enhance cotton production’s technical efficiency but also an important support for promoting agricultural modernization in arid areas and strengthening farmers’ risk-resistance capabilities. Future policies should focus on optimizing service delivery, enhancing technical adaptability, and promoting regional collaboration to drive the high-quality development of the cotton industry and support sustainable rural revitalization. Full article

Rapid urbanisation in Sub-Saharan Africa demands innovative land management strategies that promote sustainable, inclusive, and resilient urban development. This study investigates the potential of land readjustment (LR) to foster neighbourhood-scale social–ecological urban resilience (SEUR) through a case study of the Nunga LR project in Kigali, Rwanda. Grounded in the social–ecological system (SES) theory and operationalised through the social–ecological land readjustment model for resilient neighbourhoods, the research evaluates LR practices against an integrated benchmark framework combining LR aspects, neighbourhood design standards, and resilience attributes. The study uses secondary data, project shapefiles, and key informant interviews to assess how Rwanda’s emerging LR model contributes to resilient neighbourhood development. Findings demonstrate strong community mobilisation and adaptive governance capacity. However, critical resilience dimensions—including modularity, green infrastructure integration, land-use diversity, and adaptive feedback mechanisms—were only partially operationalised. Consequently, while LR improved spatial formalisation and basic infrastructure provision, it fell short of creating a truly resilient, multifunctional neighbourhood ecosystem. These findings highlight the need to reframe LR from a purely technical land management tool into a systemic resilience-building mechanism. Policy recommendations include mandating green/blue infrastructure in LR plans, establishing innovative financing mechanisms, institutionalising adaptive monitoring, strengthening affordability safeguards, and promoting multifunctional spatial layouts. The study contributes to urban resilience and land governance scholarship by offering a context-sensitive, empirically tested model for integrating SEUR principles into LR practice in rapidly urbanising African cities. Future research should pursue longitudinal analyses and dynamics modelling of land readjustment impacts to deepen understanding of urban resilience pathways in the Global South. Full article

The ethnic villages in karst regions, where the ecosystem and social systems are intricately linked, face the dual challenges of poverty and ecological sustainability. Tourism, as an emerging strategy adopted for poverty alleviation, has inevitably posed complex impacts on social–ecological systems (SES). However, due to the particularity of the SES in this region, the mechanisms through which tourism influences social–ecological systems remain unclear, hindering the achievement of eco-friendly economic growth. In this study, we first applied the vulnerability spectrum diagram (VSD) model assessment framework to various remotely sensed and socially sensed data to evaluate ecological and social vulnerability, taking Leishan County, a typical karst region in Guizhou, southwest China as a case study. Then, advanced geospatial analysis methods were adopted to investigate the spatial characteristics of the vulnerability index. Finally, we utilized the geographical detector to identify influencing factors and investigated their synergistic effects. Our results reveal that, within the studied area, social vulnerability is generally lower in the north than the south, while ecological vulnerability shows the other way around. Social vulnerability is significantly influenced by several tourism-related factors, such as transportation convenience and the preservation of traditional dwellings. These factors collectively exert a pronounced effect on social vulnerability mitigation. Moreover, ecological vulnerability, with the exception of rocky desertification, shows significant co-directional changes with social vulnerability, reflecting the fact that tourism factors indirectly shape the ecosystem. The development of ethnic village tourism in villages with better socio-economic conditions tends to effectively improve the quality of the ecological environment, whereas those with poorer conditions tend to exacerbate ecological damage. The findings drawn from this study convey important practical implications that assist in identifying key vulnerable areas in karst ethnic villages and support their sustainable development goals. Full article

Desertification, accompanied by the loss of perennial grasses and bush encroachment, affects more than 10% of the world’s drylands, thereby placing increasing pressure on rangelands and farmers’ livelihoods. In Namibia, rangeland desertification is exacerbated by external shocks such as droughts, market changes, and new regulatory frameworks that have led to profound social and ecological changes within this tightly coupled social–ecological system (SES). In this context, the interrelationship among system components, drivers, and external factors, as well as the impact of strategies to halt desertification, remain poorly understood. The present study employed a retrospective mixed-methods approach to investigate the drivers of desertification on Namibia’s freehold farms by applying the social–ecological trap (SET) concept. Our approach combined remote sensing methods with semi-structured interviews and a literature review. The aim was to decipher the underlying processes and self-reinforcing feedback loops and to identify associated changes in the social and ecological subsystem. Our results revealed that inadequate grass availability, coupled with income deficits, serves as a pivotal catalyst for rangeland desertification, perpetuating a self-reinforcing feedback loop. To avoid or mitigate the effects of ecological regime shifts and to help farmers escape the SET of desertification, it will be necessary to implement changes in the dominant feedback loops through long-term risk mitigation strategies, such as rangeland restoration measures, as well as on- and off-farm income diversification. These strategies will provide a foundation for subsequent research on effective long-term mitigation strategies to prevent further rangeland desertification and to secure the livelihoods of farmers. Full article

This study employs the social–ecological system (SES) framework to investigate the operational mechanisms of farmer apartment housing in Village L, demonstrating how such mechanisms ensure housing security for villagers in land-constrained contexts. Through a case analysis of Village L, we reveal that the effective implementation of farmer apartments relies on four interconnected elements: socio-political and economic conditions, homestead resource allocation within the resource system, institutional governance rules, and collaborative interactions among the government, village collectives, villagers, and enterprises. By integrating fragmented resources, optimizing participatory governance, and fostering multi-stakeholder cooperation, Village L has established a closed-loop operational model of “resource intensification–democratic decision-making–synergistic co-construction”. This model preserves villagers’ homestead entitlements and addresses housing demands through centralized construction, striking a balance between equity and efficiency in land-scarce areas. The findings underscore that farmer apartment housing represents a viable pathway for achieving “housing-for-all” in resource-limited areas, contingent upon institutionalizing village collectives’ self-governance capabilities and incentivizing broader societal participation (e.g., NGOs and enterprises) to form a diversified investment framework. Policy refinements should prioritize scaling context-specific governance innovations while safeguarding farmers’ land rights during urbanization transitions, offering replicable insights for regions facing similar land use challenges. Full article

In the context of global climate change and intensified anthropogenic pressures, the coordinated development of a social-ecological system (SES) faces unprecedented challenges, necessitating an enhanced understanding of complex system interactions to achieve SES sustainability. This study quantified water resource–water environment–social economy resilience (WR-WE-SEr) and four ecosystem services (ESs)—water yield (WY), habitat quality (HQ), soil retention (SR), and carbon storage (CS)—in Northwest China from 2010 to 2020. Intersystem interactions were analyzed using resilience theory, the InVEST model, and the coupling coordination degree (CCD) model. The key findings include the following: (1) Spatiotemporal evolution patterns (RQ1): WR-WE-SEr exhibited sustained growth with significant regional disparities (Qinghai > Xinjiang > Gansu > Shaanxi > Ningxia), predominantly driven by resistance-dominated dynamics. ESs showed spatial heterogeneity: WY was concentrated in humid areas but declined temporally, while HQ and CS aligned with vegetation/land cover. All ESs followed a “V”-shaped trajectory of initial decline and recovery, with localized fluctuations but regional stability. (2) Coordinated coupling relationships (RQ2): The CCD between WR-WE-SEr and ESs maintained temporal stability but mirrored ESs’ spatial patterns, characterized by a southeast–northwest diminishing gradient. Coordination hierarchy (CS > HQ > WY > SR) and regional performance (Shaanxi > Ningxia > Qinghai > Gansu > Xinjiang) revealed synergies between system resilience and ES provisioning capacity. Transitional coordination (dissonance to coordination) at the integrated ES level highlighted gradual optimization of human–nature interactions. These findings underscore the need for multidimensional strategies to enhance WR-WE-SE-ES synergies in Northwest China. Full article

This study presents the development of the Comprehensive Index for Beaches (CIB), a holistic tool designed to address the limitations of traditional beach monitoring systems by integrating social and ecological dimensions within a socio-ecological systems (SES) framework. While existing certification schemes predominantly emphasize physical parameters such as water quality and sand cleanliness, they often overlook critical social factors like safety perceptions, overcrowding, and user behavior. This oversight is significant because these social factors play a vital role in shaping visitor satisfaction, supporting community well-being, and ensuring the long-term sustainability of the destination. The CIB addresses this gap, offering a multidimensional approach that includes environmental, infrastructural, social, and safety-related dimensions. Through a multi-stage methodology, the index was developed and validated using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) with data from over 600 beach visitors across key coastal destinations. Results indicate the robustness of the CIB in capturing both natural and social components, underscoring its theoretical alignment with SES principles and its practical potential to enhance beach management. By prioritizing user perceptions and behaviors alongside ecological parameters, the CIB provides an affordable and adaptable alternative to traditional schemes, fostering improved safety, user satisfaction, and sustainability in diverse beach contexts. Full article

The vulnerability of Social–Ecological Systems (SES) is a frontier research topic in the field of geography. Research on drought vulnerability has emerged as a key area of focus in the study of SES vulnerability, and it has increasingly been recognized as a critical step in formulating policies for drought prevention and mitigation. In this study, the indicator system for drought vulnerability evaluation of SES in the Three-River Headwaters Region (TRHR) was established. This paper revealed the drought vulnerability evolution process and characteristics, and key driving indicators of SES at county-town-village spatial scales in six time periods of 1990, 2000, 2010, 2015, 2020, and 2023, and predicted the drought vulnerability of SES in 2050 under two scenarios. Results indicate that the average drought vulnerability in the TRHR decreased from 0.526 in 1990 to 0.444 in 2023. Compared to 1990, among the 82 selected towns, 85.37% experienced a decline in 2023, and among the 152 selected villages, 95.39% showed a reduction in 2023. Hot spots of drought vulnerability were concentrated in the southeast of the TRHR, while cold spots were in the northwest. From 1990 to 2000, the drought vulnerability of counties and towns in the TRHR increased, but it decreased between 2000 and 2023. In 1990, Henan County exhibited the highest drought vulnerability at the county level. Waeryi Town in Jiuzhi County had the highest vulnerability among towns, while Suojia Town in Zhidoi County had the lowest. Of the 152 selected villages, 41.45% exhibited relatively high or high levels of drought vulnerability, while 23.68% showed relatively low levels. In 2023, Jiuzhi County became the most vulnerable county, with Baiyu Town in Jiuzhi County ranking highest among towns and Suojia Town in Zhidoi County remaining the least vulnerable. At the village level, 22.37% exhibited relatively high or high vulnerability, whereas 42.11% showed relatively low or low levels. Drought disaster records, the proportion of agricultural and animal husbandry output value, the proportion of grassland, the proportion of large livestock, and the per capita disposable income surface are the key factors influencing drought vulnerability in the TRHR. By 2050, under the first scenario, the average drought vulnerability of the TRHR is projected to be 0.428, indicating a medium level, while the second scenario predicts a further reduction to 0.350, representing a relatively low level. The adaptive governance strategies to mitigate drought vulnerability in the TRHR include developing an integrated drought management system; establishing an ecological management, protection, and financial support model; and so on. Overall, this paper can provide scientific references and policy recommendations for policymakers and researchers on the aspects of drought vulnerability and sustainable development of SES. Full article

Enhancing the quality of human settlements in traditional villages is crucial for promoting sustainable development and achieving the broader objectives of rural revitalization. A key challenge in addressing current settlement issues is the development of a scientifically grounded assessment framework for evaluating the quality of the settlement in traditional villages. To fill this gap, this study systematically constructed a theoretical and methodological system of comprehensive assessment of the settlement quality in traditional villages based on land use functions. Specifically, first, a comprehensive framework for assessing the settlement quality in traditional villages is proposed by systematically deconstructing the interrelationships among the key dimensions and elements with the guiding by the objectives of livable community development, the social–ecological system (SES) framework, and the land use functions (encompassing production, living, and ecological functions, PLE function). Second, considering the multi-scalar effects of livable community development (15 min, 25 min, and 35 min living circles), an indicator system that enables a quantitative and refined assessment of settlement quality in traditional villages, as well as a method for identifying barriers indicators are proposed based on the critical tool of land use functions. Finally, an empirical analysis of 757 traditional villages in Guizhou Province, China, is conducted to validate the feasibility and applicability of the theoretical framework and methodological approach presented in this study. The findings reveal that the overall settlement quality in Guizhou’s traditional villages is relatively low, with numerous villages in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture and Tongren City falling within a low-to-medium quality range, especially in the scale of 35 min living circle. To address these challenges, this study proposes classification-based improvement strategies to enhance the quality of the living environment in traditional villages. The results offer important theoretical, methodological, and empirical insights for the transformation and upgrading of settlements in traditional villages in Guizhou Province and other similar regions. Full article

Flat terrain and economically prosperous downstream regions face significant challenges in achieving a balance between socio-economic development and ecological preservation. The Social–Ecological System (S-ES) serves as a vital framework for quantifying the interactions between human activities and the natural environment, providing insights into the development status of regional social and ecological systems. This study utilizes the Coupling Coordination Degree (CCD) method to construct an S-ES coupling model, integrating correlation analysis, geographic detectors, and grey relational analysis to explore the driving factors influencing Social–Ecological Resilience (S-ER) coordination. The research focuses on 25 counties in Shandong Province, situated in the lower Yellow River Basin, over the period from 2000 to 2022. Key findings include (1) significant spatial clustering, with identifiable hotspots and cold spots in S-ER distribution; (2) substantial changes in S-ER CCD around 2010 and 2020; and (3) persistent mismatches between socio-economic development and ecological improvement, presenting a major challenge for enhancing coordination. These insights provide valuable guidance for sustainable development strategies in the lower Yellow River Basin. Full article

Climate and land use change pressures are critical to food production in Social-Ecological Systems (SESs). This study assessed farmers’ perceptions of the pressures of climate and land use changes alongside their impacts on food production in Mhahakanumulla Village Tank Cascade System (MVTCS), a SES maintained by traditional agricultural land use systems in the dry zone of Sri Lanka. This study used both rating and ranking scale questions to quantify farmers’ perceptions. The tobit regression model was employed to evaluate how farmer perception was influenced by socio-economic factors. The results showed that most of the farmers had experienced that the climate of the MVTCS area had changed over time, and they perceived variability of rainfall patterns as the most prominent and influential climate change. The increased cost of production, wildlife damage, and land degradation were ranked by the farmers as the most impactful factors of food production due to climate change. The farmers rated deforestation and land clearing as the most influential and impactful changes in land use, while wildlife damage and land degradation ranked as the highest impacts on food production due to land use changes. Among the socio-economic determinants, training and income/profit positively influenced farmer perceptions of the severity of both climate and land use change. The level of farmer’s adaptation to climate change had a negative association with their perception of the severity of climate change. Household size negatively influenced the perceptions of the severity of climate change while positively influencing perceptions of land use change impacts. Among the spatial determinants, farm size and downstream locations of MVTCS positively influenced perceptions of the severity of both climate and land use change. Thus, the effectiveness of adaptation strategies towards climate and land use change pressures depends on how well they are understood by the farmers. The study findings provide helpful insights for formulating localized land use policies and climate change adaptation strategies in these globally important landscapes with a combination of both top-down and bottom-up approaches. Full article