An integrated framework for measuring sustainable rural development towards the SDGs

Abstract

Rural areas are essential for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), necessitating the evaluation of rural sustainability transitions. A precondition for evaluating sustainable rural development is to adapt the SDGs to rural contexts while maintaining global comparability. Besides, tradeoff relationships among evaluation indicators should be captured to overcome the limitations of traditional weighting aggregation methods. In this study, we propose an integrated framework that incorporates the SDGs into a composite indicator system for assessing sustainable rural development. Our framework quantifies these indicators using the index thresholds outlined in the SDGs dashboard, along with customized rules that reflectrural contexts. Furthermore, we employ the Pareto ranking approach to evaluate the sustainable development potentials of rural areas regarding tradeoff relationships among different indicators. In a case study of Zhaoyuan City, China, our findings indicate that only 20 % of the sustainable development goals are achieved on average across all indicator dimensions. The economic and social dimensions are closer to their ideal targets and more compatible with each other, while the ecological dimension remains relatively unsustainable. Sustainable rural development depends primarily on natural resource endowment, ecological sustainability, and residential sustainability of villages. Understanding tradeoff relationships among different indicators enables us to better adapt rural policies to the specific contexts of villages.