Habitat International最新文献

{"title":"Rising housing prices and foreign-invested enterprise inflows in Chinese cities: The role of urban innovation","authors":"Yuhang Mai","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103570","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103570","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the context of rapidly developing Chinese cities, I investigate the intricate relationship between rising housing prices and foreign-invested enterprise (FIE) inflows across 248 cities. Contrary to simplistic views that regard housing price hikes as merely detrimental, this study posits that they function as a double-edged sword, potentially enhancing urban innovation and thereby shaping FIE location decisions. By conducting empirical analysis based on panel data from 2000 to 2022 and a series of robustness checks, I find that a 1 % increase in housing prices leads to a 1.6 % increase in FIE inflows. Notably, there exist heterogeneities: technology- and capital-intensive FIEs exhibit positive elasticity to housing price growth, whereas labor-intensive FIEs show negative elasticity. These divergent effects become increasingly pronounced as cities’ development levels rise. To unravel the transmission mechanisms, my channel analysis reveals that rising housing prices drive urban innovation through spatial sorting of talent and innovative enterprises. This, in turn, serves as a magnet for FIEs. Specifically, in developed cities, this dynamic attracts technology- and capital-intensive FIEs, while simultaneously displacing labor-intensive FIEs to less developed regions. I also offer practical policy thresholds through threshold regression. Less developed cities aiming to attract labor-intensive FIEs should maintain housing prices below 7197 CNY/m². Conversely, developed cities seeking to draw technology- and capital-intensive FIEs can optimize innovation-related benefits when prices reach 18,674 CNY/m². Overall, my findings provide nuanced insights for regions to strike a balance between housing price regulation and formulating targeted policies to attract foreign investment, taking into account the heterogeneous nature of FIEs and urban development stages.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"166 ","pages":"Article 103570"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145050009","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Understanding the nonlinear trade-off relationship to optimize urban-rural ecosystem services: a case study in arid and semi-arid region, China","authors":"Lihan Cui ,&nbsp;Sheng Zheng ,&nbsp;Yufang Jin ,&nbsp;Zhen Shen ,&nbsp;Xinyu Dong ,&nbsp;Min Xu","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103567","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103567","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In arid and semi-arid regions, the potential for ecosystem service trade-offs creates challenges for sustainable ecosystem management due to the spatially varying ecological characteristics along the urban-rural gradient. However, the nonlinear dynamics of these trade-offs remain poorly understood. In this study, five key ecosystem services were assessed—carbon sequestration, food production, water yield, soil retention, and windbreak and sand fixation, using remote sensing inversion and ecosystem assessment models. The production possibility frontier (PPF) framework was introduced to systematically examine the heterogeneity in nonlinear trade-off relationships across urban, urban-rural fringe, and rural areas in Inner Mongolia from 2000 to 2019. The results showed that all ecosystem services increased to varying degrees, while five out of ten pairs of ecosystem services exhibited significant trade-offs. The highest trade-off intensity occurred between soil retention and windbreak and sand fixation service, with values of 0.52 in rural area and 0.64 in the urban-rural fringe. Notably, trade-off relationships and intensities varied across spatial contexts and the strongest trade-off intensity observed in urban-rural fringe areas. Our study introduces a novel PPF-based framework to explicate heterogeneous nonlinear trade-off relationships along the urban–rural gradient and underscores the significance for targeted policy interventions adapt to these spatial differences in arid and semi-arid regions, thereby advancing theoretical insights for coordinating urban–rural development globally.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"166 ","pages":"Article 103567"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145050011","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Competing for innovation: Political tournaments and high-tech industries-related land transfer","authors":"Yangyang Jie ,&nbsp;Lin Zhou ,&nbsp;Tiyan Shen","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103575","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103575","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In China's relative performance evaluation system, local government leaders compete to advance their jurisdictions' economies, with this competition extending beyond mere macroeconomic growth to encompass investments, public services, and environmental regulations. High-tech land, crucial for innovative endeavors, has garnered significant attention from local leaders. Two fundamental questions arise: whether and to what extent does the transfer of high-tech land become distorted due to the intense political competition among local leaders? To explore these questions, we empirically investigate these questions using a spatial econometric model, analyzing panel data from Chinese prefectures between 2009 and 2015. Our findings indicate that, under the innovative performance evaluation, local leaders are motivated to transfer more high-tech land. This allocation varies based on the leaders' age and length of time in office and is influenced either by the need to maintain economic growth or by fiscal pressures. Furthermore, we identify a spillover effect where leaders of neighboring prefectures tend to imitate one another, driven by their common goal of economic expansion. However, this competitive environment does not result in genuine innovative advantages for adjacent regions; instead, it impedes their development. Our results signal a caution against political competition straying from intended policy objectives.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"166 ","pages":"Article 103575"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145050008","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Agglomeration phenomena and evolutionary patterns of contemporary architectural interventions in traditional villages: An empirical analysis from 211 cases in Songyang County, China","authors":"Yue Kaijian (岳楷键) ,&nbsp;Yin Congjian (尹从鉴) ,&nbsp;Shan Jun (单军)","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103571","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103571","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the agglomeration phenomena and evolutionary patterns of contemporary architectural interventions (CAI) in traditional Chinese villages (TCV) by 211 projects across 78 villages in Songyang County, China. Spatiotemporal clustering analysis reveals a significant polycentric annular structure with CAI concentrated in mountainous areas near the county seat. Tourism-related CAIs exhibit stronger agglomeration than cultural and educational ones, reflecting differentiated spatial behaviors based on market orientation. Through DBSCAN and ST-DBSCAN algorithms, six clustering typologies (None, Isolated Punctiform, Scattered Punctiform, Isolated Colony, Confluent Colony, and Confluence) and five evolutionary processes (Budding, Cultivation, Spillover, Convergence and Atrophy) are identified. These agglomeration phenomena demonstrate strong associations with transportation accessibility, project typologies, and patterns of investment and governance, and they are shaped by the interaction of policy incentives, market forces, and social initiatives. Findings confirm industrial agglomeration theory's applicability to rural architectural interventions, highlighting marketization as the core driving force. Large-scale clusters exhibit stronger resilience against external shocks, while small-scale clusters face higher atrophy risks. This study proposes a “Dynamic Evolution Model” to describe the spatial agglomeration mechanisms underlying CAIs in TCVs, which provides crucial insights for balancing heritage protection and development needs. It recommends more policy guidance for rural industrial agglomeration, more gradual and sustained interventions and deeper scholarly focus on site selection strategies, and data-sharing systems. These conclusions provide actionable references for investors' decision and architects' design practices, and demonstrate significant implications for achieving sustainable traditional rural settlements.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"166 ","pages":"Article 103571"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145050563","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"An integrated analysis framework for territorial space governance: Combining land use classification and functional evaluation toward spatial zoning","authors":"Fangxin Chen ,&nbsp;Yansui Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103572","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103572","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>An integrated territorial space analysis framework is critical for advancing spatial governance, yet current approaches face two key challenges: multi-source heterogeneous data integration bottlenecks and limited conventional zoning paradigms. To address these gaps, this study develops a systematic “classification-evaluation-zoning\" framework for territorial space governance, exemplified by a case study in Lingbao City, Henan Province. The framework first integrates building footprints with POI data, employing K-Dimensional Tree algorithms to achieve fine-scale land use classification. An economic-social-ecological evaluation system was then developed to characterize land use function. Finally, adopting hybrid grids as basic units, the framework integrates kernel density estimation and land use structure to delineate main functional areas (MFAs) and analyze their multidimensional features combined with functional evaluation. The result show forest increased by 173.68 km² under ecological protection, while 96.98 % of new built-up land originated from farmland conversion. Residential land constitutes 73.30 % and 95.44 % of urban and rural single buildings. Urban and rural mixed land use types increased 2.12-fold and 2.93-fold. Enhanced economic and ecological functions accompanied by social restructuring, which involved a population decline of 16,571 (69.39 % rural outmigration) and a 284 % POI growth. Furthermore, urban commercial and service MFAs surged from 35.62 % to 64.42 % with enhanced diversity-economic intensity synergy. Rural MFAs maintained residential predominance (68.83 %), transitioning towards commercial and service with low-speed economic expansion. This framework integrates fine-grained land use information, multi-dimensional functional evaluation, and grid-based spatial zoning, effectively supporting the complex governance of territorial space. It provides a replicable digital governance paradigm for refined territorial space management globally.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"166 ","pages":"Article 103572"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145050561","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Spatio-temporal characteristics and driving mechanisms of cultivated land fragmentation, and implications for future land use: Empirical analysis from counties in China from 1990 to 2020","authors":"Weiyi Xu ,&nbsp;Jing Liu ,&nbsp;Xiaobin Jin","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103568","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103568","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Cultivated land fragmentation (CLF) poses a great challenge to the sustainable utilization of farmland and food security in China. It is of great significance to systematically reveal the spatio-temporal characteristics and driving mechanisms of China's CLF for optimizing the utilization and management of cultivated land resources. However, there remains a gap in the literature on how CLF and its driving mechanisms change over continuous long-time series. This study identified these changes at the county scale in China and different agricultural regions from 1990 to 2020 by developing a new analytical framework for CLF integrating scale fragmentation, spatial fragmentation, and shape fragmentation. The results show that: (1) China's CLF exhibited a continuous and multi-dimensional strengthening trend during 1990–2020, with an average fragmentation index increasing by 3.17 %. The fractal attributes of CLF presented a pattern of \"scale fragmentation &gt; shape fragmentation &gt; spatial fragmentation\", with increases of 1.33 %, 3.85 %, and 5.04 % respectively. (2) The development of CLF and its fractal attributes in China in 1990–2020 both showed an increase in the east and a decrease in the west. Overall, economically developed areas with superior agricultural resource endowments such as the Huang-Huai-Hai Plain, and the central and eastern of the Middle-lower Yangtze Plain, etc. are higher-value clusters for CLF enhancement, with growth rates mostly exceeding 13.48 %. (3) CLF is the combined result of multiple factors, and the drivers of CLF vary significantly across different agricultural regions. The average explanatory power of various factor categories on CLF in 1990–2020 was ranked as \"physical geographic environment &gt; land use patterns &gt; socio-economic development &gt; spatial location conditions &gt; land distribution process &gt; distribution of linear features\", with different impact intensities and trends. (4) The interaction between any pair-wise factors has a stronger impact on CLF than single factors. Approximately 62.54 % of nonlinear enhancement and 46.92 % of two-factor enhancement are both related to land use, highlighting the critical and complex impact of land use on CLF. Consequently, we appeal that the alleviation of CLF cannot be achieved through a single strategy, but especially the joint efforts on the policy system construction for optimizing utilization and management of key land resources in China, as well as the appropriate strategies for reducing CLF in typical agricultural regions based on regional differences. This study can provide essential insights for deepening the understanding of the spatio-temporal evolution mechanism of CLF at the national scale, and for policymakers to formulate differentiated CLF governance strategies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"166 ","pages":"Article 103568"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145050562","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Variations and drivers of ecosystem services in the frozen ground regions of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau","authors":"Peijie Wei ,&nbsp;Ting Zhao ,&nbsp;Juanjuan Du ,&nbsp;Shengyun Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103579","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103579","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The alpine ecosystems of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) provide multiple ecosystem services. In recent decades, these ecosystem services have been profoundly affected by climate change, human activity, and frozen ground degradation. However, related research remains lacking to date in the QTP. To address this gap, the upper reaches of the Shule River, a typical cryospheric-dominated basin in the QTP, was selected. We simultaneously assessed the spatial-temporal patterns and driving factors of ecosystem services, including habitat quality (HQ), net primary productivity (NPP), water conservation (WC), carbon storage (CS), water yield (WY), green space recreation (GSR), and total ecosystem service (TES), by employing the InVEST, CASA, and Noah-MP land surface models in combination with remote sensing and field survey data. Our results showed that: (1) HQ, NPP, WC, CS, WY, and GSR all increased significantly from 2001 to 2020 at rates of 0.004 a⁻¹, 1.920 g C·m⁻²·a⁻¹, 0.709 mm·a⁻¹, 0.237 Mg⋅ha⁻¹·a⁻¹, 0.212 × 10⁸ m³·a⁻¹, and 0.038 × 10⁹ km²·a⁻¹ (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05), respectively; (2) warm and humid climates, combined with shrinking of barren, contributed to the increases in HQ, NPP, WC, CS, WY, and GSR; (3) frozen ground degradation had promoting effects on HQ, NPP, CS, GSR, and TES, while inhibiting effects were observed on WY and WC (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05); (4) synergies among ecosystem services were prominent over the past 20 years; (5) the total ecosystem service value increased significantly at a rate of 1.18 × 10⁹ CNY·a⁻¹ from 2001 to 2020 (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05), primarily due to the increase in the provisioning service value.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"166 ","pages":"Article 103579"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145050560","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact of housing conditions on resident willingness to withdraw from rural homesteads and preferences regarding compensation and resettlement mode: A dual-sample selection model","authors":"Yao Chen ,&nbsp;Shuyi Feng ,&nbsp;Mengyi Li","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103577","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103577","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The withdrawal from rural homesteads has significant implications for improving village environments and land resource utilization. However, previous research has neglected the multilevel nature of resident behavioral decision-making and the critical role of rural housing. To bridge this gap, this study defines resident willingness at three comprehensive levels: “willingness to relocate—preference for compensation or resettlement—preference for resettlement site.” We develop a theoretical framework based on the traits of rural residents as both “economic actors” and “social actors.” Combining 272,111 household survey data from ongoing rural house improvement work in northern Jiangsu, a dual-sample selection model is used to examine the impact of original housing conditions on resident willingness to relocate and preferences regarding compensation and resettlement mode. The results show that the condition of the original housing is a pivotal determinant of resident willingness to withdraw from their homesteads. Economically, it influences how residents evaluate the relative costs and benefits associated with alternative options. Socially, it affects residents’ emotional attachment to various alternatives. These two dimensions jointly shape resident decision-making preferences. Generally, when the original housing is in a poor construction condition or a low utilization condition, residents are more likely to relocate. Additionally, there is a pronounced tendency toward monetary compensation or village resettlement. We also find that rural homestead withdrawal and cultivated land transfer have strong synergistic effects. The study emphasizes the importance of establishing fair and comprehensive relocation compensation and resettlement mechanisms, creating a robust resident protection system, and ensuring long-term effective and integrated policy implementation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"166 ","pages":"Article 103577"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145027553","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Understanding industrial land allocation in rural regions of China: spatiotemporal patterns and driving mechanisms","authors":"Haimeng Shi ,&nbsp;Sun Zhang ,&nbsp;Meng Li ,&nbsp;Wei Chen ,&nbsp;Yao Luo ,&nbsp;Qiao Li ,&nbsp;Yang Yang ,&nbsp;Xinyi Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103574","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103574","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Industrial land allocation in rural regions (RILA) is crucial for promoting rural economic development and advancing comprehensive rural revitalization. However, existing research lacks a comprehensive understanding of the evolutionary characteristics of RILA, much less its driving mechanisms. Therefore, this study innovatively evaluated and identified RILA on a large scale from the perspectives of scale, quantity, and type, constructing a “four-force” driving mechanism framework for RILA in China based on natural conditions, economic development, infrastructure, and the social environment. Then, we integrated the Random Forest regression model and the Multi-Scale Geographically Weighted Regression model to systematically analyze the spatiotemporal patterns and driving mechanisms of RILA in China. The results indicated that from 2007 to 2022, the mean value of the RILA scale (RS) fluctuated and increased from 150.49 to 272.58 ha, while the quantity of RILA (RQ) gradually rose from 51.21 to 81.02 parcels. Different types of RILA also manifested a yearly growth trend. Spatially, RS gradually shifted from the distribution east of the Hu Huanyong Line to the inland northwest. However, RQ primarily concentrated in the regions east of Hu's Line, particularly in the southeastern coastal regions. Notably, the spatial distribution characteristics varied across RILA types. Changes in the scale, quantity, and types of RILA were influenced by the four directional forces of natural conditions, economic development, infrastructure, and the social environment, respectively. The critical factors influencing RILA were power infrastructure (PI), urbanization (UR), regional land prices (LP), policy support (PS), water resources (WR), elevation (EL), and road density (RD), with PI having the highest explanatory power. PI, PS, and WR had positive impacts on RILA, while UR, LP, and EL exerted negative influences, and RD exhibited an inverted U-shaped trend. The impact of these key drivers on the scale, quantity, and types of RILA displayed significant spatial non-stationarity and certain gradient effects. This study could provide a reference for the sustainable utilization of rural industrial land.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"165 ","pages":"Article 103574"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145018426","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Unlocking rural resources for revitalization: Examining the process and impact of compensated use of rural residential land through a social-ecological system framework","authors":"Yanbo Qu ,&nbsp;Weiying Zhao ,&nbsp;Lingyun Zhan ,&nbsp;Yue Cui ,&nbsp;Yan Li","doi":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103581","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.habitatint.2025.103581","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the process and impact of compensated use of rural residential land (CURRL) policy on rural revitalization through a social-ecological system (SES) framework. Despite extensive rural-to-urban migration in China resulting in widespread rural residential land (RRL) vacancy, RRL footprints continue to expand rather than contract, creating inefficient land use patterns. Using Fangsi Town in Shandong Province as a case study, we analyze how CURRL reshapes rural development by investigating the operational mechanisms and effectiveness of this policy innovation. Through mixed methods including semi-structured interviews, questionnaire surveys, and remote sensing analysis, we identify complex interactions among resource systems, governance structures, and stakeholders within the rural SES. Our findings reveal that CURRL operational processes emerge from cross-scale interactions among variables across different hierarchical levels within the SES framework. These processes facilitate fee payments and voluntary relinquishment of over-occupied or vacant RRL, thereby supporting rural revitalization initiatives. CURRL implementation has effectively incentivized villagers to relinquish idle and over-occupied RRL, resulting in improved land use efficiency, enhanced village collective income, improved living environments, and strengthened rural governance. However, our analysis reveals potential drawbacks, including diminished ecological benefits due to increased fertilizer application on reclaimed agricultural land and uneven development among villages with different resource endowments. This research advances the theoretical understanding of rural land system reform by extending the SES framework to RRL management contexts and provides policy implications for transitional economies pursuing sustainable rural development through land system innovation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48376,"journal":{"name":"Habitat International","volume":"166 ","pages":"Article 103581"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145020813","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}