Research on the Patterns and Evolution of Ecosystem Service Consumption in the “Belt and Road”

With great significance in ecosystem protection and sustainable development,the study of ecosystem service consumption(ESC)has become a hot topic in ecological research.Based on FAOSTAT data,in this study the patterns,composition and evolution of ESC and ecosystem service consumption patterns(ESCP)in the“Belt and Road"were revealed on the total and regional scales,taking consumed-biomass as a main indicator.Three main conclusions were reached.1)The total ESC was mainly contributed from farmland ecosystems along the"Belt and Road",followed by grassland ecosystems.The ESC indicators on the whole system scale fluctuated,but increased from year 2000 to year 2016.The total ESC increased from 12911.89 Tg yr_1 to 16810.00 Tg yr^1,and the annual per capita consumption of ecosystem services increased from 3.3228 million g p_1 yr'1 to 3.6392 million g p_1 yr'1.2)The ESC,composition and evolution varied significantly among countries,zones and ecosystems.The annual per capita ESC was highest in Mongolia on the national scale,and highest in Central and Eastern Europe and lowest in Southeast Asia on zone scale,which represented the results from the joint effects of regional resource endowments,consumption habits,levels of productive forces,and other factors.3)Higher farmland ESC was the dominant ESCP,which accounted for about 76.7%of the total area along the"Belt and Road",followed by higher farmland+higher grassland ESC,which accounted for about 19.0%of the total area.The other consumption patterns(i.e.,those of higher grassland ESC,higher forestland ESC or higher farmland+higher forest+higher grassland ESC)were found in only a few countries.The ESCP may be related to higher regional population density or the higher proportions of developing countries.Therefore,to realize sustainable social,economic and ecological development,and to improve people's well-being,countries along the,lBelt and Road"should take advantage of their own resources in developing industries,actively expand trade,achieve mutual benefits and win-win situations,and adjust and optimize consumption patterns of ecosystem services.This study can provide data support for further research on the mechanism of ESCP formation this area.

Research on the Patterns and Evolution of Ecosystem Service Consumption in Nepal

The study of ecosystem service consumption(ESC)in Nepal not only helps us to understand the intensity and management level of Nepal’s ecosystem utilization,but also provides scientific data support for the establishment and planning of China’s aid to Nepal.Based on the data of food consumption and forestry production and trade,this study dynamically investigated the consumption levels,structure and ecological consumption patterns of farmland,forest,grassland,water and the integrated ecosystem in Nepal and their main driving forces,using the physical quantity accounting method.The results showed that the total consumption of farmland,forest,grassland,water and the integrated ecosystem in Nepal from 1961 to 2018 exhibited a fluctuating increase,with average value of 7.26 Tg yr^(-1),6.38 Tg yr^(-1),1.10 Tg yr^(-1),0.02 Tg yr^(-1) and 14.76 Tg yr^(-1),respectively.The annual per capita forest consumption roughly decreased,while the annual per capita consumption of farmland,grassland,waters and integrated ecosystems mostly increased with their growth rates accelerating.The corresponding ecological consumption patterns were the“Log-Cereal-Milk”mode during 1961-1984,the“Log-Cereal-Vegetable-Root-Milk-Sugar”mode during 1985-2007 and the“Log-Cereal-Vegetable-Root-Sugar-Fruit-Milk”mode during 2008-2018.This study indicated that the supply capacity of the ecosystem(production,import and export capacity)and socio-economic factors(population density,per capita GDP and religious beliefs)are the main driving forces that are restricting the evolution of Nepal’s ecological consumption pattern.Although Nepal’s dietary structure has improved significantly,there is still a large gap between it and the standard of a balanced diet.The supply capacities of fruits,meat,eggs,milk and aquatic products should be enhanced to meet people’s demand for a balanced diet.This study can provide data support for the establishment of China’s aid projects to improve Nepal’s livelihood.

Approaches to Sustainable Consumption for Circular Economy

Consumer type and consumption need are analyzed in this paper. It is recognized that sustainable consumption accords with human＇s pursuing of well-being. Further, we analyze three types of realization models of sustainable consumption and focus onthe feasibility, realization process and policy measures of product service system.

Stakeholder Perceptions of Changing Ecosystem Services Consumption in the Jinghe Watershed: A Household Survey and PRA

This paper presents cognitive awareness levels of ecosystem services and their consumption by farmers in Guyuan City, which lies in the Jinghe watershed. Household Surveys and Participatory Rural Assessment （PRA） were used to determine differences in farmers cognitive awareness levels. The household survey results showed that farmers have a cognitive awareness of 11 ecosystem services： food supply, air purification, environmental purification, soil and water conservation, clean water supply, natural disaster minimization, increasing income, fuel wood supply, aesthetic recreation, fodder supply and sand stabilization. The job-related requirements of a farmers’ daily life, their direct consumption of ecosystem services and the importance of ecosystem services to them all influence their cognitive awareness of ecosystem services. Through group interviews the PRA method can provide the opportunity for information exchange and discussion. The process can help farmers to gain more cognitive awareness of ecosystem services. Large changes in ecosystem services have been observed in the study area. Food production and fuel wood supply have decreased markedly, yet incomes have increased. Spatial and temporal variables, changes in ecosystem services and the level of income all have an impact on farmers’ food supply and resource consumption. Overall, the total consumption of food （cereal and potato） and fuel wood declines for most farmers and consumption of vegetables, meat, coals and gas have increased.

Consumption of Ecosystem Services: A Conceptual Framework and Case Study in Jinghe Watershed

The global ecosystem is changing due to human and natural causes, and only the human aspects of this interaction are within our control. This paper provides a critical analysis of the interactions between humans and the ecosystem in terms of the human consumption of ecosystem services to maintain a comfortable lifestyle. It starts by reviewing human consumption of ecosystem services, and then develops a conceptual framework that links ecosystem services with consumption of these services and ecosystem management to construct a general functional model of the factors that affect the consumption of ecosystem services. A case study is introduced to show how the model can be used to provide specific assessments of patterns of direct human consumption of ecosystem services in China’s Jinghe watershed.

City Size,Commuting Cost and Household Savings Rate:Evidence from China

Economics literature has long overlooked an important economic phenomenon:Residents in large cities tend to save a smaller percentage of their disposable income than their peers in small and medium-sized cities.As an explanation for this phenomenon,this paper puts forth the hypothesis that:Residents in large cities purchase more services to increase their leisure time,which is reduced by longer commuting time than in small and medium-sized cities,thus lowering their household savings rate.We conducted an empirical study using panel data of China’s prefecture-level cities and urban household survey data,and employed an instrumental variable to address the endogeneity problem.The result confirmed the accuracy of the above hypothesis.In identifying the economic phenomenon and putting forth the hypothesis,this paper(i)creates a theoretical link between city size and household savings rate,which helps unravel the determinants of the urban household savings rate;(2)provides important implications for China’s policy-making on domestic consumption,urban populations,and industrial development.Priority should be given to developing large and medium-sized cities given the positive effects on domestic consumption and service sector development,and migrant labor shall not be barred from entering large and medium-sized cities to provide services to local residents.

Supply-Side Structural Reform in the Service Industry and Escaping the Middle Income Trap

The internal consumption and production structure of the service industry that now dominates the Chinese economy needs to be optimized.Introducing supply-side structural reform to improve the in-depth integration of advanced manufacturing and the modern service industry and promoting a strong domestic market is the key to escaping the middle income trap.We use 1950-2010 data from 45 non-oil-exporting economies representing the structural evolution of the service industry worldwide to compare Asian economies that have passed through the middle income trap with Latin American counterparts that remain stuck in the trap,and thence proceed to construct a matched model that covers the consumption and production service industries and their supply of human capital,with the aim of identifying the formative mechanisms and conditions for escaping the middle income trap through upgrading the structure of the service industry.Substantially developing the production service sector,raising the supply of public services so as to cultivate the quantity and quality of human capital,and matching senior-level human capital with knowledge-intensive serviceindustries will propel the upgrading and transformation of China’s economic structure toward high-quality development.