Understanding Urban Vitality from the Economic and Human Activities Perspective:A Case Study of Chongqing,China

The literature on urban vitality tends to focus on the built environment.This paper argues that some important processes in shaping vitality may be overlooked without examining the intensity and diversity of economic and human activities.Using newly developed spatial big data and adopting the methods of multi-indicator measurement and spatial analysis methods,we analyzed the pattern of urban vitality in Chongqing,a provincial city in western China and,on this basis,evaluated the creation and maintenance of urban vitality from the economic and human activities perspective.Our findings indicate that the impacts of economic and human activities are positive and significant.Among the three intensity and diversity indicators,economic intensity and population density show an effect on urban vitality stronger than that of economic diversity.However,economic diversity has the strongest superposition or interactive effect,and is thus an important foundation dynamic.The positive effect of population density on urban vitality is largely a result of Chongqing’s jobs-housing balance.The case of Chongqing highlights the importance of topographic features,historical inheritance,large-scale migration,and cultural activities in shaping the distinctive vitality pattern of a city.This study contends that the creation and maintenance of urban vitality can not be fully explained without incorporating the impacts of economic and human activities.It contributes to a comprehensive measurement of urban vitality and enriches its connotations.

Comprehensive evaluation and spatial-temporal evolution characteristics of urban resilience in Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle

To clarify the connotations and extensions of urban resilience,this study focuses on the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle with 16 cities as research subjects.A comprehensive evaluation index system was constructed to measure the resilience of each city from 2003 to 2020.The spatial-temporal evolution characteristics were analyzed using Kernel density estimation,standard deviation ellipse,and spatial Markov chain analysis,and the spatial Tobit model was introduced to discover the influencing factors.The results indicate the following:①Urban resilience in the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle displays an upward trend,with the center of gravity moving to the southwest,and the polarization phenomenon intensifying.②The urban resilience level in a region has certain spatial and geographical dependence,while the probability of urban resilience transfer differs in adjacent cities with different resilience levels.③Urban centrality,economic scale,openness level,and financial development promote urban resilience,whereas government scale significantly inhibits it.Finally,this paper proposes countermeasures and suggestions to improve the urban resilience of the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle.

Transformation power or development pressure:economic growth targets and urban carbon productivity

Maintaining moderate economic growth targets(EGTs)is the key for local governments to effectively implement the“carbon peak and carbon neutrality”goals under the refreshed development pattern.Utilizing panel data of 276 prefecture-level cities in China's Mainland from 2010 to 2020,and employing methods such as intermediary and threshold models,this study empirically analyzes the internal mechanism of EGT’s impact on urban carbon productivity(UCP).Our findings demonstrate that:①The overall EGT during the analyzed period is not conducive to improving UCP.This conclusion remains valid after a series of robustness tests.This effect is more pronounced in the central region and resource-based cities than in the east-west region and non resource-based cities.②EGT not only directly suppresses UCP but also exerts indirect negative impacts on UCP from three aspects:delaying the digital economy(DE),constraining financial expansion(FE),and hindering green technology innovation(GTI).This negative indirect effect is similar to or even surpasses the direct effect,suggesting that the internal relationship between EGT and“dual-carbon”goals should be re-evaluated from a new compound perspective.③EGT not only has a simple linear impact on UCP but also significantly exhibits a dynamic evolution pattern in inverted“U”shape.That is,as EGT continuously upgrades,a nonlinear impact on UCP emerges in the form of“promoting first,suppressing later”.This indicates that surpassing the“degree”limit for EGT will be detrimental to the improvement of UCP.This study broadens the scope of carbon productivity analysis by introducing a new perspective centered on EGT.The insights gleaned from this research offer valuable guidance for local governments to effectively manage economic growth expectations and promote the synchronized achievement of dual-carbon objectives.

Research on the Digital Economy's Impact on China's Economic Growth:Based on the Variations in Urbanization Levels Across China's Eastern,Central,and Western Regions and Sectoral Heterogeneity

This paper uses inter-provincial panel data from 2011 to 2017,a linear regression model,and a threshold model to conduct empirical analyses of the impact of the digital economy on China's overall economic growth and the three main sectors of industry.The paper then investigates the impact and effects the digital economy has had on the economic growth of the three main sectors of industry in China's eastern,central,and western regions.Finally,the paper investigates the most significant differences among the various regions and the threshold effects of urbanization levels on the relationship between the digital economy and economic growth.The findings indicate a significantly positive correlation between the digital economy and regional economic growth.Moreover,geographical factors notably influence this correlation.The digital economy exerts a positive effect on all sectors of industry.It may not substantially impact industrial development in regions with highly developed infrastructure.Regarding the other regions,the digital economy exhibits varying degrees of impact due to the differences in the specific indicators.The conclusion drawn by the threshold model is that the magnitude of the threshold effect correlates with geographic factors.No threshold effect was observed in the eastern region,while the threshold effect occurred in the central region when the urbanization levels for the provinces were below 0.6645.Similarly,the threshold effect was noted in the western region when the urbanization level was below 0.3931.Considering all of this,the study also offers policy recommendations that will help balance the regional development of digital economies,accelerate the digital transformation of traditional industries,enhance digital infrastructure construction,refine the formulation and implementation of data policy,and establish relevant incentive mechanisms.

Impact of coupling coordination development of port and city environments on urban economic competitiveness:Evidence from the coastal port cities in eastern China

Promoting the coupling coordination development of port and its hinterland city environments is an important way to improve urban economic competitiveness.Based on relevant data of 13 coastal port cities in eastern China from 2000 to 2018,this study explores the coupling coordination development of port and city environments and its impact on urban economic competitiveness by constructing the coupling coordination degree model and the panel threshold model.The research results show that:(1)In terms of the coupling coordination development of port and city environments,most coastal ports and their hinterland cities are in a state of moderate or serious disorder.Overall,the degree of coupling coordination of port and city environments needs to be further improved;(2)The coupling coordination degree of port and city environments has a significant impact on urban economic competitiveness,and this effect gradually increases with the development of the ports and the urban economy.Among the variables that impact the urban economic competitiveness,fixed assets investment and foreign trade are significant factors that can enhance urban economic competitiveness.(3)At present,there is a“U-shaped”relationship between the coupling coordination degree of port-city environments and the urban economic competitiveness.This relationship lies on the right side of the inflection point of the“U-shaped”curve.Therefore,following the concept of assigning priority to ecological development,expanding fixed assets investment and actively developing foreign trade can further enhance the urban economic competitiveness.

Critical Analysis of Increasingly Mathematical Economics in the Modern Society

This paper critically examines the escalating trend of mathematization in economics,highlighting its implications and controversies in contemporary economic research.While the application of sophisticated mathematical models and statistical techniques has enhanced the precision,rigor,and status of economics within academia and practical application,concerns arise regarding the potential oversimplification and detachment from real-world complexities.The adoption of mathematical tools has arguably led to a focus on theoretically tractable problems at the expense of those more relevant to practical economic and social issues.This paper explores both the benefits and limitations of this trend,discussing how the reliance on quantitative methods affects the innovation,comprehensibility,and application of economic theories.We argue for a balanced approach that fosters innovation by integrating qualitative insights and embracing interdisciplinary methods to ensure economics remains both rigorous and relevant to societal needs.

Atmospheric Pollutants in a Commercial Region of Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil: Integration of Health, Environment and Economy in Urban Planning to Improve Air Quality

The accelerated growth of the vehicular fleet, the modernization of large urban centers, and the few adjustments to the road network in Fortaleza have intensified the problems of traffic and emissions of atmospheric pollutants, highlighting the necessity for strategic urban planning initiatives to address the escalating issues of traffic and pollution. With the objective of analyzing the indices of concentrations of atmospheric pollutants and estimating how these levels can affect human health, this work consists of a study of the analysis of air quality in the intense trade region of Fortaleza. For this, the analysis zone was divided into three perimeters (Major - Medium - Minor), where each perimeter was analyzed at 7 am, 12 noon and 5 pm. Concentrations of the type of O3, particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), CO2 and HCHO were collected. Our results demonstrate that most of the analyses are within the limits of current legislation;however, at certain times and perimeters, the analyses of CO2 and HCHO exceeded the established limits. In view of the above, we conclude that public policies to control air quality are necessary to reduce the damage to human health and the environment caused by pollutants.

A Study of the Impact of the Digital Economy on the Efficiency of Urban Green Economy--Based on the Yangtze River Delta City Cluster

This paper adopts the non-expected output-super-efficiency SBM(Slacks-Based Model)model and principal component analysis to calculate the green economy efficiency and the digital economy level of 27 prefecture-level cities in China’s Yangtze River Delta urban agglomeration between 2011 and 2019,respectively,and examines the impact of the digital economy on the green economy efficiency by using benchmark regression and mechanism analysis.The findings show that,first,the digital economy has a significant contribution to the green economic efficiency of cities,and this conclusion still holds after robustness tests such as replacing explanatory and interpreted variables and introducing province-fixed effects.Second,through the mechanism test,it is found that the digital economy can indirectly promote urban green economic efficiency through the positive mechanism effect of promoting industrial structure upgrading.

Leaf hydraulics coordinated with leaf economics and leaf size in mangrove species along a salinity gradient

Independence among leaf economics,leaf hydraulics and leaf size confers plants great capability in adapting to heterogeneous environments.However,it remains unclear whether the independence of the leaf traits revealed across species still holds within species,especially under stressed conditions.Here,a suite of traits in these dimensions were measured in leaves and roots of a typical mangrove species,Ceriops tagal,which grows in habitats with a similar sunny and hot environment but different soil salinity in southern China.Compared with C.tagal under low soil salinity,C.tagal under high soil salinity had lower photosynthetic capacity,as indicated directly by a lower leaf nitrogen concentration and higher water use efficiency,and indirectly by a higher investment in defense function and thinner palisade tissue;had lower water transport capacity,as evidenced by thinner leaf minor veins and thinner root vessels;and also had much smaller single leaf area.Leaf economics,hydraulics and leaf size of the mangrove species appear to be coordinated as one trait dimension,which likely stemmed from covariation of soil water and nutrient availability along the salinity gradient.The intraspecific leaf trait relationship under a stressful environment is insightful for our understanding of plant adaption to the multifarious environments.

The Use and Abuse of Economics in Land Use Decision-Making in South Florida: An Industrial Park & Its Alternatives, 2020-2023

This paper reviews the economic methodology used to justify a proposed 357 hectare (800 acre) Industrial Park that would breach the Urban Development Boundary (UDB) in Miami-Dade County, Florida, a boundary that had been established to constrain urban sprawl and protect the surrounding wetlands and farmlands. We will examine the socio-economic setting of the region, the ownership of the farmland parcels designated to become industrial sites, and the misuse of the promoters’ narrow economic analysis. Then we shall explain and compute correctly the likely job creation based on the author’s own survey of recently constructed industrial plants similar to those proposed for this site. Rather than an industrial park, we offer instead a newly-designed multi-purpose Recreational–Ecological–Agricultural Park (REAP) & Nature Preserve which would maintain the integrity of the rural landscape, connect the densely-populated neighborhoods to the mangrove shoreline, and open nature’s treasure chest to urban Miami and the wider public.

Research on the Impact of Rural Labour Forces Transfer on the Urban-rural Income Based on Economics of Discrimination

On the basis of the analytical frame of discrimination, the thesis establishes a model of transfer of rural labour forces into city, and researches the impact of rural labour forces transfer on urban-rural income. The results show that the transfer of rural labour forces into city can increase urban-rural income and bridge the income gap between city and village to a certain extent. However, the capital stock of city in China is greatly more than that of the village, so the rural labour forces transfer cannot eliminate the urban-rural income gap completely. In order to elevate the rural income level in China and narrow urban-rural income gap, the government should paint a picture with two brushes at the same time: on one hand, the government should promote the transfer of rural labour forces into city, and change the status quo of dual urban-rural labour forces market structure; on the other hand, the government should increase the input in rural areas and promote the increase of rural capital stock so as to further increase rural residents' income in the process of labour forces transfer.

Understandings of Urban Sustainability in China:a Bibliometric Analysis Using Chinese Literatures

Cities hold a critical responsibility for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs)due to their high population density,extensive resource consumption,and significant economic contributions.To examine the present state of understandings regarding urban sustainability(SDG 11:Sustainable Cities and Communities)within Chinese research communities,this study collected 15950 papers from 1994 to 2022 on the 12 indicators of SDG 11,from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI),a hub of Chinese academic papers,that directly relate to policymaking.Significant research topics on SDG 11 were identified for each indicator using bibliometrics analysis approaches.The high-frequency keywords and clusters of keywords over the last three decades reveal that existing studies primarily concentrated on the physical aspects,such as transportation and environment,while there is a lack of consideration of societal aspects.This indicates a limited and biased understanding of the urban sustainability within the Chinese academic community.Hence,it is crucial to prioritize the societal aspects in order to develop a research agenda that further advances urban sustainability.

Convergent relationships between flower economics and hydraulic traits across aquatic and terrestrial herbaceous plants

Maintaining open flowers is critical for successful pollination and depends on long-term water and carbon balance.Yet the relationship between how flower hydraulic traits are coordinated in different habitats is poorly understood.Here,we hypothesize that the coordination and trade-offs between floral hydraulics and economics traits are independent of environmental conditions.To test this hypothesis,we investigated a total of 27 flower economics and hydraulic traits in six aquatic and six terrestrial herbaceous species grown in a tropical botanical garden.We found that although there were a few significant differences,most flower hydraulics and economics traits did not differ significantly between aquatic and terrestrial herbaceous plants.Both flower mass per area and floral longevity were significantly positively correlated with the time required for drying full-hydrated flowers to 70%relative water content.Flower dry matter content was strongly and positively related to drought tolerance of the flowers as indicated by flower water potential at the turgor loss point.In addition,there was a trade-off between hydraulic efficiency and the construction cost of a flower across species.Our results show that flowers of aquatic and terrestrial plants follow the same economics spectrum pattern.These results suggest a convergent flower economics design across terrestrial and aquatic plants,providing new insights into the mechanisms by which floral organs adapt to aquatic and terrestrial habitats.

Abstract of Speech by Fred Engst,American Sinologist and Professor of School of International Economics and Trade of University of International Business and Economics

Mr.Fred Engst,American sinologist and Professor of School of International Economics and Trade of University of International Business and Economics,through the perspective of economic development,illustrated the reason for China’s rising and the high-quality growth of China’s economy and analysed the misunderstandings Western scholars currently hold about China.

Exploration of the Inner Laws of Urbanization Economic Operation and Application Analysis

Exploring the inner law of the economic operation of urbanization can understand the regulation mechanism of the optimal distribution of urban resource allocation. In this regard, we propose to explore and analyze the inner law of urbanization economic operation and its application. The study found that the urbanization economy originated from the urban agglomeration effect, which includes the agglomeration economic operation mechanism and spillover effect operation mechanism, based on which three kinds of inner laws of urbanization economic operation are explored, combined with the economic operation law, the non-equilibrium state of the declining cities are regulated and applied, and the results show that the analysis of the inner laws of urbanization economic operation has a direct significance in guiding the real economic process.

Toward a sustainable future:Examining the interconnectedness among Foreign Direct Investment(FDI),urbanization,trade openness,economic growth,and energy usage in Australia

The energy demand in Australia is increasing with the industrialization and rapid economic growth.This study analyzed the relationships among the economic growth,Foreign Direct Investment(FDI),trade openness,urbanization,and energy usage in Australia based on the data from World Development Indicators(WDI)from 1972 to 2021.The results indicates that there is a cointegration among economic growth,FDI,trade openness,urbanization,and energy usage,which was traced through the autoregressivedistributed lag(ARDL).The Zivot-Andrews unit root test reveals that energy usage,economic growth,FDI,urbanization,and trade openness show significant structural breaks in 1993,1996,1982,2008,and 1994,respectively.The ARDL model shows that economic growth has a positive and significant effect on energy usage in the long-run(0.814)and short-run(0.809).Moreover,the results also show that FDI(0.028)and trade openness(0.043)have positive impacts on energy usage in the long-run.However,urbanization shows a negative and significant influence on energy usage in the long-run(–0.965).Then,the research demonstrates a unidirectional causation between energy usage and trade openness,with energy usage significantly causing trade openness.The current study endorses energy consumption policies and investment strategies for a paradigm shifting from a reliance on fossil fuels as the primary energy source to renewable energy sources.These findings have profound implications for sustainable energy usage.

Mitigating Urban Heat Island Effects: A Review of Innovative Pavement Technologies and Integrated Solutions

In this review paper,we present a thorough investigation into the role of pavement technologies in advancing urban sustainability.Our analysis traverses the historical evolution of these technologies,meticulously evaluating their socio-economic and environmental impacts,with a particular emphasis on their role in mitigating the urban heat island effect.The evaluation of pavement types and variables influencing pavement performance to be used in the multi-criteria decision-making(MCDM)framework to choose the optimal pavement application are at the heart of our research.Which serves to assess a spectrum of pavement options,revealing insights into the most effective and sustainable practices.By highlighting both the existing challenges and potential innovative solutions within thefield,this paper aims to offer a directional compass for future urban planning and infrastructural advancements.This review not only synthesizes the current state of knowledge but also aims to chart a course for future exploration,emphasizing the critical need for innovative and environmentally sensitive pavement tech-nologies in the creation of resilient and sustainable urban environments.

Urban Dynamics and Emergence of New Centers in the Dakar Region (Senegal)

Due to the status of the Dakar region as the former capital of AOF (French West Africa) and current capital of the Republic of Senegal, it is home to a very large part of the population and most of the socio-economic, administrative and cultural activities on a very small area of the country (0.28%). This situation makes it a very attractive region and subject to strong land pressure. The objective of this article is to study past and current urban dynamics as well as changes in natural spaces, in order to identify new urban centers. The methodological approach consists in analyzing satellite images to understand the evolution of different forms of spatial occupation in the Dakar region, and to study population movement flows and urban forms in order to reveal new urban centers. The results of the study show that the Dakar urban space is characterized by diverse forms which express a heterogeneous set of spaces. They also revealed the emergence of new clusters between 1986 and 2016, notably Ngor, Grand Yoff, Parcelles Assainies in the North-West, and Keur Massar and the North of the communes of Rufisque in the eastern part of the Dakar region.

Effects of urbanization and forest type on species composition and diversity,forest characteristics,biomass carbon sink,and their associations in Changchun,Northeast China:implications for urban carbon stock improvement

Differences in forest attributes and carbon sequestration of each organ and layer between broadleaved and conifer forests of central and outer urban areas are not well-defined,hindering the precise management of urban forests and improvement of function.To clarify the effect of two forest types with different urbanization intensities,we determined differences in vegetation composition and diversity,structural traits,and carbon stocks of 152 plots(20 m×20 m)in urban park forests in Changchun,which had the largest green quantity and carbon density effectiveness.We found that 1.1-fold thicker and healthier trees,and 1.6-to 2.0-fold higher,healthier,denser,and more various shrubs but with sparser trees and herbs occurred in the central urban forests(p<0.05)than in the outer forests.The conifer forests exhibited 30–70%obviously higher tree aboveground carbon sequestration(including stem and leaf)and 20%bigger trees,especially in the outer forests(p<0.05).In contrast,1.1-to 1.5-fold higher branch stocks,healthier and more diverse trees were found in broadleaved forests of both the inner and outer forests(p<0.05).Plant size and dominant species had similarly important roles in carbon stock improvement,especially big-sized woody plants and Pinus tabuliformis.In addition,a higher number of deciduous or needle species positively affected the broadleaved forest of the central urban area and conifer forest of the outer urban area,respectively.These findings can be used to guide precise management and accelerate the improvement of urban carbon function in Northeast China in the future.

Delineation of urban growth boundary based on FLUS model under the perspective of land use evaluation in hilly mountainous areas

With rapid economic development,the size of urban land in China is expanding dramatically.The Urban Growth Boundary(UGB)is an expandable spatial boundary for urban construction in a certain period in order to control the urban sprawl.Reasonable delineation of UGB can inhibit the disorderly spread of urban space and guide the normal development of the city.It is of practical significance for the construction of green urban space.The study utilizes GIS technology to establish a land construction suitability evaluation system for Nankang city,which is experiencing rapid urban expansion,and outlines the preliminary UGB under the future land use simulation(FLUS)model.At the same time,considering the coupled coordination of"Production-Living-Ecological Space",and based on the suitability evaluation,we revised the preliminary UGB by combining the advantages of the patch-generating land use simulation(PLUS)model and the convex hull model to delineate the final UGB.The results show that:1)the comprehensive score of the evaluation of the suitability of the construction of land from high to low shows the distribution of the center of the city to the surrounding circle type spread,the center of the city has the highest suitability score.The results of convex hull model show that the urban expansion type of Nankang is epitaxial.In the future,the urban expansion will mainly occur in the northern part of the city.The PLUS model predicts an increase of 3359.97 hm^(2)of construction land in Nankang by 2035,of which 2022.97 hm^(2)is urban construction land.2)The FLUS model has a prediction accuracy of 86.3%and delineates a preliminary UGB area of 9215.07 hm^(2).3)We used the results of the construction suitability evaluation,PLUS model simulation results,and convex hull model predictions to revise the originally delineated UGB.The final delineated UGB area is 8895.67 hm^(2)and it is capable of meeting the future development of the study area.The results of the delineation can promote sustainable urban development,and the delineation methodology can provide a reference basis for the preparation of territorial spatial planning.