Changing Rural Development Inequality in Jilin Province, Northeast China

Rural development inequality is an important practical issue during the course of full establishment of a ′moderately well-off society′ in modern China,and the objective understanding and evaluation of the status and regional inequality of rural development can provide scientific basis for ′building a new countryside′ and coordination development of rural-urban regions.Based on the county-level data of 2000,2005 and 2009,this paper examines the rural development inequality of Jilin Province in Northeast China by establishing a rural development index.The spatio-temporal dynamic patterns and domain factors are discussed by using the method of exploratory spatial data analysis and multi-regression model.The results are shown as follows.Firstly,most of the counties were in lower development level,which accounted for 58.3%,62.5% and 66.7% of the total counties in 2000,2005 and 2009,respectively.The characteristics of spatial inequality were very obvious at county level.For example,rural development level of Changchun Proper and the proper of seven prefecture-level cities were much higher than that of the surrounding regions.The counties in the eastern and northern Jilin Province were the lowest regions of rural development level,while the middle counties were the rapid growth areas in rural economy.Secondly,Moran′s I of rural development index(RDI) was 0.01,–0.16 and –0.06 in 2000,2005 and 2009,respectively,which indicated that spatial agglomeration of RDI was not obvious in Jilin Province,and took on the characteristic of random distribution.The counties of both the units and its adjacent units have higher development level(HH) were transferred from the western areas to the eastern areas,while the countries of both the units and its adjacent units have lower development level(LL) were diffused from the eastern to middle and western Jilin Province.Finally,the result of multi-regression analysis showed that the improvement of agricultural production condition,development of agricultural economics and the adjustment of industrial structure were the domain factors affecting rural development inequality of Jilin Province in the later ten years.

Spatio-temporal Dynamic Patterns of Rural Area Development in Eastern Coastal China

The aim of this study is to evaluate the current state of rural area development at the county level in the eastern coastal China. An evaluation index system including 18 factors was developed, and a rural development index (RDI) was constructed to evaluate rural development state in 2000, 2004, and 2008. The quantitative evaluation indicated the following results. 1) This study derived four dominating components by means of principal component analysis, which can explain 78.2% of the total information, namely agricultural production input, the basic condition of agriculture, the comparative effectiveness of grain production, and the household′s own basic conditions. 2) Since the turn of the new millennium, the rural area in the eastern coastal China has experienced a rapid development in general. Well developed, developed, moderately developed and undeveloped rural areas respectively occupied 29.32%, 22.33%, 21.91%, and 10.51% in 2008. 3) The countryside had maintained a sound momentum of developing trend between 2000 and 2008, while the rural development in the eastern coastal China lacked sustainability. And 4) industrialization, urbanization, original economic basis, and location are four major driving forces of the disparity of rural area development in the eastern coastal China. Given these results, the strategies and policies for the improvement of each rural group were put forward.

Urbanization effect on precipitation over the Pearl River Delta based on CMORPH data

Based on the satellite data from the Climate Prediction Center morphing(CMORPH) at very high spatial and temporal resolution, the effects of urbanization on precipitation were assessed over the Pearl River Delta(PRD) metropolitan regions of China. CMORPH data well estimates the precipitation features over the PRD. Compared to the surrounding rural areas, the PRD urban areas experience fewer and shorter precipitation events with a lower precipitation frequency(ratio of rainy hours, about 3 days per year less); however, short-duration heavy rain events play a more significant role over the PRD urban areas. Afternoon precipitation is much more pronounced over the PRD urban areas than the surrounding rural areas, which is probably because of the increase in short-duration heavy rain over urban areas.

Analyses on cancer incidence and mortality in Huai’an area,China,from 2009 to 2011

Objective： The aim of the study was to investigate the cancer incidence and mortality in Huai＇an area, China, from 2009 to 2011. Methods： The data about cancer incidence and mortality were provided by Huai＇an Cancer Registry, China. Incidence and mortality rates, and standardized rates were calculated by age, gender, areas （urban and rural areas of Huai＇an） and cancer sites. Results： The crude incidence rate for all cancer sites was 205.60/105 and the standardized incidence rate was 166.22/10. Both the crude and standardized rates were higher in urban area than in rural area for both sexes. The inci- dence rates increased in people aged 40 and over, and the peak ages of incidence were between 70-75 in both males and females. The crude mortality rate for all cancer sites was 153.88/105 and the standardized mortality rate was 122.14/105. Both the crude and standardized rates were similar in urban and rural areas for both men and women. The mortality rates were at low level under the age 50 in both sexes, but increased after the age 50, reaching the peak at the ages of 80-85 in both males and females. The top 10 most common cancer sites in rank were esophagus, stomach, lung, liver, colon-rectum, breast, pancreas, cervix uteri, brain and central nervous system, and leukemia, accounting for 87.56% of all cancers. The top 10 most leading causes of cancer death in order were cancers of esophagus, lung, liver, stomach, colon-rectum, pancreas, brain and central nervous system, leukemia, breast and lymphoma, accounting for 90.53% of all cancer deaths. Conclusion： Cancer is one kind of major diseases threatening people＇s health in Huai＇an area, China. Cancer prevention and control should be enhanced, especially for esophageal cancer.

Comparison and Analysis of Agricultural and Forest Land Changes in Typical Agricultural Regions of Northern Mid-latitudes

The northeastern China, the United States, and the western Europe are important agricultural regions both on the global and regional scales. The westem Europe has a longer history of agricultural land development than the eastem United States. These two regions have changed from the deforestation and reclamation phase in the past to the current land abandonment and reforestation phase. Compared with the two regions, large-scale land exploitation has only been practiced in the northeastern China during the last century. After a short high-intensity deforestation and reclamation period, agricultural and forest lands are basically in a dynamic steady state. By comparing domestic and international agro-forestry development and considering the ecological environment and socio-economic bene- fits that can be derived from agro-forestry, this paper suggests that large area of reforestation would be inevitable in future though per- sistent and large agricultural demand in coming decades even more. And local reforestation at slope farmland with ecological vulner- ability should be imperative at present to avoid severer damage. At the same time, from the perspective of Land Change Science, the results demonstrate that the research on land use change in the agro-forestry ecotone is typical and critical, particularly those dealing with the analysis of spatial and temporal characteristics and the simulation of climate, hydrology, and other environmental effects.

Characteristics and Mechanism of Agricultural Transformation in Typical Rural Areas of Eastern China:A Case Study of Yucheng City,Shandong Province

Rural off-farm employment,rapid loss of agricultural land,and advanced technology popularization had led agricultural production in Chinese typical rural areas come at a critical transformation and upgrade stage.Based on sample survey data gathered from 401 households in Yucheng City,Shandong Province,this paper focuses on the characteristics and mechanism of agricultural transformation in typical rural areas of the eastern China.It was found that 74.3% of households surveyed kept at least one member engaging in off-farm employment,and 57.1% looked forward to expanding the operational scale of arable land,while just 13.7% had actually transferred their agricultural land.Since growing off-farm employment does not result in the collapse of traditional subsistence agriculture,therefore,agricultural production in Yucheng City is at an incomplete transformation phase from traditional small-holder farming to modern scale economy.It is caused by both macro environments and family characteristics,while urban-rural dual structure,imperfect rural development policy and agricultural technology popularization make peasant economy strengthen upon maintenance,and small-holder farming becomes peasant's natural response owing to pluriactivity,local off-farm employment,reverse elimination,etc.In order to achieve smooth agricultural transformation of typical rural areas in the eastern China,it needs to promote professional differentiation among peasants,under clear policies adopted by central government.Providing comprehensive services for agricultural production and improving production skills and knowledge of farmers who are still living in the countryside will effectively stimulate the process of agricultural transformation.

Farmer's Adaptive Strategies on Land Competition between Societal Outcomes and Agroecosystem Conservation in the Purple-soiled Hilly Region,Southwestern China

The worldwide extension and intensification of farming during the last century has led to ecosystem degradation and caused a series of environmental problems.Conservation of ecosystem services in agricultural regions has been implemented by top-down government actions or initiated by resilience scientists in the developed countries,but little attention was paid in the developing countries,especially in some remote mountainous regions.The present paper presents a case study showing how local farmers obtained both maximal societal outcomes and agroecosystem conservation interests in the absence of distinct boundaries between agricultural and protected ecological areas in the densely populated purple-soiled hilly region of southwestern China.The local community(Yanting County) has developed a mosaic agricultural-forestry-fishery-stock breeding system with spatially targeted land uses,diverse agricultural productions and multiple ecological partnerships.It indicates that the local farmers have hereditarily perceived sound strategies on maximizing sustainable societal outcomes and optimizing tradeoffs among macro-market,state policy,new technological facility and ecological reinforcement.

Current Situation and Influencing Factors of Pluriactivity in Mountainous and Hilly Rural Areas of Sichuan Province,China

In this study, the current situation of pluriactivity in mountainous and hilly rural areas of Sichuan province was analyzed using representative sample survey data and natural factor data calculated based on 30 m-resolution DEM and GIS. Moreover, using logistic regression model, a quantitative analysis was conducted on factors influencing pluriactivity in terms of individuals, households, communities and natural environmental conditions. The results showed that, （1） only 17.77% of rural laborers in mountainous and hilly areas of Sichuan province were engaged in pluriactivity. Geographically, pluriactivity was mainly chosen according to the ＂proximity principle＂, and was concentrated in construction and service industries; （2） the following factors have a significant influence on whether rural laborers in hilly areas engage in pluriactivity： gender, number of years of education, marriage, number of laborers and time to towns. Those with little influence include： age, health, family size, arable land per capita and per capita income, whether there are elderly people over 75 years and children less than 3 years. According to the main factors affecting pluriaetivity, the government should enhance vocational skills training for rural laborers in mountainous and hilly areas, especially for female laborers, further improve transport accessibility and encourage rural laborers, especially female laborers to move into pluriactivity to increase the income of farm households.

Integration of Soil Information System and Interactive Self-Organizing Data for Agricultural Developing Zones in Red Soil Region

Integration of soil information system (SIS) and interactive self-organizing data (ISODATA) was studied to establish proper agricultural developing zones in red soil region of southern China which are of crucial importance to farmers, researchers, and decision makers while utilizing and managing red soil resources. SIS created by using ARC/INPO was used to provide data acquisition, systematic model parameter assignment, and visual display of analytic results. Topography, temperature, soil component (e.g., organic matter and pH) and condition of agricultural production were selected as parameters of ISODATA model. Taking Longyou County, Zhejiang Province as the case study area, the effect of the integration and recommendations are discussed for future research.

Changes in Agricultural System as Farmers Adapt to Economic-Social and Climatic Changes in the Min Upriver Rural Areas in Western Sichuan,Southwestern China

Rapid economic growth in China has brought about great economic-social changes in rural areas, having considerable impact on the society in economy and environment. With a per capita possession of about 0.08 ha of cropland, Chinese farmers in rural areas adopt various ways in response to these changes in a bit to maintain their livelihood, wherein the agricultural system is facing one more options possible. To understand how rural communities have used different mechanisms to adapt to the economic and natural changes, we joined a survey in dry valleys of the Min upriver area under Maoxian county of western Sichuan province, southwestern China and visited the local people. Changes in the main crop cultivation have shown up an important means to keep up their household income. Farm households start seeking economic growth through diversified cultivating of cereal and economic crops in five lines, namely cereal, apple monoculture, apple and vegetables, plum and vegetables, mixed fruits and vegetables. These new lines mirror farmers' flexibility to cope with today's economic-social and climatic changes. The farming operation has changed all the more from a subsistence on grain to special agricultural products. Economic reforms in the early 1980 s motivated theprogress first in conversion of production from grain to fruits, and the desire to increase family income turned out to be an impetus for the subsequent events. At present, more farmers moving out of the rural areas, uneasy availability of labor force, increased opportunity cost of labors and their wages, increased farm size, and the urgent demand for the agricultural labor force, all these combine into the trend of the agricultural system of China on facing further economic-social reforms and reconstruction of the countryside across China.

Research on the Achievement Motivation of the University Student Village Officials in the Suburbs of Beijing

[Objective] The aim was to explore the achievement motivation of the university student village officials in the suburbs of Beijing.[Method] The research made an investigation on 429 university student village officials in the suburbs of Beijing by the Achievements Motive Scale(AMS).[Result] The achievement motivation of these student village officials was not on a high level,but they tended to pursue the success motivation rather than the motivation to avoid failures obviously.There was a significant difference in the achievement motivation between different genders,majors and jobs.The males' motivation for success was higher than the females'.The motivation of avoiding failures among officials in Humanities was higher than in Science and in Fine Art.And the university student village officials in professional and technical posts or in business posts rated the motivation to avoid failures more important than in basic management posts.But achievement motivations in different urban-rural areas,educational levels,political backgrounds,whether student leaders or not,and durations were no definite differences.Besides,it had a significant effect on these student village officials' achievement motivation whether advices and suggestions were accepted;if yes,the motivation was higher.[Conclusion] This study had provided stability and development for building rural talent groups.

Investigation of Relationship with Health Problems and Environmental Problems in the Silivri District of Istanbul

The purpose of this study is to investigate relationship between health and environmental problems in the district of Istanbul. This study is a cross-sectional questionnaire study that was conducted in the Silivri among the dates of 25th May-24th July, 2015. Questionnaires were conducted from 221 people living in Silivri with face to face interviews by researchers. Most of participants （82.4%） thought the presence of hazardous environmental factors deteriorated their health （n = 182）. Water pollution （48.4%, n = 107） and absence of free water （50.7%, n = 112） were the most common complaints of the participants. Analyzing distribution of factors which disrupt health and history of chronic disease to urban and rural areas revealed more complaints about those factors and diseases in the rural areas than urban areas. The most common chronic diseases diagnosed were hypertension （15.8%, n = 35）, chronic lung diseases （10.4%, n = 23）, diabetes and coronary artery disease. Silivri people reported a lot of environmental problems which impair the public health. People living in villages close to industrial zone and seas which have marine pollution have more history of diseases and report more factors that negatively influence the health than people living in urban area.

The Research About non-agriculture shift confronting the rural vulnerable farmers in the underdeveloped areas of China

This paper reveals the law of non-agriculture shift of the vulnerable groups in underdeveloped rural areas in china, and put forward the ＂second shift＂ category, namely the vulnerable groups is bound to work in cities; return to participate in local non-agricultural activities; then begin second non-agriculture shift. The paper discusses the ＂second shift＂ feature; Finally, draw policy Implications of the ＂second shift＂.

Unequal Marriage Exchange Between Majority and Minority Groups： A Case Study From Inner Mongolia, China

Since the 1960s, social integration theorists have considered intermarriage to be an effective tool for promoting social solidarity. However, from a demographic perspective, unequal marriage exchange between groups can create social division and conflict. This Chinese study is a contribution to these debates. This paper explores the issue in the context of a rural minority community in Rightqi, Inner Mongolia, taking social statistical methods and anthropological in-depth interview methods to investigate intermarriage between Mongolian and Han. The paper shows that the number of Han males married to Mongolian women is far greater than the number of Mongolian males marrying Han women. Most Hart people live in urban areas, while Mongolians predominantly reside in pastoral areas and there has been a significant trend for girls from the pastoral areas to marry urban males. Since the proportion of males to females in China has been increasing, the competition between men over female partners has intensified, leading to urban males recruiting partners from the countryside. As a result, young men from minorities in the rural areas are finding it increasingly difficult to marry and this generates a lot of social problems.

Distribution of heavy metals in the topsoil of the Jining mining area

The geochemical baseline is the fundamental reference for environmental change and assessment.In this article we describe cluster and regression analyses with a normalization procedure.The elements Sc and Ag were chosen to calculate the environmental geochemical baseline.The geoaccumulation index was calculated and mapped to indicate the environmental quality of the soil.The results show that the urban areas are barely polluted with Ni and Cr but the rural areas in the southern part of the city, and the western part of the lake,are polluted with Ni,Cr,and Cu at the second level.On the other hand,the rural areas in the southern part of the city,and the western part of the lake,are polluted with As at a moderate level.The other area is polluted at the second level.An increase in As pollution occurs in a direction from northeast to southwest.The Cd pollution follows a trend similar to As,with an additional smaller contaminated area polluted at levelⅢ.The Hg pollution typical of urban areas occurs in the main and northern parts of the city.The geochemical accumulation index decreases from the city center to the periphery.The highest pollution level reaches levelⅣ,which indicates that the soil is seriously polluted with Hg.The southern part of the city and the rural areas to the west of the lake are not contaminated with Hg.Geological factors and the disturbance from human activities are both possible major factors:further research is needed to identify them.

Study on Energy-saving Technology and Design Optimization of Facade in Cold and Severe Cold Area

This article take cold regions of nlral residential building envelope as the research object, suitability technical theory as the theoretical basis, we evaluation of rural residential energy envelope because China＇s rural areas is chmacterized by large regional differences and to find a solution for the envelope. It could be considered as the useful reference for retrofit design of similar projects.

Harnessing the Potential of Community Radio in Empowering Rural Women in Malawi

This paper examines the extent to which community radio has the empowering and transformation potential. It draws on Nkhotakota community radio station in Malawi to analyze how community radio can empower women especially in rural areas. Although the whole of the rural population can be considered as marginalized, women are the most affected as they face marginalization in the family and village setting. Based on the data drawn from semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, document analysis, and participant observation, the paper observes that inequality and high illiteracy rate are the major hindrances among rural women which prevent them from accessing information necessary for their improvement. This paper argues that community radio has the potential to empower women in rural areas by providing them with access to information necessary to empower and transform their lives and enable them to participate in development activities.

Regional Variation in the SME-Audit Firm Relationship

The purpose of the paper is to examine how the relationship between small and medium sized enterprises （SMEs） and their auditor varies between regions. Auditing literature, regional, and network studies are used to set up hypotheses on differences between rural regions and the metropolitan urban region. Survey data from 421 SMEs are analyzed and findings support that in rural regions, especially those with a strong entrepreneurial culture and tight inter-organizational links, the SME-auditor relationship is to a larger extent trust-based compared to the urban region. In the rural region, the auditor assumes the role as a business support agent providing valuable strategic advice. The SME-auditor relationship is weakest in the urban region where the auditor＇s role is limited.

The Scramble for LandmSaving the Remains of Rural Space in Switzerland

In 2012 and 2013, the Swiss population voted on two separate yet related issues concerning spatial planning. In 2012 a restriction on second homes was introduced into the Constitution, in 2013 referendum the planning law was revised. Both issues wanted to restrict disproportionate building activities, and were accepted after a heated debate. This outcome mirrors a change in popular attitude towards constructions in the countryside and so-called ＂cold beds＂ （second homes used for a short time only）, but also towards the disfiguration of the （rural） landscape in general. At the same time it revealed two social rifts： between urban populations （that are increasingly migrating towards rural landscapes） and rural regions that want to obtain a similar level of living as the urban majority, and between lowland and mountain regions. The results of the referenda show that the population is very much concerned about the future of our landscape and environment. The paper discusses the two referenda and their implications for Switzerland in general and for regions that are considered marginal. Its focus lies on the political aspects of the two issues, which not only concern marginality but also are a challenge for national cohesion and direct democracy.

Study on development of circular agriculture in Beijing＇s mountainous areas

Circular agriculture is an inevitable course to realize positive cycle of ecology and harmonious development of rural areas. Beijing＇s mountainous areas depend on the background and orientation of ecological economy for sustainable development. It is of great significance to explore the development of the circular agriculture in the mountainous areas to facilitate sustainable use of agriculture resources. Beijing＇s mountainous areas have accumulated considerable experiences in boosting the circular agriculture. By summarizing the modes of circular agriculture in mountainous areas and analyzing their actual practices, the paper proposes we need to give high priority to strengthening publicity efforts, giving full play to resources advantages of mountainous areas, and establishing a management mechanism and operation mechanism to promote the development of circular agriculture in Beijing.