Social interactions in periodic urban markets and their contributions to sustainable livelihoods:Evidence from Ghana

Periodic markets are an important aspect of local economies,providing a platform for farmers(producers),wholesalers,retailers,and consumers to interact face-to-face and exchange goods and services.These markets have been increasing in urban areas in Africa,Asia,and South America because of urbanization.The increase of periodic urban markets(PUMs)in urban areas is observed as an index of modernization,reflecting a response to transition process.However,there are limited studies on how social interactions in PUMs contribute to sustainable livelihoods.This study investigated the types of social interactions occurring in PUMs in Ghana,the benefits of social interactions for participants of PUMs,and how social interactions contribute to sustainable livelihoods.This research interviewed 162 participants,comprising 27 farmers(farmers were regarded as producers in this study),61 retailers,47 wholesalers from 9 selected PUMs across Ghana,and 27 officers from government institutions and non-governmental market associations to obtain their opinions.We analyzed the interview data using the NVivo software.The results showed that there are seven kinds of social interactions in PUMs,including(i)producer-wholesaler relationship,(ii)producer-consumer relationship,(iii)wholesaler-retailer relationship,(iv)retailer-consumer relationship,(v)trader-driver relationship,(vi)trader-institution relationship,and(vii)trader-international buyer relationship.We found that these social interactions in PUMs enhance sustainable livelihoods by supporting human,social,financial,natural,and physical assets of traders(traders refer to producers,wholesalers,and retailers in this study).Therefore,we concluded that the development of policies to improve PUMs could strengthen social interactions,enabling the achievement of sustainable livelihoods in developing countries.

Household Poverty Dimensions Influencing Forest Dependence at Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda: An Application of the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework

This paper explores the perceived relationship between household poverty and forest dependence among the poorest residents neighboring Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda. Using the sustainable livelihoods framework, this paper examines the influence of household poverty on forest dependence. The findings reveal that food and health security risks are primary drivers of forest dependence. Education security risks however, were found to have an indirect influence. Both food and health security risks were found to have equal influence on forest dependence. The economic security risks traditionally believed to significantly influence forest dependence were not found to have a direct influence.

Socio-Economic Factors Affecting Conservation and Sustainable Utilization of the Vegetation Resources on the Islands of Lake Ziway, South-Central Ethiopia

The study was conducted on the islands of Lake Ziway, south-central Ethiopia. The aim of the study was to investigate the socio-economic factors affecting the vegetation resources and the indigenous resource management systems and practices on the islands. Data were collected by field observations, interviews and group discussion. The island communities were engaged in diverse economic activities. The fishing industry was the main pillar of the economy as most of the income (75.7%) was derived from this sector. The existence of diverse economic activities had relieved the pressure on the vegetation resources. The natural vegetation was the major source of fuelwood, construction material, farm implements, edible fruits, medicines, fodder and bee forage. The islanders have maintained the soil and vegetation resources for centuries through their environmental friendly resource management systems and practices. At present, however, the vegetation resources are dwindling due to free livestock grazing, farmland expansion, soil erosion and tree cutting for various purposes, all of which are driven by human population growth. Since the islanders have high respect and trust for the church, integrating environment and development issues with this institution would be more effective. The prevailing natural and anthropogenic factors affecting the vegetation resources on the islands necessitate effective conservation and management interventions.

Contribution of Ecotourism Towards Sustainable Livelihood of the Communities Living on Wasini Island, Kwale County, Kenya

Ecotourism has traditionally been viewed as a panacea concept for developing countries to stimulate the economy, as well as, directly provide support for conservation efforts. This study examined the concept of ecotourism for a relatively sustainable, single activity within an established tourism destination of Wasini Island in Kwale County. The purpose of the study was to assess the contribution of ecotourism initiatives to the livelihoods of the local community, guided by the following objective： to assess the attitude of the local community towards ecotourism development. Descriptive survey research was adopted for the study. The target population included all ecotourism entrepreneurs, conservationists, community based organizations （CBOs）, and tour operators based in Wasini Island. Systematic random sampling was used to select 320 respondents. Primary data were collected using structured questionnaires while secondary data were obtained through critical examination of public and private recorded documents related to the study. Data were analyzed using techniques which included frequencies, means, modes and percentages. Ecotourism initiatives in the study area have significantly contributed to job creation and financial empowerment to the local people. Ecotourism in the study area has contributed to the acquisition of both human （education） and physical assets owned by the local community. Environmental conservation has also been achieved through ecotourism initiatives. In the face of joblessness, residents of Wasini need to be capacitated to venture into ecotourism projects as it has the potential of improving livelihoods.

Biological Diversity, Land Degradation and Sustainable Rural Livelihoods

The 1998 Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity asked national governments to demonstrate the importance of biological diversity in supporting rural communities. This paper introduces‘agrodiversity’as the primary way in which farmers use biological diversity and, more generally, the natural diversity of the environment for production, including their choice of crops, and management of land, water and biota as a whole. Promoting agrodiversity and understanding how it functions in tropical smallholder farming systems is the best way that importance may be shown. A win-win scenario is presented which links agrodiversity to land degradation control and sustainable rural livelihoods as evidenced by food security. It is argued that policies that encourage biological diversity in areas of land use will not only meet countries’ responsibilities under the Convention but will also address land degradation problems and support to rural livelihoods. The human significance of various types of biological diversity is shown. Sustainable rural livelihoods are presented in the new capital assets framework to demonstrate how rural households may use various components to control land degradation. To enable agrodiversity to be implemented practically, it has been codified into core elements of: biophysical diversity, the diversity of the natural environment that controls the resource base for food production; management diversity that embraces the practices (many of them indigenous) of farmers such as live hedges, soil amendments and ridge tillage techniques; agro-biodiversity which is the diversity of crop, plant and animal combinations; and organisational diversity, the way that farms are owned and operated, and the way that capital assets are allocated. Each element is then systematically related to show how agrodiversity controls land degradation and how it promotes food security. The example of the maize-Mucuna system in South America is cited as an evident demonstration of the value of agrodiversity to both soil conservation and to smallholder farmers’ livelihoods.

Assessing the Impact of Different Land Use Activities on the Vegetation Cover and Sustainable Livelihoods along the Banks of Niles at Khartoum State, Sudan

Land use activities (LUA) have a significant impact on the level and situation of vegetation characteristics and in turn affect human population as they are considered as the main global environmental changes. This study analyzed land use patterns in three different locations in Khartoum, Sudan: banks of River Nile, Blue and White Nile. The main objective of the present study were 1) to assess the changes in land use and their impact on vegetation cover and sustainable livelihoods of the population, and 2) to identify the factors behind land use changes along the Banks of Niles, Khartoum State. The study data used were field survey (questionnaire) which revealed the existence of five types of land use patterns: roads, human settlements, agricultural and plantations farms, and industrial of brick-kilns making and investment areas. The primary data were collected through social survey (questionnaire) as face-to-face interviews with local communities in the study area and by observations. The secondary records during the field survey were collected from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and the Forest National Corporation (FNC) documents, scientific papers and annual reports. SPSS was used to analyze the data acquired from questionnaires. Results showed that agricultural land, and industrial and residential areas increased while forests and bare lands decreased as a result of changes imposed by the government and local population with consequent land degradation in terms of environmental value and productivity. Interestingly, it was found that the impact of land use on vegetation cover and livelihood of the population was very complex and dynamic and that the main influencing factors in this process were climate fluctuations and human illegal interference. For instance, vast areas in west bank of White Nile were changed from agriculture to residence and investment. In conclusion, land use requires a clear plan for optimum utilization. Various human activities are behind these changes, which have led to deterioration of forest cover and loss of the source of income of local population. Because of such alarming changes, decision makers should initiate efficient plans and management of forests to minimize changes in land cover, especially in arid and semi-arid areas. We recommend that a sound land use plan should be revised often to ensure rehabilitation, reduce vulnerability to desertification and halt the encroachment by construction of facilities and buildings at the expense of environmental issues.

Empowering Women on the Chars： Increasing Resilience to Disasters and Building Sustainable Livelihoods

The Chars Livelihoods Programme （CLP）＇s response has been to provide a comprehensive package of support, which aims to increase resilience to disasters and build women＇s empowerment. In 2012, CLP developed an innovative approach to monitor women＇s empowerment. Understanding that empowerment is context specific, therefore CLP used qualitative approaches to understand how char households define empowerment. From this research, CLP developed a set of 10 （community and household level） indicators, which made up the chars empowerment scorecard. Results show that CLP has a considerable impact on women＇s empowennent. They also show that CLP has impacts at both the household and community level, driven by two main factors： increased knowledge （through social development training） and increased wealth （through CLP＇s Asset Transfer Project）. Further, impacts on empowerment are seen to occur relatively quickly and sustain over time. The effects of climate change are only likely to further compound problems for char-dwellers. By increasing women＇s empowerment, CLP is confident that they will be better able to build sustainable livelihoods and increase their resilience to future disasters.

Sustainable livelihoods in a Coptis-planting based rural community:a case study in Shizhu County,China

Coptis chinensis is a medicinal herb used in traditional Chinese medicine.This research features a case study in Shizhu County,China.Participatory Rural Appraisal(PRA) is used as the main tool for data collection.The study demonstrates that the current method of Coptis planting leads to forest destruction.Even with reforestation measures,it leads to the loss of biodiversity in the forest.It also shows that farmers cannot get satisfactory economic returns from Coptis planting,as the return is unstable and unpredictable.One alternative to the current Coptis planting mode is to incorporate it into the agroforestry system.Water shield planting also serves as a good alternative to Coptis planting itself.Improved methods of management,post-harvest processing,and marketing of Coptis are also proposed and analyzed.The intended contribution of this paper to the theoretical debate of sustainability shall be the provision of an example showing how agricultural production affects forest conservation.It also presents redressable measures to the negative consequences.Besides,one alternative livelihood pathway for the rural community in this case study is suggested.

Impact of Land Acquisition on the Sustainable Livelihoods in Ninh Thuan Province, Vietnam

The concept of sustainable livelihood is an attempt to go beyond the conventional definitions and approaches to poverty eradication. These had been found to be too narrow because they focused only on certain aspects or manifestations of poverty, such as low income, or did not consider other vital aspects of poverty such as vulnerability and social exclusion. It is now recognized that more attention must be paid to the various factors and processes which either constrain or enhance poor people＇s ability to make a living in an economically, ecologically, and socially sustainable manner. Construction of nuclear power plants in Vietnam is in the first step of implementing and will be allocated in Thuan Nam and Ninh Hai districts, Ninh Thuan province, an agricultural and poor province in Vietnam. This requires a large area of land mobilized, thus a part of popupation living in the project area has to move far away. Besides the positive effects of this project, there are significantly negative impacts on the people living in the project areas and nearby, and their livelihoods are seriously affected. This paper aims at assessing the impact of the nuclear power plants construction on the livelihoods of people in two districts in Ninh Thuan province, in order to have mechanisms and policies to support reasonably and effectively, contributing to stabilize people＇s lives and local development.

小农户联结新型农业经营主体的实践逻辑

基于可持续生计理论,从联结导向和治理机制两个维度出发,构建不同联结导向及其差异化治理机制的分析框架,探究小农户联结新型农业经营主体的实践逻辑。研究揭示了4种不同的联结类型及其治理机制:类型A(能力导向型联结-市场治理机制)强调市场机制在提升小农户生计能力中的作用;类型B(能力导向型联结-行政治理机制)通过政策扶持和环境优化提升小农户生计能力;类型C(权利导向型联结-市场治理机制)侧重于市场化方式激活农地“三权分置”改革红利,保障小农户生计权利;类型D(权利导向型联结-行政治理机制)则采用行政主导方式强化小农户生计权利保障。同时,小农户联结新型农业经营主体应以巩固拓展农地“三权分置”改革成效为契机,发挥“有效市场”和“有为政府”在联结过程中的作用,优化合作经营与可持续生计的协同制度体系。但是,小农户联结新型农业经营主体过程中,必须有效防范因生计能力不足和生计权利缺失导致的经营效能低下及其衍生风险。

数字金融对农户可持续生计的影响

提升农户可持续生计能力是全面推进乡村振兴战略的关键,这一过程离不开金融的支持。基于可持续生计分析框架构建农户可持续生计评价指标体系,并利用中国家庭金融调查数据,检验数字金融改善农户可持续生计的实现机制与空间溢出效应。研究发现:数字金融可以显著改善农户可持续生计,主要通过提高信贷可得性、增强信息关注度、改善收入分配机制实现,且对风险偏好型、高收入、高生计水平、高生计多样性及高劳动力质量农户可持续生计的改善作用更为显著。此外,数字金融对农户可持续生计的改善作用具有显著的空间溢出效应。应从“供给”和“需求”两方面加大对低收入群体的数字金融服务力度,促进地区间数字金融合作联动发展,差异化促进不同类型农户使用数字金融以实现可持续生计。

乡村文化振兴视角下脱贫户可持续生计能力提升路径探析

乡村振兴面临着满足人民日益增长的美好生活需要的新挑战,同时也肩负着确保不发生规模性返贫的底线任务。乡村振兴战略实施以来,脱贫群众精神风貌有了很大改观,生活水平显著提升。但目前一些农户仍面临生计脆弱、内生动力不足等问题,需要注重提升其自主、自助、自为的可持续生计能力。文化振兴是乡村振兴的精神内核,也是提升脱贫户可持续生计能力的有效途径。从乡村文化振兴的视角看,提升农户自身抗逆能力和发展能力,一要激发其内生发展动力,为可持续生计提供动力源泉;二要提升其科学文化素质,为可持续生计提供智力源泉;三要加大乡村文化的供给力度,为可持续性生计提供政策保障。

乡村振兴背景下重大水电工程移民可持续生计评价研究——基于南水北调丹江口河南库区的实证调研

“乡村振兴战略”一经提出,就因其在我国全面建设社会主义现代化国家进程中占据的重要地位受到广泛关注。乡村振兴战略的总体目标要求与重大水电工程移民后期的发展目标在改善人民生活方面具有高度的一致性,为重大水电工程移民发展带来新机遇。本文基于乡村振兴战略的目标要求,根据英国国际发展署的可持续生计分析框架,选取物质基础、生活环境和社会适应性3个维度,构建了重大水电工程移民可持续生计评价指标体系,并基于复合模糊物元与层次分析法,建立了重大水电工程移民可持续生计综合评估数学模型,最后选取南水北调丹江口河南库区移民进行实证分析。结果表明:南水北调丹江口河南库区移民总体生计情况的调查现值与生计维持目标、可持续生计目标分别相差0.0085、0.1725,说明南水北调丹江口河南库区移民的生活状况总体上已经达到了可持续生活的标准,但是离可持续生活目标还有一段距离,这主要是由于经济基础与社会适应能力所造成的。因此,移民管理机构应该努力调整产业结构、增加移民收入,帮助移民尽快融入当地社会,促进移民生计尽快实现可持续发展。

可持续生计视角下水库移民后期帮扶效果评估研究

基于广西岩滩水电移民的调研数据,运用组合赋权法、Topsis模型对由3种能力构成的可持续生计进行量化,并采用方差分析探讨后期帮扶及其具体措施对移民户整体和3种类型移民户可持续生计的影响,以此来评价帮扶效果。结果表明:移民户可持续生计整体处于中等偏下的水平,且非贫困户、一般脱贫户和低保脱贫户可持续生计水平依次降低;综合帮扶对整体移民户可持续生计的提升显著,具体措施是否参与对不同移民户可持续生计的作用不同,其中教育培训对3种类型移民户提升可持续生计均显著;参与帮扶措施多寡对非贫困户和低保脱贫户可持续生计的影响显著,但对一般脱贫户影响不显著。拓展了移民后期帮扶效果评估领域的研究方法,可以为精准高效推进移民扶持提供依据。

复杂视角下乡村旅游地农户可持续生计组态影响研究——以成都市幸福村为例

乡村旅游地农户可持续生计是一个多元因素共同作用的复杂系统,其组态影响研究对于转变当前研究的简单线性思维、深化推动农户生计可持续发展和全面推进乡村振兴具有重要意义。文章基于社会-生态系统理论构建组态影响理论模型,以成都市典型乡村旅游地幸福村的农户为案例,应用模糊集定性比较分析法探究复杂视角下乡村旅游地农户可持续生计组态影响,以揭示农户可持续生计发展背后更为深刻的效应机理。研究发现:1)乡村旅游地农户可持续生计受经济、社会、生态等外因与内因的组态影响,单一因素难以构成影响乡村旅游地农户可持续生计的必要条件,内生动力、旅游产业、土地利用、政策制度、社区治理和自然环境是组态路径中的6大核心影响因素;2)乡村旅游地农户可持续生计组态路径包括4类正向驱动路径和3类负向抑制路径,同向组态路径彼此等价且条件之间具有互补和替代关系,异向组态路径间具有因果关系的非对称性;3)乡村旅游地农户可持续生计多重并发路径的形成受旅游区位和主客观条件的影响。最后基于研究发现提出管理启示,旨在为乡村旅游地农户可持续生计影响机制研究提供复杂组态思路和借鉴。

易地搬迁后续扶持政策效果评价与影响因素--基于西部10省1297户的实地调查数据

易地搬迁后续扶持工作既是助力搬迁群众稳定增收、加速社会融合、化解致贫返贫风险的关键,更是巩固拓展脱贫攻坚成果同乡村振兴有效衔接、推进实现共同富裕的核心要义。基于西部10省1297户农户的微观调查数据,采用主成分分析法和工具变量分位数回归模型,综合评估后续扶持政策成效并进行区域优先序评价,进而剖析后续扶持政策效果的影响因素,并立足情景化的个体生存状态,从多维视角探寻政策实施效果的异质性及其成因。研究发现:第一,后续扶持政策效益存在显著地区差异,大致呈现“西北高西南低”的空间分布特征;第二,非农生计、社会资本和内生动力是政策效果得以跃升的关键;第三,进一步讨论得知,农户收入层级与政策效益呈正相关关系,且安置区类型、社会资本差异和性别差异均会影响后续扶持政策效益的稳定性。为此,各地后续扶持工作应完善升级安置区配套基础和公共服务设施;多管齐下加快发展主导产业,加快推进群众经济社会融入步伐;激活群众自我发展内生动力;出台和优化差异化的后续扶持政策,增加搬迁群众的主观福利。

桂滇黔民族地区乡村旅游促进留守妇女可持续生计演进与影响因素研究

随着桂滇黔民族地区乡村旅游的蓬勃发展,受其影响,当地留守妇女重构了该地区土地资源、劳动供给、劳动技能技术和资本等生产要素配置,进而促进了桂滇黔民族地区留守妇女生计的转型。文章通过分析桂滇黔民族地区旅游发展的不同阶段特点,剖析了该地区留守妇女生计演进的过程,可划分为农业主导型生计模式、混合兼业型生计模式和旅游主导型生计模式等3个阶段。结合旅游可持续生计分析研究框架,桂滇黔民族地区留守妇女可持续生计由外在因素和内在因素共同作用。桂滇黔民族地区留守妇女获得经济收入、提升技能和增强社会参与度,有助于文化传承和家庭关系的改善,提升了桂滇黔民族地区留守妇女可持续生计潜力。梳理桂滇黔民族地区乡村旅游对留守妇女生计演变过程与影响因素,不仅有助于深化对生计转型机制的理解、丰富乡村经济与社会发展理论和促进性别与发展研究的深化,还能为政策制定提供理论借鉴和参考。

城乡二元差异视角下横断山区县域尺度居民生计水平测度

城市化导致城乡居民生计差异凸显,区域尺度的居民生计研究需充分考虑该差异。采用可持续生计方法(SLA),基于县域尺度建立城乡差异化的居民生计测度体系,引入城乡差异因子测度了横断山区县域的居民生计水平。结果表明:(1)引入城乡差异因子能一定程度消除居民生计水平测度研究中城镇居民生计优势对区域整体生计水平的放大作用;(2)2000—2015年横断山区城乡二元性结构特征显著,期间城乡居民生计关键驱动因子差异明显,乡村居民生计发展逐步由自然资本驱动转变为物质资本驱动,城镇规模超过产业发展状况成为影响城镇居民生计发展的关键影响因子,城乡统筹来看,投资规模和信息获取能力开始愈发的显现其对于居民生计发展的积极作用;(3)横断山区县域居民生计水平总体偏低,发展动能总体不足,两极化发展趋势日益明显;(4)区域居民生计水平总体呈南高北低的空间分布格局,同海拔、坡度呈显著的负相关关系,区域内越是生计脆弱的县域,其居民生计发展越易受到自然环境的制约,同时县域居民生计水平同区域劳动力数量、经济规模显著正相关,劳动力充足、经济发展水平较高的县域其居民生计对自然环境扰动具有更强的韧性。总体来看引入城乡差异因子的可持续生计方法能较好的适用于区域尺度的居民生计水平测度研究,能一定程度消除城乡二元结构差异对居民生计整体水平产生的影响。

农民个体资本、数字技术使用与生计韧性

在脱贫攻坚战取得胜利、全面建成小康社会后,当国家外援式帮扶政策优化调整时,如何使脱贫户实现内生性可持续发展是巩固脱贫攻坚成果并全面推进乡村振兴的重点。从生计韧性角度切入,采用陕西省518份农民调查数据,建立结构方程模型,探究农民个体资本、数字技术使用及生计韧性之间的影响关系。结果表明,农民个体资本是提升其生计韧性的基础;同时,数字技术使用从缓冲能力、学习能力和自组织能力三个维度提升了生计韧性,且在农民个体资本对生计韧性的影响过程中起到部分中介效应。为此,增强农民生计韧性应遵循在个体层面提升农民个体资本、在社会支持层面加强数字技术嵌入与赋能的思路,推动实现农民内生性可持续发展。

基于SLA分析框架的西藏农户生计资本分析——以尼洋河流域为例

基于英国国际发展机构(DFID)建立的可持续生计分析框架(SLA)建立尼洋河流域农户生计资本指标体系,根据对农户生计资本的调查数据,进行指标赋值和归一化计算,旨在分析比较尼洋河流域农户生计资本状况。研究结果发现,尼洋河流域农户生计资本既存在结构差异又存在区域差异。从结构差异看,农户物质资本指数高于其他生计资本指数;从区域差异看,林芝县农户生计资本指数高于工布江达县农户生计资本指数。研究结果说明,在生态安全屏障建设框架下物质资本优势为尼洋河流域农户(尤其是林芝县农户)由传统生计向现代生计转型提供了物质条件。