Heterogeneity in agricultural households and transition paths in southern Tibet

Smallholder livelihoods in agricultural areas in Tibet Autonomous Region,China(Tibet for short)have traditionally been based on subsistence mixed crop-livestock systems.Like many parts of China and the developing world,rural Tibet is undergoing rapid change in agricultural development,boosted by links with the off-farm sector.However,the agricultural transition process in Tibet has not been linear,is affected by policies particular to the region,and varies significantly for different categories of rural actors.This paper analyses heterogeneity of household types in agricultural areas of southern Tibet and how household structures and characteristics result in different agricultural development pathways.Data is drawn from a stratified random survey of 144 households in three townships in southern Tibet and analysed through three methods:cluster analysis,bio-economic modelling,and analysis of household perceptions and attitudes to change.The analysis allows for the identification of three key household types-semisubsistence,pluriactive and semi-commercial-organised along a continuum of intensification,commercialisation,specialisation and productivity.The study demonstrates the diversity of household farming systems in Tibet which in turn highlights the need for disaggregated analysis and tailored development policies and strategies.However,the analysis also reveals commonalities in development paths between groups,where all farm types are more interested in pursuing income and livelihood goals through an increase in productivity than through an increase in scale.Farmers in all systems choose to retain agriculture as a base from which to pursue livelihood strategies,especially through off-farm activities.Accounting for this household heterogeneity is important on several levels.First,it provides more granular detail on the process of development in rural areas of Tibet that have been very difficult to access in English literature especially in recent years.Second,the characteristics of the case study in agricultural areas of Tibet-especially the mixed agricultural-pastoral systems,high levels of seasonality,heavy state investment and increased integration with the other regions of China-may contribute to the broader agricultural development study.Third,policymakers in the central and local governments may be interested in how the household heterogeneity may affect-or be affected by-policies to increase agricultural productivity,intensify systems,change the composition of crop-livestock systems,promote rural-urban transformation and pursue environmental objectives,especially grassland degradation.

China's Agricultural Development: Structural Contradictions and Policy Transition

The primary contradiction facing China's agricultural development has shifted from the previous undersupply to structural contradictions. This paper dissects these structural contradictions in terms of sectoral structure, product structure, organizational structure, technical structure, trade structure and spatial structure. Since reform and opening-up in 1978, China has followed a growth-oriented agricultural policy to ensure steady yield increase. Indeed, this policy has effectively increased the output of agricultural produce, safeguarded national food security, and enhanced agricultural production capabilities. However, China's agriculture is yet to become internationally competitive, increase efficiency and farmers' income, and improve the quality and safety of agricultural produce. As China's agricultural development enters into a new stage of comprehensive transition and upgrade, it is essential for China's agricultural policy to shift from the progrowth policy characterized by the dependence on chemical fertilizers and pesticides to an efficiency and quality-oriented policy that pursues green agriculture.

Influences of large-scale farming on carbon emissions from cropping:Evidence from China

Reducing agricultural carbon emissions is important to enable carbon emission peaking by 2030 in China.However,China's transformation towards large-scale farming brings uncertainties to carbon emission reduction.This study quantifies the carbon emissions from cropping based on life cycle assessment and estimates the effects of farm size on carbon emissions using a fixed effects model.Furthermore,the variations of the carbon emissions from cropping driven by the changes in farm size in future years are projected through scenario analysis.Results demonstrate an inverted U-shaped change in total carbon emission from cropping as farm size increases,which is dominated by the changes in the carbon emission from fertilizer.Projections illustrate that large-scale farming transformation will postpone the peak year of total carbon emission from cropping until 2048 if the change in farm size follows a historical trend,although it is conducive to reducing total carbon emission in the long run.The findings indicate that environmental regulations to reduce fertilizer usages should be strengthened for carbon emission abatement in the early stage of large-scale farming transformation,which are also informative to other developing countries with small farm size.

Analysis of the coupled relationship between grain yields and agricultural labor changes in China

In this paper we establish a model that expresses the coupled relationship between grain yield and agricultural labor changes in China, and present a preliminary discussion of the coupled processes involved in changes in these factors at the county level. Thus, we develop two coefficients on the basis of county-level statistical data for grain yield and agri- cultural labor for the years 1991,2000, and 2010, namely, the grain-labor elasticity coefficient （GLEC） and the agricultural labor-transfer effect coefficient （ALTEC）. The results of this study show that during the transformation process of agricultural development in China, different kinds of coupled relationships between grain yield and agricultural labor changes co-existed at the same time. For example, between 1991 and 2010, counties characterized by three different coupled modes （i.e., increasing grain yield and decreasing agricultural labor, in- creasing grain yield and agricultural labor, and decreasing grain yield and agricultural labor） account for 48.85%, 29.11%, and 19.74% of the total across the study area, respectively. Interestingly, a coupled relationship between increasing grain yield and decreasing agricul- tural labor is mainly concentrated in the traditional farming areas of China, while a coupled relationship between increasing grain yield and agricultural labor is primarily concentrated in pastoral areas and agro-pastoral ecotones in underdeveloped western China. At the same time, a coupled relationship between decreasing grain yield and agricultural labor is concen- trated in areas that have experienced a rapid development transition in agriculture, especially the developed southeastern coast of China. The results of this study also show that between 1991 and 2010, 1961 counties experienced a decline in the proportion of agricultural labor; of these, 1452 are also characterized by increasing grain yield, 72.38% of the total. This coupled relationship between grain yield and changes in the proportion of agricultural labor shows a stepped fluctuation and has continually strengthened over time. Data show that mean values for the GLEC and ALTEC increased from -0.25 and -2.93 between 1991 and 2000 to -0.16and -1.78 between 2000 and 2010, respectively. These changes in GLEC and ALTEC illus- trate that the influence of agricultural labor changes on increasing grain yields has gradually diminished. Finally, the results of this study reveal that the ＇Hu Huanyong Line＇ is a significant boundary sub-dividing this coupled relationship between grain yield and changes in agricul- tural labor.