Effects of Industrial Agriculture and Urbanization on Structure and Functional Organization of Macroinvertebrate of Coastal Streams in Cameroon

The impact of land use changes on watercourses is poorly documented in Cameroon. Therefore, this study examines the effects of agriculture and urbanization on water quality, the structure and functional organization of macroinvertebrates of streams in the coastal zone of Cameroon. Nine sampling stations including three per catchment area with different land occupations (agricultural, urban and forest) were selected. Benthic macroinvertebrates were sampled monthly from February to July 2018 and the physicochemical variables were measured simultaneously. The urban and agricultural streams showed highly polluted waters with high nutrient and suspended matter content, whereas the forest stream waters are moderately polluted. In addition, the hierarchical ascending classification indicated a proximity in water quality between the agricultural and forest streams for which the main physicochemical variables did not vary significantly. With regards to macroinvertebrates, the forest watercourse is characterized by the proliferation of pollution-sensitive taxa, high diversity indices and complex trophic structuring, indicating its good ecological status. In contrast the urban watercourse, heavily polluted is characterized by low diversity indices reflecting a simplification of the structure of stands dominated by the pollution-tolerant collector-gatherer stands. The majority of biological indices and functional feeding groups were not significantly different between the agricultural and forest streams, suggesting a less pronounced impact of agriculture on macroinvertebrates. Our results showed that, riparian vegetation even though constituted of perennial crops, reduces the effects of agricultural inputs on streams and promotes the establishment of diversified macroinvertebrate communities.

Evolution of Living Space in Traditional Villages in the Pearl River Delta under the Influence of Urbanization:A Case Study of Xiaozhou Village in Guangzhou City

Traditional villages in the Pearl River Delta are known as "Lingnan water village".Urbanization affects the style of traditional villages in three ways.It also presents a positive side under the background of new urbanization.The living space of Xiaozhou Village has the unique characteristics of Lingnan water village.At the same time,it is obviously affected by urbanization.Industrialization and commercialization continue to promote the villagers to dismantle the old and build new ones until it becomes a village in the city.The evolution of the traditional living space is reflected in three aspects:being nibbled away or even disappeared,destroying the traditional style,function disappearance or transformation.In the later stage of urbanization,some living spaces have been repaired and updated.

Expansion Strategy of Agricultural Industrial Chain of Suburban Villages and Towns in the Process of Urbanization——A Case Study of Yongle Town in Nanming District of Guiyang City

On the basis of introducing the connotation of agricultural industrial chain, taking Yongle Town in Nanming District of Guiyang City as an example, this paper analyzes the advantages and constraint factors of the suburban villages and towns in the process of expanding agricultural industrial chain in the context of urbanization. Corresponding strategies of expanding the agricultural industrial chain of Yongle Town in the process of urbanization as follows: vigorously develop the leading enterprises; strengthen the construction of farmers' specialized cooperatives and agricultural associations; build and perfect agricultural industrial chain organizations; set up the public information platform; rely on the food industrial park to propel the deep processing of agricultural products; vigorously develop the logistics of agricultural products; promote the development of operation model of "brand+ standard+ scale"; vigorously develop ecology-oriented rural tourism; give full play to the functional role of the government.

Survival and Protection of Traditional Chinese Villages in the Context of Urbanization

The traditional village is the witness of farming civilization,but also the most important carrier of China's excellent traditional culture. However,in the process of high-speed urbanization,more and more traditional villages get gradually depressed and have problems of survival crisis. Fully exploring the value of traditional villages and protecting and activating them have attracted wide attention. This paper firstly introduced definition of traditional villages and analyzed the influence of urbanization on traditional Chinese villages. Then,it came up with recommendations for survival of Traditional Chinese villages in the context of urbanization from establishing the protection mechanism,raising the protection awareness,and strengthening dynamic inheritance,to provide some ideas and methods for protection and upgrade of traditional villages.

Ecological Agriculture in Liuminying Village

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Urbanization and Its Impacts to Food Systems and Environmental Sustainability in Urban Space: Evidence from Urban Agriculture Livelihoods in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Urbanisation is the key factor underpinning and catalysing changes in food systems, environmental quality, climate change and agriculture livelihoods in the overall urban ecosystem setting and its sustainability. The paper explores Dar es Salaam, a rapidly expanding city in Sub-Saharan Africa, and shows that urban agriculture provides urban ecosystem services and contributes to environmental sustainability. The interconnections of environmental justice, urban ecosystem services and climate change and variability found eminent feature that influence land governance, productivity and aesthetic value of the city. The study reaffirms the pivotal role urban agriculture which plays to enhance community health services and access to resources, with important implications on urban environmental sustainability and redistributive spatial land use planning policies and practices. The process of urbanisation, forms of urban agriculture and government strategies for enhanced urban food systems in the city economy have been highlighted. Equally, the process triggers the transformation of settlements from rural in character to modernity with an augmented land use conflicts. The results suggests that with increasing population, a clear spatial land use planning and management strategy is required to overcome the challenges and enhanced food systems and urban environmental sustainability in rapidly urbanizing cities like Dar es Salaam in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Planning,Protection and Construction of Ancient Villages in Jiangxi under the Background of New Urbanization: Taking the Water Management System of Mingkou Village in Leping City,Jiangxi Province as an Example

Urbanization is an inevitable trend of economic development. It is an important indicator that reflects the industrialization and modernization of a country. In the long-term urbanization process in China, due to the excessive emphasis on the status of the city and one-sided emphasis on urban development, a serious of urban diseases such as population congestion and environmental damage have been caused. Meanwhile, neglected rural areas have exposed social problems such as aging and hollowing out, making the urban-rural dual structure more prominent. Currently, China s economic and social development has reached a new stage, and the realization of urban-rural integration is a major measure to comprehensively develop the national economy and social undertakings. Vigorously developing the rural areas and revitalizing the countryside has become a national policy. Traditional ancient villages are treasures in the vast rural areas. They should be more protected and developed to eliminate the urban-rural gap, thereby passing down and carrying forward the essence of traditional culture and enhancing China s national confidence and cultural confidence. Focusing on the protection and planning of ancient villages, combined with the current policy background of new urbanization, based on field research on Mingkou Village, Leping City, Jiangxi Province, protective development strategies are put forward for ancient villages and their water management from the perspective of water management in ancient villages to arouse people s attention to the protection of ancient villages.

A Research to Village Combination and the Analysis of the Influences of Which Having on Social Economy During the Urbanization Process of Yantai City

With the rapid development of urbanization of our country, serious conflicts on land using appear. Village combination in rural areas is an important way to increase cultivated land, promote the development of urbanization and effectively solve conflicts on land using, which plays an significant role in solving agriculture problems, countryside problems and peasant problems, assuring foods safety and constructing social new countryside. Taking Yantai City as example, the paper firstly makes analyses on the necessaries and the feasibility of village combination. And then based on the mode GM (1,1) of grey theory, the paper forecasts the urbanization ratio, the proportion of urban and rural areas to the whole population and finally programs the rational scale of central villages and towns of Yantai City. At last, the paper conducts a detailed analysis on the social economic influence of village combination of Yantai City, pointing out that village combination affords carriers to farmers citizenization and it is beneficial to explore the new mode of rural urbanization, which is the engine of economic development in China.

Development of Urban Agriculture:A Case Study of Qianjin Village,Jiangxia District,Wuhan City

We take the case of Qianjin Village,Jiangxia District,Wuhan City,to research how to establish the system of urban agriculture with distinctive features relying on the advantage of urban resources.Under the guidance of guiding ideology,basic principles and overall objectives of urban agriculture development planning,we analyze the specific construction planning of urban agriculture in Qianjin Village,mainly including the construction of growing areas and construction of leisure areas.Then we put forth the security system of development of urban agriculture as follows: land transfer is the prerequisite of development of urban agriculture;policy support is the important foundation of development of urban agriculture; agricultural science and technology is strong support for development of urban agriculture;good leadership is the organizational guarantee for development of urban agriculture;the industrialization of agriculture is the main objective of development of urban agriculture.

Planetary health risks in urban agriculture

Urban agriculture is gaining recognition for its potential contributions to environmental resilience and climate change adaptation,providing advantages such as urban greening,reduced heat island effects,and decreased air pollution.Moreover,it indirectly supports communities during weather events and natural disasters,ensuring food security and fostering community cohesion.However,concerns about planetary health risks persist in highly urbanized and climate-affected areas.Employing electronic databases such as Web of Science and PubMed and adhering to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines,we identified 55 relevant papers to comprehend the planetary health risks associated with urban agriculture,The literature review identified five distinct health risks related to urban agriculture:(1)trace metal risks in urban farms;(2)health risks associated with wastewater irrigation;(3)zoonotic risks;(4)other health risks;and(5)social and economic risks.The study highlights that urban agriculture,while emphasizing environmental benefits,particularly raises concerns about trace metal bioaccumulation in soil and vegetables,posing health risks for populations.Other well studied risks included wastewater irrigation and backyard livestock farming.The main limitations in the available literature were in studying infectious diseases and antibiotic resistance associated with urban agriculture.

SUSTAINABLE URBAN-RURAL RELATION IN RAPID URBANIZATION AREAS——Case of Transformation of "Urban Village" in Guangzhou

Many studies have been made concerning the problems, characteristics, formation, transformation measures, etc. of urban village from sociology, urban planning and geography, etc., which have made insightful analysis. However, most of these studies started mainly from the standpoint of the city government, drumming for the landscape-oriented urbanization, namely pulling-down the urban village and constructing the splendid residence or business buildings. The article maintains that the most important thing the city government should do is to pay much attention to the sustainable living of urban villagers, who would lose their main income source, namely, the collective dividend and the family housing rent. The single method of compensation has been proved to be harmful to the villagers’ community, in which some young villagers relying on rent were no longer to do anything but stay at home. On the other hand, considering the floating population has become the main stream of renters in urban villages, the emergence of urban villages was inevitable and would continue to exist in a long time under the socio-economic transition in urban China and globalization. Based on the analysis above, the transformation of urban village should take more concerns on the housing demands of floating population besides compensation for local villagers. Meanwhile, it is necessary to avoid the "landscape-oriented urbanization" without the "peasant-to-citizen" transformation.

From Villages to Urban Neighborhoods:Urbanization and Health

With rapid urbanization,millions of rural villagers have become urban citizens in China.This paper estimates the effect of the in situ urbanization policy on an individual's health by employing the difference-in-differences framework and using panel survey data from the China Family Panel Studies.Our findings show that this program,unlike other kinds of urbanization,which have had negative impacts on mental health or made people smoke or drink more,increased people's self-reported health status significantly.Further mechanism analysis reveals that the in situ urbanization policy afected health by increasing people's confidence in the future,their satisfaction with their current lives,and their medical insurance enrollment.This study highlights the importance of"the city comes to villagers"urbanization in China,and it can play an essential role in advancing the urbanization rate and avoiding the negative impacts of urbanization on health.

Review on the Impact of Climate Change on Great Lakes Region’s Agriculture and Water Resources

This study investigates the multifaceted impacts of climate change on the Midwest region of the United States, particularly the rising temperatures and precipitation brought about by hot weather activities and technological advances since the 19th century. From 1900 to 2010, temperatures in the Midwest rose by an average of 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit, which would also lead to an increase in greenhouse gas emissions. Precipitation is also expected to increase due to increased storm activity and changes in regional weather patterns. This paper explores the impact of these changes on urban and agricultural areas. In urban areas such as the city of Chicago, runoff from the increasing impervious surface areas poses challenges to the drainage system, and agriculture areas are challenged by soil erosion, nutrient loss, and fewer planting days due to excessive rainfall. Sustainable solutions such as no-till agriculture and the creation of grassland zones are discussed. Using historical data, recent climate studies and projections, the paper Outlines ways to enhance the Midwest’s ecology and resilience to climate change.

The effects of Taobao villages' spatiotemporal agglomeration on urbanization:A case study of Quanzhou,Fujian

The agglomeration of the rural e-commerce industry represented by Taobao villages has reshaped the existing urban and rural spatial organization and proposed a new urbanization model.This study identified the spatiotemporal characteristics of Taobao villages in Quanzhou city and built panel regression models to examine the impact of these villages on urbanization level,which is measured via nighttime light(NTL).The results show that(1)while the number of Taobao villages in Quanzhou city has increased rapidly,it has also experienced sporadic growth and monocentric agglomeration,finally forming a polycentric agglomeration pattern;(2) Taobao villages display a significant near-city tendency,and the urbanization level of towns with Taobao villages is higher than that of towns without Taobao villages;(3) the panel regression model highlights that Taobao villages have a significant positive impact on urbanization level.Taobao villages near the city exhibit a greater effect;meanwhile,those that are far away from the city cannot improve their urbanization level unless they reach a considerable degree of agglomeration.Rural e-commerce will become an important direction for the transformation of urban fringe areas,which provides a certain reference for the development of new urbanization in China.

Controlled Environment Agriculture and Its Ability to Mitigate Food Insecurity

The research objective of this review is to discuss the rationale that led to the development of Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) and investigate this agricultural approach as a potential solution to mitigate the increased pressures on food security. It describes the need for urban cultivation systems using controlled environments and how they can be harnessed to address pressures facing food security. The factors that have contributed to the growth of CEAs, education, environmental justice, and the advantages and disadvantages of growing crops in CEAs in urban areas will be discussed. The article reviews global urban cultivation systems using controlled environments, by identifying the technologies needed to establish them. The practice of CEA is being increasingly adopted worldwide and we describe urban agriculture and compare it with traditional growing systems. Indoor farming systems that integrate into existing urban infrastructure such as vertical farming and plant factories using CEAs are discussed. Indoor farming gives urban areas enhanced access to food sources, but the cost is high, however decreasing due to recent technological advances. The current review extends the literature by incorporating recent research on the topic of agriculture in urban areas and food security. This review seeks to provide additional information regarding the viability of CEA in urban areas.

Between food fulfillment and income:Can urban agriculture contribute to both?

Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO)is appealing for a global implementation of urban agricultural strate-gies to increase food availability.Bandung,a city in Indonesia,is already participating in this initiative.This research aimed to assess the contribution of urban agriculture toward household food fulfillment and income.Furthermore,the impacts on urban,subsistence,semi-commercial,and commercial agriculture were considered.In-depth interviews to obtain qualitative data and observations were also utilized.A survey of 321 households,consisting of 107 for each urban agricultural type,used questionnaires to obtain quantitative data.These inputs were further analyzed to determine the contribution of household food fulfillment and income.The results showed that average urban agriculture has an insignificant and significant contribution of 9%and 41.5%to household food fulfillment and income.This was due to the vast complexities of metropolitan problems,including limited access to land,lack of participation,dependence on on-market products,and increasing commercialization which opposed urban agricultural policies。

Spatiotemporal Differences and Classification Regulation of Urbanization Impact on Agricultural Development in Shrinking Areas:A Case Study of 15 Shrinking Cities in Three Provinces of Northeast China

Studying the impact of urbanization on agricultural development in shrinking areas is important for maintaining food security and promoted agricultural development in China.Based on the measurement results of the shrinking cities in the three provinces of Northeast China,this paper selects 15 shrinking cities as the research object,and constructs a multi-dimensional index system to explore the impact of the urbanization level of the shrinking areas on the agricultural development in the region since 2007–2019,analyzes the influencing factors and their differences by using the geographically-weighted regression model and Geodetector,and proposes a targeted regulation strategy.The results show that:1)overall,there is a negative correlation between the urbanization level and the agricultural development level in the contracted areas of the three northeastern provinces.The urbanization level in these areas has a certain negative impact on the overall level of agricultural development;2)regarding the time dimension,the impact of urbanization level on the agricultural development level in the contracted areas of the three northeastern provinces gradually increases over time;3)regarding the spatial pattern,the overall impact of shrinking urbanization levels in the three provinces of Northeast China on the agricultural development shows a significant distribution pattern of high in the east and low in the west;4)the total population and natural population growth rate at the end of the year were the main factors influencing a certain level of urbanization on agricultural development in the shrinking cities while population density and the urban fixed asset investment rate were the secondary factors;and 5)the main reasons why the level of agricultural development in different cities was affected by the level of urbanization were different.However,they can be categorized into areas of population loss and spatial construction,which can be further divided into area of population loss in the northeast,areas of negative population growth in the west,and areas of urban spatial change in the south.According to the causes of the impact,this paper adopted targeted regulation strategies and formulated relevant policies and solutions that cater to local conditions.

A new approach towards the sustainability of urban-rural integration:The development strategy for central villages in the Abbasiya District of Iraq using GIS techniques

The development of rural areas usually has a positive impact on the urban-rural integration. This study explores an innovative approach to stimulate rural development by proposing qualified villages as central villages that can provide basic urban services for their residents and residents of neighboring villages. This approach can contribute to overcoming the various problems that rural areas faced at the social, economic, and environmental levels. It seeks to achieve spatial sustainability of rural areas, representing a new approach by integrating urban development methods to revitalize rural villages. The study analyzed 15 villages belonging to Abbasiya District of AL Kufa City in the Najaf Governorate of Iraq. Based on the GIS techniques and the analysis of urban service indicators(village population, percentage of urban building materials used in villages, distance between village and health centers, distance between village and main roads, nature of economic activity, distance between village and educational institutions, distance between village and drinking water sources, number of communication towers, and distance between village and urban administrative center), this study proposed that Abu Gharb and Albu Ghraib can served as central villages in Abbasiya District in the future. This study establishes a new rural spatial structure to achieve rural sustainable development, improves the development status of rural areas, and provides a theoretical basis for the government and relevant institutions to use urban service indicators, achieving rural sustainable development and formulating relevant development policies in Abbasiya District.

Drivers of Innovative Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture in Bamenda City, Cameroon

Urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) is gaining increasing importance in developing countries, due to rapid urbanization and rising rural-to-urban migration which has led to an increase in the population of the urban poor in Cameroon. It has been estimated that at least 70% of the total population of Cameroon will be living in urban areas by 2060. Urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) has become an important source of livelihood and survival, especially amongst the urban poor but is not adequately recognized and supported by the government of Cameroon and organizations. Recent innovations in UPA have created new opportunities for social, economic, and environmental sustainability of urban areas, hence possible policy formulation in UPA. Therefore, this study was conducted with the main objective of determining the drivers of innovative urban and peri-urban agriculture in Bamenda City, Cameroon. Methodologically, the study employed probit model, using primary data collected from a sample of 402 UPA farmers through the cluster, simple random, and snowball sampling techniques. The results revealed that access to extension services is a major driver of innovative UPA in Bamenda City and is statistically significant at 1%. Other factors such as employment status (full time), age group (26 to 50 years), and gender, were also seen to have a significant positive influence on innovative UPA while the level of education (secondary) had a negative influence on innovative UPA and was statistically significant at 5%. Limited capital, limited knowledge, and financial constraints were identified as the major challenges hindering the practice of innovative urban and peri-urban agriculture in Bamenda City. The study recommends that the government and non-governmental organizations should increase the quality and quantity of extension service delivery to urban and peri-urban farmers, and more recognition and support should be offered to them to help overcome the challenges faced.