Rural tourism serves as a vital instrument for China's rural revitalization, playing a significant role in diversifying rural economies, promoting urban-rural integration, and achieving sustainable development. Based on the ‘institutional-cultural' coupling perspective and utilizing the CiteSpace bibliometric tool, this study systematically reviewed the literatures on rural tourism development in China from the CNKI and Web of Science (WoS) core databases (2000—2024). It comparatively analyzed the differences and commonalities in research stages, hot topic, and methodologies between domestic (Chinese) and international (English) contexts. The findings reveal that: 1) Research in both Chinese and English contexts shows rising popularity, yet with distinct stage characteristics. Domestic studies are policy-driven, forming a practice-oriented framework around rural revitalization, cultural-tourism integration, and common prosperity; international studies focus more on micro-level issues like sustainability, community empowerment, and rural gentrification, reflecting critical perspectives. 2) The dynamic interplay between institutions and culture constitutes the core logic of rural tourism development. Domestic research emphasizes the enabling role of policy rigidity in cultural capitalization, while international research examines the contest between cultural authenticity and institutional power under globalization. 3) There are significant methodological divergences: Domestic studies prioritize policy validation and quantitative analysis centered on industrial development, whereas international studies predominantly employ qualitative deconstruction, centering on communities and individuals. Key implications suggest that future research should deepen exploration in three critical dimensions: theoretical integration and framework innovation, methodological innovation, and thematic refinement and expansion. Particularly, there is a need for cross-disciplinary approaches that bridge the gap between policy implementation and community-based sustainable development models. Additionally, longitudinal studies tracking the socio-economic impacts of rural tourism could provide valuable insights for both academic and practical purposes.

This article investigates the inherent tensions between technology and institutional frameworks in smart city development across the Global South, advocating for a departure from Western-centric paradigms to construct a theoretically robust, locally adaptive, and critically reflective analytical framework. The study identifies two defining characteristics of Southern smart city practices: “technological catch-up”, driven by the imperative to bridge digital divides, enhance urban competitiveness, and respond to rapid demographic change, and “post-colonial critique”, which exposes how historical legacies of colonialism continue to shape contemporary technological adoption and governance structures in subtle yet enduring ways. Theoretical innovation is framed around integrating concepts such as spatial justice—addressing unequal distribution of digital resources across urban spaces—and digital sovereignty—safeguarding Southern nations’ control over data, technological autonomy, and regulatory authority—to redefine the dialectical relationship between technology and society. The research highlights the symbiotic interplay between informal economies (e.g., self-organized community networks, grassroots digital initiatives) and digital technologies, which challenges technological determinism and reveals a resilient development logic rooted in local adaptability and everyday practices. These insights deconstruct the linear narrative of technological progress, proving that Southern countries can balance efficiency with equity while pursuing differentiated urban modernities. By prioritizing context-specific innovations and inclusive governance, the Global South is reshaping the global knowledge production landscape, shifting from a passive “technology testing ground” to an active contributor of alternative urban theories and normative agendas. The study concludes by emphasizing the transformative potential of such frameworks to democratize technology, redirect smart cities toward social equity, and empower Southern nations to reclaim agency in global technological discourse. Through China’s practice of scale-sensitive smart cities and tripartite governance models, the research exemplifies how Southern-led innovations can challenge neoliberal techno-utopianism, alter dominant policy imaginaries, and foster pluralistic urban futures that reflect diverse socio-spatial aspirations.

At present, resilience research is a hot area of sustainability science research, and livelihood resilience analysis is an effective analytical tool to solve the impact of regional or individual household livelihoods. Based on the systematic review of the research literature on livelihood resilience at home and abroad, this study combs the concept connotation, analysis framework and evaluation method of livelihood resilience. The study found that: 1) Livelihood resilience is a key support for people and their initiative to resist disturbances and achieve recovery and sustainable development when dealing with the impact of livelihood systems. Its conceptual connotation can be divided based on 4 perspectives: process, capability, strategy and transformation. 2) The theme of livelihood resilience research presents a ‘progressive’ development, from external climate change to the awareness of natural disaster response, and then to human disturbance factors and emphasizing human subjective initiative; the scale shows a global and multi-scale trend, and the construction of the index system of research content tends to be more subjective and objective. However, there are still limitations such as conceptual generalization, ignoring the transformation of livelihood strategies and long-term changes in livelihoods. 3) According to the dominant interference factors and the evolution of research topics, the analytical framework and evaluation models in the field of livelihood resilience research can be divided into 3 types: ‘climate change type’ ‘natural disaster type’ and ‘human disturbance type’. Climate change type livelihood resilience connects climate adaptation and livelihood security, and serves long-term climate adaptation policies; quantitative assessment of emergency response and short-term recovery capability of natural disaster-type focus on sudden disasters; the human disturbance type focuses on the interaction between human initiative and social structure, and the subdivision dimensions such as resource utilization and knowledge learning are more suitable for the social and economic scene. In the future, we should gradually build a systematic category-based livelihood resilience analysis framework, strengthen the comparative analysis of research objects and multi-case application research, pay attention to the multi-scale trade-off and spatio-temporal dynamics of livelihood resilience assessment, and explore the long-term dynamic characteristics of livelihood and livelihood strategies.

The Qijia Culture, which flourished from the late Neolithic to the early Bronze Age in the Gansu-Qinghai Region, represents one of the earliest archaeological cultures in China influenced by trans-Eurasian cultural exchanges. However, research into the formation and development of the Qijia Culture has been limited due to the lack of systematic synthesis and critical evaluation of published radiocarbon dating data. This paper compiles and organizes radiocarbon data from 137 samples of 37 archaeological sites associated with the Qijia Culture in northwestern China in the literature. To enhance chronological precision, we selected 71 reliable dates short-lived botanical remains (charred crop seeds) and animal bones, which are considered reliable indicators of contemporaneous human activity. These dates were calibrated using the IntCal20 calibration curve and analyzed within a Bayesian statistical framework implemented in OxCal v.4.4 to construct a chronological model. The modeling results indicate that the Qijia Culture emerged between 4200—3400 cal a B.P., which is later than previously estimated. Furthermore, the analysis confirmed a 200-300 year of ‘old-wood effect' in charcoal-based radiocarbon dates. Spatial-temporal patterns suggest that the earliest phase of the Qijia Culture originated in the upper reaches of the Jinghe and Weihe River basin in eastern Gansu, followed by a westward expansion into the western Loess Plateau, the northeastern margins of the Tibetan Plateau, and the eastern section of the Hexi Corridor. The cultural focus contracted to the Hehuang Valley and Taohe River Basin on the northeastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau after 3800 cal a B.P., The internal differentiation and transformation of the Qijia Culture is hypothesized to have influenced the later contraction of the Qijia Culture into the Hehuang Valley and the Taohe River Basin, where the Qijia Culture persisted into its later stages. The construction of a robust Bayesian chronological framework based on high-quality radiocarbon evidence not only refines our understanding of the emergence, expansion, and decline of the Qijia Culture, but also contributes to broader discussions of early cultural transmission and interaction across prehistoric Eurasia.

The geographical attribution of the Chaka Basin remains ambiguous, as it is variably attributed to either the Qaidam Basin or the Gonghe Basin due to divergent academic criteria or insufficient scientific understanding between scholarly literature and the general public. Additionally, the potential mechanisms for salt formation in Chaka Salt Lake, which likely occurred only at the end of the late Pleistocene, remain unclear. For this reason, the evolution, saltation of the Chaka Basin and the spatial division of geographic units are discussed in terms of tectonic, topographic and geomorphic features, in order to form a scientific understanding, standardize the scientific expression and popularize the public. The results show that, as early as 10 Ma in the early Late Miocene, the uplifted Elashan had already divided the Chaka-Gonghe-Qinghai Lake regions from the Qaidam Basin. The Chaka Basin and the Shajuyu inland water system in the Gonghe depression are only divided by a Quaternary sedimentary beam less than 20 m above the surface of the modern lake, which is much lower than the lowest point of the Elashan watershed in the west side. The Chaka Basin belongs to the Gonghe Basin from the topographical point of view, and its area is about 3100 km² (calculated with the east diversion beam as the boundary). The motive force for the transformation of the Chaka Basin into an endorheic water system may be the result of the synergistic action of the Chabcha (Gonghe) movement and the Quaternary sedimentary process (the eastern watershed beam connected by the flood fan), but the exact time needs to be further confirmed. Salt formation in the Chaka Salt Lake occurred in the Younger Dryas or early Holocene geological period, and there is no simple correspondence between salt formation and the evolution of the basin's closed water system, as the conditions of the salt lake basin are satisfied while also depending on climatic constraints. This study investigates why the Chaka Salt Lake formed only after the Late Pleistocene, based on regional tectonics, geomorphological characteristics, and the evolutionary history of the lake basin. By using mountain landforms, key topographic elevation points, and watershed divides as defining markers for basin boundaries, it clarifies the geographic extent of the Chaka Basin and explores its spatial relationship with the Qaidam Basin and the Gonghe Basin. These findings provide valuable insights into the salt formation processes of Chaka Salt Lake as constrained by geomorphic evolution.

Destination image constitutes a vital component of a region's overall competitive strength. Building on the model of narrative comprehension and engagement and persuasion theory, this study examines the impact of internal and external realism in intangible cultural heritage bearers' media narratives on destination image, as well as the mediating role of media character identification. External realism refers to the extent to which the story aligns with the real world (regardless of whether the story is fictional). Internal realism refers to the coherence within the story itself in terms of logic, character motivations, and the continuity of events. Media character identification includes three dimensions: the audience's emotional resonance with the media character, perspective-taking, and motivation internalisation. In addition, destination brand awareness is introduced as a moderating variable in the research model. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) is used to validate the net effects of antecedent variables on destination image. Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) is employed to explore the configurational pathways leading to positive destination image evaluations. The results show that: 1) Internal realism has a significantly positive direct effect on destination image, whereas the direct effect of external realism on destination image is not significant; 2) Both internal and external realism positively influence destination image through the mediating effect of motivation internalisation, while the mediating effects of perspective-taking and emotional resonance are not significant; 3) Destination brand awareness moderates the relationship between internal realism and destination image; 4) Destination image is the outcome of multiple interacting factors, with four types of condition configurations having high explanatory power for the formation of a favourable destination image evaluation. This study proposes a “Narrative-Character-Destination Image” framework, offering implications for destination image construction.

Talent is the primary resource for development, and its spatial mobility and redistribution are essential for enhancing regional human capital, upgrading knowledge structures, and fostering innovation capacity, thereby empowering new quality productive forces and reshaping the geography of regional competition. As an emerging yet rapidly expanding branch of Population Geography, Talent Geography in China originated in the 1980s and has accelerated since 2010 under the combined forces of demographic transition, technological change, urban expansion, and policy-driven regional competition. This study conducts a systematic and integrative review of its disciplinary evolution, key concepts, analytical traditions, and interdisciplinary bases, while synthesizing research progress across multiple categories of talent, including highly educated talent, skilled labor, university graduates, and special-type talent such as scientific researchers and creative workers. It further distills the core mechanisms shaping talent distribution and mobility from 4 dimensions: economic push-pull dynamics associated with wage differentials and job opportunities; place-based amenities reflecting environmental quality, public services, and urban livability; institutional and policy interventions embodying China’s government-led talent strategy; and spatial effects manifested in spillovers, non-stationarity, and intercity interactions collectively structure China’s complex talent landscape. Looking ahead, this paper identifies 3 strategic directions for advancing talent geography research: building a theoretical framework to capture the diverse spatial behaviors and development roles of different talent groups; establishing the analytical foundations of talent dividend geography to evaluate how talent-driven gains vary across regions; and deepening the study of global “talent ocean currents” to understand China’s evolving position within worldwide talent circulation networks. By integrating historical review, mechanism-based analysis, and forward-looking perspectives, this study enriches the conceptual, methodological, and empirical foundations of talent geography and provides valuable insights for implementing China’s strategy of strengthening the nation through talent and promoting Chinese-style modernization through high-quality population development.

This paper delves into the theoretical frameworks and practical strategies for coordinated county-town-village development, unveiling its scientific essence and mechanisms. It establishes a conceptual framework for achieving coordinated development and propose implementation pathways toward urban-rural integration. The main conclusions include 3 aspects. First, as a novel model for urban-rural integration, county-town-village coordination emphasizes the interconnectedness of support systems, spatial organization, industrial systems, and comprehensive governance across administrative levels. This fosters integration in infrastructure, public services, spatial planning, industrial networks and spatial governance. This model builds upon traditional township-village coordination by emphasizing the holistic nature and networked linkages across the three levels of county, town and village. Second, the coordinated development of county-town-village systems is reinforced through coordinated infrastructure development and integrated public services. This approach strengthens alignment in development objectives and functional positioning within spatial planning frameworks. Based on the diverse products of county, town and village, it forms a county-level product space with inherent upgrading potential. Moreover, it achieves comprehensive governance across social, economic and ecological dimensions through multi-level organizational system of county, town and village. Third, the practical strategy for coordinated county-town-village development focuses on three foundational pillars of county-level economic development, urban-rural element flow and enhanced development entities. It is imperative to implement differentiated development pathways tailored to the economic characteristics and resource advantages of county, town and village. This involves constructing institutional mechanisms to enable bidirectional flows of urban-rural elements including labor, capital, technology, land and markets. Concurrently, it entails broadening the intra-rural, social and market entities involved in urban and rural development and strengthening the linkage channels for production, service and operation. This paper will contribute to tackling development imbalance and insufficiency, unleashing the immense potential of counties. It will also provide theoretical underpinnings and practical pathways for regional high-quality development and Chinese-style rural modernization.

The rapid development of media technology has led to the continuous coupling of cyberspace and real life, creating new places for subject interaction outside of physical space, and bringing subversive changes to the connotation of humans and places, as well as to the relationship between them. The study chooses Luoyang, Henan Province, a famous Internet celebrity city in China, as a case study, and uses qualitative methods, such as in-depth interviews and content analysis, to understand the process of perception and interaction between humans and places in digital arenas, such as short videos, with the help of the concept of ‘encounter’. The study points out that: 1) Network technology has reshaped the essence and connotation of the existence of humans and places in the digital space. Digital places have become a mixed concept composed of real space and individual consciousness, and human subjects have been endowed with new digital attributes and rely on digital identity to exist; 2) In the process of digital encounter, humans and places use online images or identities to achieve virtual presence. The dissemination of places involves the interaction between multiple subjects, as well as between subjects and various local cultural symbols. The essence of human-place encounter is the interaction of meaning between people, and between humans and symbols; 3) The encounter of digitalization brings about a transformation in the emotional connotation of a place. Although the place is still the foothold of emotions, its core reflects more on the introspection and reflection of emotional subjects on themselves, and further promotes individuals to actively meet the place in online and offline spaces. The exploration of new human environment relationships and interactive methods in the era of media has profound significance in shaping individuals in the network, developing local tourism, and constructing material space. It is a necessary work in digital development and provides theoretical support for the marketing and image construction of cities and places.

Rural spatial governance constitutes a critical component of China's governance framework, serving to regulate the allocation of spatial resources in rural areas, optimizes the spatial development patterns of the countryside, and facilitates integrated urban-rural development. The development of rural industries is the core of the comprehensive revitalization of rural areas and also the key to evaluating the effectiveness of rural spatial governance. However, the development of rural industries in China still faces the crux of insufficient endogenous development momentum and weak endogenous development capacity. Therefore, taking the neo-endogenous development theory as a starting point and using qualitative research and spatial data analysis methods, this paper aims to systematically investigate the process and mechanism of rural industrial spatial governance through a case study of Jianhe Village in Jianhu County, Yancheng City. The key findings are as follows: 1) The industrial spatial governance of Jianhe Village has undergone a transition from bottom-up endogenous governance to top-down exogenous governance, ultimately leading to the neo-endogenous governance characterized by “up-down linkage, internal and external symbiosis”. Rural industrial spatial governance practices at each stage exhibit distinct policy-oriented characteristics. 2) The industrial space of Jianhe Village has witnessed significant resource reorganization, adjustment, and optimization of production space functions. It has also experienced the scale expansion and agglomeration of industrial development, shrinkage in traditional agriculture spaces, as well as expansion in glass industry, e-commerce, and service industry spaces. This transformation has led to an increasingly complex space with characteristics such as production-life, production-ecology, and production-life-ecology interactions. 3) Rural industrial spatial governance constitutes a continuous and dynamic practice process involving multiple actors. The industrial spatial governance of Jianhe Village is a systematic process that effectively integrates and adjusts internal and external development forces under government leadership while placing rural society at its core for coordination with market/society. The resource base serves as a critical foundation, while multiple governance actors function as fundamental decision-makers. Among these, governments act as guiding forces, while markets and societal actors serve as intermediaries for interest coordination, and endogenous rural actors constitute the core element.

This study constructs a multidimensional theoretical framework for land use conflicts (LUC) based on its manifestations and from the perspective of “scale-function-pattern”. It proposes a methodology for identifying and measuring LUC through multidimensional and multiscale interactions, and develops a zoning management scheme for conflict areas using a three-dimensional magic cube spatial classification model and a triangular model. Taking the Northern Slope Economic Belt of Tianshan Mountains (NSEBTM) in 2020 as a case study, the results show that: 1) The proposed methodology for identifying and measuring LUC from the “scale-function-pattern” perspective can enhance the scientific and comprehensive evaluation of LUC from multiple dimensions and scales. This approach provides a more nuanced understanding of the complex interactions between land use scale, function, and pattern, which are critical for effective conflict management. 2) In 2020, the area of LUC in the NSEBTM was 154 881.22 km², with functional conflicts of land use being more prominent, pattern conflicts of land use being predominantly moderate and scale conflicts of land use relatively minor, presenting a spatial pattern of “high in the west and low in the east”. This spatial distribution highlights the regional disparities in conflict intensity, which are influenced by varying socio-economic activities and natural conditions across the study area. 3) Based on the identification results, the study region was divided into five zones: scale control zone, function optimization zone, pattern adjustment zone, development regulation zone, and strategic reserve zone. Among them, the strategic reserve zone accounted for the largest proportion (60.82%), while the scale control zone accounted for the smallest (0.12%). Implementing differentiated zoning management strategies according to local conditions is the key to alleviating conflicts. This study proposes a new perspective for LUC research, which can enrich the theoretical connotations of LUC, provide ideas and methodological references for multidimensional identification and management of LUC, and optimize the national land space pattern. By integrating the “scale-function-pattern” perspective, this study offers a comprehensive framework for understanding and managing LUC, contributing to the sustainable development of land resources and the harmonious coexistence of human and nature.

Land cover and its changes are an important part of global change research, and play an irreplaceable role in climate change research, biodiversity conservation, the global carbon and water cycles monitoring, as well as other major needs. As an essential descriptor of the Earth’s surface, land cover provides a fundamental basis for understanding human-environment interactions and assessing ecosystem functions. Over the past few decades, with the continuous improvement of satellite remote sensing technology, the rapid growth of data storage capacity, and the development of high-performance computing platforms, global land cover mapping and change monitoring have made remarkable progress. The spatial resolution of available products has increased from the early 1 km scale to today’s 10-30 m range, enabling a more detailed characterization of heterogeneous landscapes. Meanwhile, the temporal frequency has evolved from single-period mapping toward multi-year and annual land-cover change monitoring, greatly enhancing our ability to capture dynamic land processes and long-term environmental transitions. In this study, we collected 21 publicly released global land cover products at home and abroad, and then comprehensively summarize their characteristics from three aspects: land cover classification system, methodology and dataset/products. First, we systematically summarized the land-cover classification system of current global land cover products into three groups, and further clarified their characteristics, advantages and disadvantages. Then, we sorted out the development history of the global land-cover algorithms from single land-cover mapping and time series land cover change monitoring, and further evaluated the different development stages and overall development trends of the global land cover research. Finally, the main problems existing in the current global land cover research are described, and some thoughts on the future development of this direction are put forward, particularly regarding the need for harmonized standards, higher spatiotemporal consistency, and better validation frameworks.

High-speed rail (HSR) infrastructure development has fundamentally reshaped urban economics and spatial organization of economic activities. The opening of new HSR lines not only enhances transportation convenience and locational advantages of cities along the route but also generates significant network effects at the regional level, thereby influencing the economic activity structure and land valuation patterns of HSR cities at different scales. While much of the existing literature has focused on the direct or local effects of HSR on individual cities, there has been relatively limited exploration of the broader network effects generated by HSR networks. This paper focuses on analyzing both the local and network effects of newly constructed HSR lines on cities, providing a comprehensive framework for understanding HSR’s multidimensional impacts. An empirical study examines the impact of the Zhongyuan Urban Agglomeration’s HSR network development on residential land prices at different scales. By combining the PSM-DID model with multilevel data analysis, the empirical findings reveal a dual mechanism through which new HSR lines influence land value. First, we identify a local effect, where cities directly connected by new HSR lines experience an average increase of 11.2% in residential land prices. This increase can be attributed to the improved accessibility, the enhanced locational appeal, and stronger development expectation among investors and local stakeholders. Second, we uncover a network effect: city, as a part of the broader HSR network, but not is necessarily on the newly opened line, also experiences a positive impact, with residential land prices increasing by approximately 2% on average. This finding highlights the importance of network connectivity and suggests that HSR infrastructure generates externalities to transcend the immediately affected localities. Furthermore, the magnitude of these network effects varies significantly across cities of different administrative levels. Prefecture-level cities benefit more substantially from the network effect compared to county-level cities. This heterogeneity shows the uneven spatial distribution of HSR-related benefits. Urban hierarchy determines how effectively cities can leverage their network position. This study demonstrates that the existence of both local effect and network effect of HSR and reveal the multidimensional and spatially heterogeneous nature of HSR effects. These results provide critical insights for regional planning and infrastructure investment. Policymakers should consider network-wide impacts in designing strategies to promote balanced urban development through transportation infrastructure expansion.

The phenomenon of “internet celebrity city”, a product of the digital economy, illustrates how virtual information flow can transform into actual tourist traffic. This paper uses Harbin’s emergence as an “internet celebrity city” as a case study, applying time series analysis, Granger causality tests, and multi-scale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) models to examine the mechanisms by which tourism information flow drives passenger flow. It also examines their interaction’s spatiotemporal dynamics and influencing factors. The key findings are: 1) Tourism information flow and passenger flow in the preparation, launch, outbreak and sustained four stages of attraction and interaction characteristics of symbiosis, attraction is reflected in the threshold effect and precursor effect, interaction through the feedback to strengthen the formation of a virtuous circle. 2) This interaction displays notable scale effects and spatial heterogeneity, with a significant bidirectional Granger causality observed nationwide, while complex spatial differentiation emerges at the regional level. 3) Consumer potential, information level, and transportation accessibility positively impact tourism passenger flow, while spatial distance negatively impacts passenger flow. This study enhances the theoretical framework of tourism flow dynamics by integrating spatiotemporal scales and spatial heterogeneity analysis. It proposes three strategies: developing dynamic information ecosystems for crisis management; implementing differentiated marketing strategies that leverage regional responsiveness, including cultural campaigns for remote markets; and fostering transportation-information synergy to enhance accessibility through coordinated high-speed rail promotions with social media trends. These findings offer insights for optimizing digital tourism governance and improving destination competitiveness in platform economies.

Amid the accelerating forces of globalization and modernity, worldwide discourses and practices of heritage have given rise to complex political, social, cultural, and spatial phenomena at community, national (region), and global scales. As the most recent paradigm in global heritage studies, critical heritage studies, a profound reflection on the phenomenon and nature of heritage, re-examines the subjectivity of heritage and investigates the political-economic and socio-cultural mechanisms that shape heritage construction from multiple perspectives. Drawing on its strong tradition of exploring human-environment relationships, human geography has contributed significantly to the theoretical advancement of critical heritage studies—particularly through an emphasis on the interactive processes of heritage-making and the spatiotemporal heterogeneity among heritage, place, and subjectivities. This paper offers a systematic review of the interwoven trajectories of critical heritage studies and heritage research in human geography, demonstrating that geography of heritage has developed two emerging research paradigms: constructivist and relational approaches. It further synthesizes key academic debates on four core themes: heritage identity and governance, heritage tourism and heritage authenticity, everyday life and living heritage, and the hybridity of natural and cultural heritage. The study argues that the parallel evolution of critical heritage studies and heritage geography aligns closely with geography’s “cultural turn” and “relational turn”, thereby fostering the formation of a more expansive interdisciplinary framework for heritage research. The interweaving of critical heritage trends and heritage geography research has had a profound impact on essential heritage issues and revealed that an increasing number of heritage practices demonstrate various possibilities. Heritage protection is no longer just about avoiding potential “risks”, but rather an active commitment to shaping a diverse and inclusive “future of heritage”. It should be noted that the differences in the humanistic environment, urban-rural development background and political and economic systems between China and the West have resulted in heritage geographical phenomena emerging in China that differ from those in the Western context. When applying critical heritage studies to examine the geography of heritage in China, the right of different cultures to coexist and the importance of local culture should be emphasised. Looking ahead, the geography of heritage in China should deepen its engagement with issues of cultural diversity, social equity, and sustainable development as shaped by heritage practices, thereby contributing a robust scientific basis for China’s people-centered heritage conservation in the new era.

In recent years, extreme summer precipitation events have occurred frequently in northeast China, posing a serious threat to the socio-economic development and the safety of people’s lives and property. The accuracy of precipitation data is crucial for disaster prevention, and mitigation, as well as scientific research. Using the daily precipitation data from the national benchmark meteorological station in northeast China (1998—2018) and the hourly precipitation data within Jilin Province, the applicability of CLDAS multi-source fusion precipitation data and CN05.1 grid precipitation data to summer precipitation in northeast China was comprehensively assessed in this study. The results indicate that both CLDAS-Pre and CN05.1 can reasonably reflect the spatial distribution of summer precipitation in northeast China to a certain extent. Compared with CN05.1, CLDAS-Pre has a better correlation with the observed precipitation (>0.8), with smaller mean relative error and root mean square error. Dry and wet deviations are found for summer precipitation over northeast China in CLDAS-Pre and CN05.1, respectively, with this phenomenon most pronounced in August. Both datasets have a higher reproduction of the number of days with light and moderate rainfall, and a lower estimation of the number of days with heavy rainfall. The peak accuracy of CLDAS-Pre hourly precipitation reproduction is roughly between midnight and early morning over the entire region. Overall, CLDAS multi-source fusion precipitation has better applicability in the northeast region. However, the CN05.1 dataset, with its longer sequence, retains significant advantages for applications such as model validation.

Investigating the cooling effects of blue-green spaces and their influencing factors is essential for optimizing urban spatial configuration and enhancing environmental resilience. Using Xi’an as a case study, this study integrates multisource data—remote sensing, evapotranspiration, and meteorological datasets—and applies the InVEST Urban Cooling Model to generate the Heat Mitigation Index (HMI) for assessing the cooling capacity of urban blue-green spaces. Landscape pattern analysis, the Geographical Detector, and boosted regression trees are further employed to reveal the mechanisms through which landscape patterns influence cooling effects. The results are as follows: 1) In summer, surface temperatures in Xi’an are dominated by moderate-temperature zones. Urban heat islands are concentrated in the central urban area and the western industrial park, with a relatively stable spatial pattern; cool islands are mainly distributed along river corridors and in suburban croplands, and appear as scattered patches within high-density built-up areas. 2) The spatial distribution of HMI is highly consistent across different cooling distances: high-value areas outside the Third Ring Road are mostly distributed along rivers or concentrated in contiguous croplands, while high-value areas inside the Third Ring Road correspond to urban parks containing water bodies; low-value areas are primarily located in high-density built-up and industrial zones, forming continuous surfaces, and appear as linear belts in surrounding rural settlements. 3) The cooling effect of blue-green spaces results from the synergistic action of multiple factors. Landscape diversity and patch fragmentation are the core driving factors, each interacting with patch size to enhance cooling capacity. All factors exhibit threshold behavior, and their influence on cooling may be either promotive or suppressive depending on the range of their values.

Grain production is a major issue related to the national economy and people’s livelihood. In recent years, under the background of global climate change, factors such as changes in meteorological conditions, agricultural disasters, large-scale occupation of cultivated land in the process of urbanization, rural hollowing, and agricultural technology changes have all had a significant impact on grain production. This article explores the spatial and temporal pattern of China’s grain production and its driving factors at multiple scales from the dual background of urbanization and climate change, in order to provide scientific support and policy enlightenment for food security under the background of climate change and rapid urbanization. The results show that: 1) Although China’s total grain output has fluctuated slightly from 2000 to 2022, it has shown an overall growth trend. The main function of regional grain production has become more prominent and significant time transitions have taken place. The provincial grain production pattern has experienced a spatial reconstruction from “single core-edge” to “dual core-edge”. 2) The impact of urbanization and climate change on grain production has scale difference, superposition and interaction effect. Urbanization shows a net positive effect on multiple scales, while climate factors are more significant only on the provincial scale. Under the superposition effect of the two, urbanization plays a leading role in grain production compared with climate factors. Under the interaction effect of the two, the violation of urbanization and climate factors restricts provincial grain production. 3) The impact of urbanization and climate change on grain production has significant spatial and temporal heterogeneity. In terms of time, the leading role of climate change mainly occurred in the first 11 years since the 21st century, while the leading role of urbanization mainly occurred in the second 11 years. In terms of space, urbanization only has no significant impact on grain production in the developed areas of urbanization, while climate factors have no significant impact on non-spatial continuous grain functional zoning.

Human-Economic Geography and regional/spatial planning serve as mutual ‘theory-practice’ supports. Particularly, the research in Human-Economic Geography concerning functional zoning, urban spatial structures, resource allocation, and locational theories provides a scientific basis and technical support for the development of regional/spatial plans. For instance, functional zoning research underpins the spatial division of labor and functional orientation; the theory of spatial structure provides the framework methodology for determining urban and regional economic patterns; and the location theory of element allocation serves as a critical basis for productive-force layout. Currently, the external environment is undergoing profound and complex changes. The primary conflict in regional/spatial planning has shifted from ‘development-protection’ to the mismatch between the demand for high-quality development and spatial supply. Under the global context of ‘regionalization’ and China’s population contraction, the innovative development of new regional/spatial planning requires addressing new demands from including building the new development paradigm, implementing new development philosophy, developing new quality productive forces, promoting high-quality development, and constructing new spatial governance model. This necessitates an adaptive transformation in the foundational logic, geographic layout schemes, and technical methods of regional/spatial planning research and formulation. It also raises new requirements for research in Human-Economic Geography regarding the human-land relationship across different scales and types of spaces, the flow and allocation of multiple elements across all fields, the laws of locational selection, and the collaborative spatial governance between government and market. In light of this, this paper proposes new topics for Human-Economic Geography in the coming period, particularly focusing on the evolution of China’s Economic Geography under the new development paradigm, the locational characteristics and layout principles suited to new quality productivity, the locational layout and synergistic linkage of new urban infrastructure, and the sustainable development of priority conservation areas under the requirement of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. Furthermore, promoting integrated innovation between Human-Economic Geography and regional/spatial planning should clarify the differences in transition contexts and practical demands between Chinese and Western research. Future studies should be grounded in the phase-specific conditions of Chinese-style modernization, actively advancing summaries of Chinese-specific theoretical/methodological innovations, to serve and support national major strategies and regional socioeconomic development.

In the era of mass tourism, tourism has become an important driving force for economic growth. As the quality of national cultural tourism demand improves, the rural cultural tourism industry is in urgent need of transformation and upgrading. From the perspective of “production-circulation-consumption”, the study explores the theoretical logic of digital technology enabling the high-quality development of cultural tourism in rural areas, and concludes that digital technology has a positive driving effect on the high-quality development of rural cultural tourism, especially in the reorganization of the allocation of cultural tourism resources, innovation of cultural tourism products, upgrading of the circulation system, and enhancement of the ability of consumer services, which has a significant role in promoting the development of cultural tourism. It has a significant role in promoting the development of rural culture and tourism. However, at present, the digital divide in rural areas is highlighted, the power of resource transformation is insufficient, the governance system of digital space is missing, and the internal power of value transformation is insufficient, which restricts digital technology from empowering the high-quality development of digital cultural tourism in rural areas. To this end, we should establish a standardized system, strengthen the supervision of the new production organization system, improve the modern circulation system, and optimize the “three new” relationship of consumption in the digital context. In this way, we can promote the high-quality development of rural cultural tourism empowered by digital technology.

The spatial integration and optimization of protected areas is the foundation for establishing a protected area system with national parks as the main body, and it is crucial for resolving various conflicts and historical issues in protected areas. Systematically reviewing the research progress on the spatial integration and optimization of protected areas in China, and conducting in-depth studies in line with the national conditions, is of vital importance for building the world’s largest national park system. This article takes the research literature on the spatial integration and optimization of protected areas published in China from 2004 to 2024 as the basis, and uses Citespace software to systematically analyze the research process and main content of the spatial integration and optimization of protected areas, and to look forward to future research priorities. The study finds that: 1) The overall research on the spatial integration and optimization of protected areas in China follows the direction of “problem status-spatial analysis-policy recommendations”, continuously deepening and expanding. 2) The main research focuses on the diagnosis of major problems, the depiction of spatial patterns, the identification of protection vacancies, the optimization of ecological space integrity, and the policies and measures for integration and optimization. 3) Based on the deficiencies of existing research, future research prospects are proposed from aspects such as the coordinated development and integration pathways of transboundary protected areas, the functional zoning of protected areas under the background of territorial spatial planning, the evaluation and dynamic monitoring of the integration and optimization effects of protected areas, the division of labor and cooperation between different types of protected areas, and the research on coordinated path of ecological protection and human well-being of protected areas.

Village industrial land is an important support for the development of new rural industries and new formats in the new era, and it is of great significance to promote the revitalization of rural industries. This study analyzes the spatial characteristics of China’s village industrial land use in 2020 by using the land change survey data based on the Third National Land Survey, and examines the driving mechanism of village industrial land use changes at different spatial scales by using the Geodetector model. The results show: 1) The average scale of village industrial land in counties is 821.47 hm², and the per capita village industrial land is 43.52 m²/person, both of which have a significant positive correlation in spatial distribution. 2) At the regional level, the scale of village industrial land in the eastern region is significantly higher than in other regions, and both the Northeast and Eastern regions have a per capita village industrial land scale exceeding 60 m²/person. The Theil index indicates that the differences within the four major regions dominate the formation of national differences. At the provincial level, only Hebei and Shandong have industrial land scales exceeding 2×10⁵hm², and Qinghai has the largest internal differences in village industrial land. 3) At the national level, rural permanent population, topographic relief and rural per capita disposable income factor have a greater driving force on the scale of village industrial land. At the regional level, urbanization rate, topographic relief and rural per capita disposable income have a greater impact on the scale of village industrial land in the western region, while other regions are mainly affected by rural resident population, topographic relief, and cultivated land area. The interactive detection shows that the scale of village industrial land in various regions is also affected by multiple factors, but there are heterogeneity characteristics. Focusing on the needs of rural industrial revitalization in the new era, this study analyzes the characteristics and trends of rural development in various regions, and puts forward policy suggestions to promote the integration of village industrial land and intensive and economical utilization.

Environmental regulation serves as a key policy tool for protecting tourism ecological security and achieving high-quality tourism development. On the basis of using entropy method to measure the intensity of environmental regulation and the level of tourism ecological security in China province from 2006 to 2021, this paper tests whether there is spatial autocorrelation between them with the help of spatial autocorrelation, and constructs a spatial Durbin model to explore the spatial spillover effect of environmental regulation on tourism ecological security. The empirical results demonstrate three key findings: 1) During the study period, the intensity of environmental regulation and the level of tourism ecological security grew strongly, and both showed a spatial pattern of strong in the east, medium in the middle, and weak in the west and northeast, and the characteristics of spatio-temporal heterogeneity were prominent. 2) The global spatial autocorrelation of environmental regulation intensity and tourism ecological security level is significant, and the local spatial autocorrelation results show that the environmental regulation intensity and tourism ecological security level are mainly“H-H” and “L-L” clustering type. 3) Environmental regulations contribute to local tourism ecological security improvement through dual channels: facilitating technological innovation progress and promoting industrial structure optimization. Furthermore, Environmental regulations generate positive spatial spillovers to neighboring regions via two transmission pathways: industrial gradient transfer effects, environmental policy demonstration effects. Notably, the analysis confirms that these spatial spillover effects substantially outweigh the direct local effects. These research outcomes provide valuable policy implications for formulating precisely targeted environmental regulation strategies to enhance ecological security protection while fostering sustainable, high-quality tourism development.

Against the backdrop of climate change, energy transition, and high-quality development, new energy vehicles (NEVs) have become an increasingly vital component of strategic emerging industries. Specifying the spatiotemporal patterns of NEV enterprises within urban agglomerations and identifying the influencing factors are basic scientific issues for facilitating the development of NEV industrial development. This paper depicts the spatiotemporal patterns of NEV enterprises in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) during 2017—2021 and examines the influencing factors through the lens of the dual dynamics of state and market. The findings indicate that: 1) The spatial pattern of NEV enterprises in the PRD has evolved from a “single-core” centered in Shenzhen to a “dual-core” centered in Shenzhen and Guangzhou, with the highest concentration in the boundary areas of Guangzhou-Foshan and Shenzhen-Dongguan. Upstream “raw material” enterprises have dispersed from Shenzhen to Guangzhou, Huizhou, and Zhuhai; midstream “core component” enterprises remain largely concentrated in Shenzhen; downstream “vehicle manufacturing” enterprises are concentrated in Shenzhen and Guangzhou and begin to spread to surrounding areas, with “supporting and aftermarket” enterprises evolving from a dual-core pattern in Shenzhen and Guangzhou to multiple hotspots. 2) Both state and market dynamics influence the spatiotemporal pattern of NEV enterprises in the PRD, with the effects on the distribution of NEV enterprises in the PRD varying across development stages, geographic locations and industry chain segments. In terms of development stages, the influencing factors of enterprise spatial layout shift from the dual drive of government and market to market forces dominance. With respect to geographic locations, the eastern PRD is more sensitive to market dynamics, while the western PRD sees a relatively more prominent role of the government. As for the industrial chain, market forces mainly affect the upstream and midstream, while the downstream and extended segments are under the dual influence of both state and market forces.

Identification and measurement of polycentric spatial structure is essential for formulating and evaluating urban spatial strategies, with morphology and function serving as two fundamental perspectives. However, most of the researches on polycentric spatial structure examine the functional and the morphological in isolation, failing to integrate them systematically. This is not conducive to establishing a scientific understanding of urban spatial structure and thereby affects the rationality and effectiveness of urban planning decisions. As a key link connecting urban transportation system and land use, accessibility is an ideal tool to understand morphological-functional spatial structure. Based on data at sub-district scale from the 1% National Population Sampling Survey in 2015, this paper performs entropy-based spatial interaction model to estimate job accessibility and residence accessibility. We first use Moran’s I index and hot analysis method to describe the spatial agglomeration pattern of job accessibility and residence accessibility, and then explore characteristics of urban spatial structure and its industrial variations. The results show that: 1) It suggests that accessibility in producer service sector and consumer services sector is the highest and has strongest spatial agglomeration degree; accessibility in manufacturing sector is the lowest and has weakest spatial agglomeration degree; the public service industry is in-between. 2) Producer services sector presents typical monocentric urban spatial structure at job and residence levels; consumer services sector presents mono-centricity at job level and polycentricity at residence level; public services sector presents polycentric spatial structure at job and residence levels; manufacturing sector presents polycentricity at job level and decentralized spatial structure at residence level. This is the result of multiple paths such as housing suburbanization, industrial suburbanization and education suburbanization under the joint action of the government and the market. 3) In general, Shanghai shows polycentric spatial structure at job and residence levels, and the residence suburbanization is more obvious than job suburbanization. There is big difference in urban spatial structure between Shanghai and Beijing due to industrial structure and spatial layout. As China’s built environment and national conditions are quite different from those of western countries, urban spatial structure (such as high-quality transport corridor type) between Shanghai and Western cities is also significantly different. This paper builds polycentric spatial structure framework based on accessibility, and focuses on their industry heterogeneity. The above conclusions bring new insights for optimizing urban spatial structure through industrial sector layout and transportation planning.

Modern tourism geography in China began in the late 1970s. After sustained exploration and development, it has made remarkable achievements in theoretical development, talent cultivation, and practical advancement. However, with ongoing societal change, tourism geography in China faces unprecedented challenges. How to better serve national strategies and industrial development has become an important question of the times. This paper provides an in-depth discussion of the discipline’s internal logic of formation, the evolution of research paradigms, knowledge spillover effects, and the construction of its disciplinary system in the new era. The findings are as follows: 1) After decades of practical exploration and theoretical development, the theoretical system of Chinese tourism geography has matured, its research agenda has continued to deepen, and its capacity to support national strategic needs has strengthened markedly. 2) Tourism geography has consistently taken the tourism human-environment relationship as its central thread, shifting from an early emphasis on “land” to a focus on the mechanisms of human-land interaction. 3) The field’s research paradigm has gradually moved from experience-based induction to an approach that gives equal weight to theory and empirical analysis, forming a methodological system grounded in the integration of qualitative and quantitative methods and the cross-validation of multiple data sources; this work has also generated knowledge spillovers to economics, management, and sociology. 4) Driven jointly by national and regional needs, talent cultivation and institutional restructuring, and shifts in research paradigms and themes, interdisciplinary integration has increasingly become a major development trend in tourism geography in China. 5) The inheritance and future development of Chinese tourism geography should remain problem-oriented, strengthen technology-enabled research, and concentrate on key tasks including talent development, innovation in foundational theory, optimization of the disciplinary system, and service to major national strategies.

Based on 1.0 km monthly temperature, and precipitation dataset of China in 1960—2022, we investigated spatiotemporal variation of summer precipitation in DJK Reservoir. We discussed correlation of summer precipitation with atmospheric circulation and global sea surface temperature anomalies. Results showed that: 1) In 1960—2022, summer temperature increased significantly, while precipitation witnessed an interdecadal fluctuating trend in DJK Reservoir. Spatially, there was an obvious spatial heterogeneity of temperature and precipitation. A faster increase of temperature mainly occurred in the eastern part of Danjiang River and the northern part of Hanjiang River, yet the upper of Danjiang River and Hanjiang River were areas where precipitation increased. 2) In terms of influencing factors, the SSTA over the tropical northern Atlantic, Nino 3 region of equatorial Pacific and tropical Indian Ocean in previous winter could be served as typical signal of summer precipitation anomalies in the DJK Reservoir. For atmospheric circulation index, when the intensity and extension of summer Asian polar vortex area showed a decreasing trend, as well as the higher atmospheric pressure of the northern Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, the upper-level westerly jet weakened and shifted southward, which could further enhance the convergence of cold and warm air to the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, favoring more summer precipitation in the DJK Reservoir. 3) In terms of associated anomalous atmospheric circulation, when positive geopotential height anomaly over the mid-latitude Eurasian Continent, as well as the strengthened Western Pacific subtropical high (WPSH), the center of the high-pressure system moved westward. An obvious anticyclonic anomaly occurred in the South China Sea and Western Pacific, which was benefit to transport warm and humid airflow northward, contributing to the remarkable precipitation anomalies in the DJK Reservoir. For less precipitation in summer, low pressure over the central and eastern part of China and Western Pacific Ocean region decreased the thermal contrast between land and ocean. Weaken WPSH had been observed to extend northeastward, forming an intensified cyclonic circulation over the western North Pacific, which lead to East Asian summer rain belt shifted southward. Increased evapotranspiration coupled withdeficit water vapor content resulted in enhanced drought on the DJK Reservoir. Results can help us to understand characteristics of summer precipitation, and provide scientific basis for water resource development and utilization in key water source for middle route of the South to North Water Transfer Scheme.

Sustainability of human-earth system has become a pivotal focus in global development research, with risk assessment and governance identified as key components and fundamental safeguards in the pursuit of sustainable development. This study begins by reviewing the conceptual definitions and classifications of risk, as well as general methods for risk assessment, early warning, and governance, to preliminarily explore the connotation of sustainability risk in human-earth system. Drawing on general risk assessment methodologies, this study constructs an integrated framework for evaluating sustainability risk in human-earth system, which incorporates both internal risks (e.g., stagnation or regression in meeting sustainable development goals) and external risks (e.g., disruptions from multiple stressors) through multi-method evaluations. Finally, based on the four key processes of traditional risk early warning systems, this study proposes a dynamic, graded technical system for early warning of sustainability risk in human-earth system and discusses a collaborative governance model underpinned by systems thinking. Overall, our study contributes to a deeper understanding of sustainability risk in human-earth system, offering theoretical support for improving governance capacities and promoting the co-evolution of regional sustainability and resilience.

Based on data from 668 national and provincial tourist resorts in China, this study employs GIS spatial analysis and the Pearson correlation coefficient to explore the spatial distribution characteristics of tourist resorts. It also discusses the influencing factors of spatial distribution characteristics and explores their impact mechanisms, considering natural factors such as topography, rivers, weather conditions, and resource conditions, as well as socio-economic factors such as economic development, market conditions, transportation, medical standards, and government policies. The results indicate that: 1) The distribution of tourist resorts within the study area is uneven and aggregated, presenting an overall spatial distribution pattern of “one core in the east, two belts in the central region, and three centers in the south”. Specifically, they exhibit spatial distribution features of being “close to lowlands, along gentle slopes, near water bodies, preferring warmer climates, and adjacent to scenic areas”. 2) The spatial distribution of tourist resorts is influenced by both natural and socio-economic factors. In terms of natural resources, they are negatively correlated with altitude, slope, and distance from rivers, but positively correlated with tourism resource density, and are mostly located in warm and humid regions. In terms of socio-economic factors, the number of tourist resorts is significantly positively correlated with gross domestic product (GDP), per capita GDP, tourism revenue, output value of the tertiary industry, and permanent resident population (P<0.01); significantly positively correlated with the number of stations and water transportation passenger volume (P<0.05); negatively correlated with the number of inbound tourist arrivals and starred hotels; and uncorrelated with the number of ports (P>0.05).

Identifying the spatial non-equilibrium characteristics of digitalization development in the tourism industry can provide scientific basis for bridging the “digital divide” in the tourism industry and optimizing the spatial layout of new quality productivity in the tourism industry. Based on the connotation characteristics of digitalization in the tourism industry, a comprehensive evaluation system was constructed, and the entropy weight TOPSIS method, Dagum Gini coefficient, Kernel density estimation, and Markov chain analysis were used to explore the spatial non-equilibrium characteristics and dynamic evolution trends of tourism digitalization level from 2011 to 2022 in China. The findings indicate that: 1) According to the entropy weight TOPSIS method, it can be concluded that the digitalization level of tourism industry has maintained a steady upward trend from 2011 to 2022 in China, with eastern provinces and cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangdong leading the way. The spatial differentiation characteristics of the digitalization level of tourism industry in China were gradually emerging, roughly showing a gradient distribution state of “high in the east and low in the west” and “high in the south and low in the north”. The spatial imbalance phenomenon of the digitalization level of tourism industry among provinces in China was significant. 2) In terms of regional differences and decomposition, the overall difference in the digitalization level of the tourism industry shows a fluctuating downward trend, and the imbalance between regions shows a shrinking trend. The overall regional differences were in a state of “northeast>east>west>central”, but inter provincial differences have become the main source of the “digital divide” in the tourism industry, and narrowing regional differences has become a key direction to bridge the digital level gap of the tourism industry in China. 3) According to the Kernel density estimation method, it can be concluded that the conditional probability density curve was distributed along a 45° diagonal, and the dynamic distribution of digitalization level in the tourism industry was relatively stable. After taking into account geographical spatial factors, the digitalization level of tourism industry in China showed a shrinking trend during the research period. 4) According to the Markov chain method, it can be inferred that if geographical spatial effects are not taken into account, the digitalization level of tourism industry in China shows the phenomenon of “Matthew effect” and “club convergence”; After incorporating geographic spatial effects, as the level of spatial lag in neighboring provinces increases, the digitalization level of local tourism industry was significantly affected by the spatial spillover effects of neighboring provinces.