China＇s economic development stage and its spatiotemporal evolution： A prefectural-level analysis

As important mechanisms of regional strategy and policy,prefecture-level regions have played an increasingly significant role in the development of China’s economy.However,little research has grasped the essence of the economic development stage and the spatio-temporal evolution process at the prefecture level;this may lead to biased policies and their ineffective implementations.Based on Chenery’s economic development theory,this paper identifies China’s economic development stages at both national and prefectural levels.Both the Global Moran I index and the Getis-Ord Gi* index are employed to investigate the spatio-temporal evolution of China’s economic development from 1990 to 2010.Major conclusions can be drawn as follows.(1) China’s economic development is generally in the state of agglomeration.It entered the Primary Production Stage in 1990,and the Middle Industrialized Stage in 2010,with a ’balanced-unbalanced-gradually rebalanced’ pattern in the process.(2) China’s rapid economic growth experienced a spatial shift from the coastal areas to the the inland areas.Most advanced cities in mid-western China can be roughly categorized into regional hub cities and resource-dependent cities.(3) Hot spots in China’s economy moved northward and westward.The interactions between cities and prefectures became weaker in Eastern China,while cities and prefectures in Central and Western China were still at the stage of individual development,with limited effect on the surrounding cities.(4) While the overall growth rate of China’s economy has gradually slowed down during the past two decades,the growth rate of cities and prefectures in Central and Western China was much faster than those in coastal areas.(5) Areas rich in resources,such as Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia,have become the new hot spots of economic growth in recent years.For these regions,however,more attention needs to be paid to their unbalanced industrial structures and the lagging social development against the backdrop of the rapid economic growth,driven predominantly by the exploitation of resources.     

Spatial quality： analysis of China＇s eco-environmental 1990-2010

Over the past two decades in China, stress on the environment has increased continuously. This paper will assess the change in environmental quality over time, and its spatial variation using data from the statistical yearbooks of 31 provincial administrative regions in 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, and 2010. These books provide a general assessment of the environment at the provincial level, and the three major economic regions from western to eastern China. By using the geographic information system （GIS） and SPSS, we analyzed the changing trend of China＇s eco-environment and calculated the changing trajectory in the gravity center of the eco-environmental quality. We conclude the following. （1） From 1990 to 2010, the rate of deterioration of the environment went down. We argue that the cause of this trend was neither the result as ＂the deterioration trend was under control＂ noticed by the government departments concerned, nor ＂the deterioration rate of the environment was increasingly intensified＂ suggested by many researchers. （2） Since 1990, the general environment has been worsening in China, but it was improved in some regions; however, the ecological deficit is still expanding and will last for a long time. （3） From western to eastern China, the deterioration rate of environmental quality was slowed down. The reasons include a good natural environment, a developed regional economy, and technology and finance in eastern China. （4） After extensive economic development in China, there are imbalances of population, economy, society, and the environment in the 31 provincial regions. The governments at all levels should play an important role in research and protecting the environment. In addition, it is imperative to implement positive measures such as controlling population, improving the environment, and promoting smart development to balance the socio-ecological system.     

The comprehensive evaluation of China＇s urbanization and effects on resources and environment

This paper constructs a comprehensive evaluation index system for the urbanization level in China in terms of four aspects of urbanization connotation: population, economy, society, and land. A comprehensive measurement is carried out for the Chinese urbanization between 1981 and 2006 based on the Entropy method. The results show that the comprehensive level of urbanization in China has a continuous increase with the major features of economic growth and a rapid evolution of the geographical landscape, followed by population urbanization and then social urbanization of health care standard; the distinguished evolutional characteristics can also be found in each of the subsystems. The integrated evolution of urbanization has a profound effect on the resources, energy and the environment, making the land resources and energy security situation under severe pressure. The environment pressure is also increased further.     

交通基础设施投资与区域经济增长的互动关系——基于西部大开发的实证分析

自2000年以来交通基础设施投资对推动西部地区经济增长效果显著,投资规模和分布的变化对经济效率具有重要影响。货运量对西部地区的GDP有着正向的作用,但是客运量和货运周转量对西部地区经济增长的作用为负。经济发展是影响货物运输需求的最敏感因素,交通基础设施滞后造成的西部经济增长同其发展潜力的错位依然存在。同初期开发规模和模式相比,对西部地区交通基础设施的进一步投资必须要保证西部各省市区的经济发展能够真正受惠于交通基础设施的完善,提高投资的经济效率。     

Spatial-temporal patterns of China’s interprovincial migration, 1985–2010

Migration plays an increasing role in China＇s economy since mobility rose and economic restructuring has proceeded during the last three decades. Given the background of most studies focusing on migration in a particular period, there is a critical need to analyze the spatial-temporal patterns of migration. Using bicomponent trend mapping technique and interprovincial migration data during the periods 1985-1990, 1990-1995, 1995-2000, 2000- 2005, and 2005-2010 we analyze net-, in-, out-migration intensity, and their changes over time in this study. Strong spatial variations in migration intensity were found in China＇s interprovincial migration, and substantial increase in migration intensity was also detected in eastern China during 1985-2010. Eight key destinations are mostly located within the three rapidly growing economic zones of eastern China （Pearl River Delta, Yangtze River Delta and Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Metropolitan Region）, and they are classified into three types： mature, emerging, and fluctuant origins, while most key origins are relatively undeveloped central and western provinces, which are exactly in accordance with China＇s economic development patterns. The results of bicomponent trend mapping indicate that, in a sense, the migration in the south was more active than the north over the last three decades. The result shows the new changing features of spatial-temporal patterns of China＇s interprovincial migration that Fan and Chen did not find out in their research. A series of social-economic changes including rural transformation, balanced regional development, and labor market changes should be paid more attention to explore China＇s future interprovincial migration.     

CO2 emissions and their bearing on China＇s economic development： the long view

Greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions in China have aroused much interest, and not least in recent evidence of their reduction. Our intent is to place that reduction in a larger context, that of the process of industrialization. A lengthy time perspective is combined with a cross-sectional approachChina plus five other countries-and addressed through two general models. The findings are salutary. First, they suggest that a diversified economic structure is consistent with diminished intensity in energy use. Secondly, and the obverse of the first, they imply that a diversified energy structure promotes reductions in CO2 emissions. Finally, one is led inevitably to the conclusion that, together, the findings point to a path for countries to transform their economies while at the same time undertaking to drastically moderate their energy use, switching from a pattern of heavy carbon emissions to one in which lighter carbon emissions prevail. The implications of such findings for environmental management are enormous.     

Temporal and spatial differences and imbalance of China＇s urbanization development during 1950-2006

A better understanding of the regional disparity and imbalance characteristics of China’s urbanization development is the important premise for constituting correct policy and strategy and promoting the healthy and sustainable development of urbanization in the 21st century. The regional differences of China’s urbanization level have close relations with natural conditions of landform and climate etc., the urbanization level reduces with the elevation of topography and decrease of precipitation. According to the statistical data set of urbanization in 1950–2006, the temporal change course of inter-provincial disparity of Chinese urbanization level since the founding of New China in 1949 was studied, and then the inter-regional and intra-regional disparities of urbanization development were analyzed by the Theil index and its nested decomposition method, to grasp the dynamic change of spatial disparities of China’s urbanization level on the whole. Using the imbalance index model, the imbalance status of urban population distribution relative to total population, grain output, total agricultural output value, gross output value of industry, tertiary industrial output value as well as gross regional product was discussed, to hold the balance characteristics of urbanization development relative to the regional development conditions from the macroscopic scales.     

China＇s geographical regionalization in Chinese secondary school curriculum （1902-2012）

As geographic literacy training is an essential content for Chinese citizens’ literacy education,national geographical education is one of the indispensable key aspects of that training.Because of China’s vast land area and the significance of the regional differences,it is difficult for students to receive a solid education regarding China’s geography.In 1902,the government established the geography curriculum and began to incorporate the concept of geographical regionalization to facilitate the teaching of China’s geography by publishing the first syllabi,which was modified later and put into use in 1904.Since 1904,numerous geography textbooks have attempted to find an appropriate way to present China’s geographical regionalization,as it is important for secondary students to have a clear understanding and appreciation for the different regional characteristics.Accordingly,the geographical regionalization content is divided into four main phases:1902 to 1927;1928 to 1948;1949 to 1986;and 1986 to the present.During these phases,the content related to China’s geographical regionalization in secondary middle school geography textbooks has been gradually simplified and has adopted a more scientific foundation,thus leading to the present time where there are now four geographical regional areas.From this historical study,we find that while China’s geographical regionalization has gradually matured,there are still some problems.For example,dividing the study into four regions to describe the panorama of China is too simplified,and the learning therefore becomes too scattered and haphazard,particularly given the new curriculum reform.     

Driving forces of ＂poplar expansion and cropland shrinkage＂ in the North China Plain：A case study of Wen＇an County,Hebei Province

以Landsat5TM遥感影像、农户调查数据和统计数据为基础数据,运用3S技术提取了案例区河北省文安县1995～2007年土地利用变化信息,分析了杨树扩张的时空格局;并从农户杨树种植决策行为视角,运用数理统计、投入产出法分析了杨树扩张占地的驱动因素。结论如下：（1）杨树林地扩张幅度大、速率快。（2）杨树扩张所用土地92.14%来源于耕地,＂杨上粮下＂现象突出。（3）杨树扩张速率的空间差异显著。杨树扩张受生产要素、土地产品市场及政策因素的综合驱动,其中劳动力因素和经济因素起主要作用。（4）非农从业人员比率和农民年人均收入越高,杨树扩张速度越快。在劳动力由富余转为相对稀缺的情况下,农户为提高经济收益,倾向选择耗工少,劳动生产率较大的杨树,是杨树扩张占地的根本原因。