Study On Farmers’ Livelihood And Land Use Change In Yuanjiang Dry-hot Valley

As a primary form of human behavior, farmer’s livelihood activity is a constant driver for the evloution of human-earth system. In the meantime, as the most important ecomomic actor and most fundamental decision-maker, farmer’s adoptions of certain livelihood stategies would have far-reaching impact on the ecological environment. In view of this, study on land use from the perspective of farmers’livelihood, has become a hot topic of current research concerning the relationship between human beings and the enviornment. Yuanjiang dry-hot valley (DHV) is the most concentrated and continuous one in Yunnan Province and the valley of Xinping County has long been the dwelling place for Huayaodai. For a long time, under the joint influence of special valley climate and non-Buddhism Dai culture, the unique relationship between people and environment was formed, which helps to provide a rare sample region for the study on farmers’livelihood and land use changes.Firstly, based on sustainable livelihood approach framework, livelihood capital evaluation indexes were set up, status quo of livelihood capitals, livelihood diversification, the relationship between the two for Dai farmers of Xinping dry-hot valley was assessed with field survey data; Second, logistic regression model was adopted to explore the relationship between livelihood capitals and livelihood strategies; Thirdly, changes of farmers’planting structure and planting acreage were analyzed to explore livelihood changes brought about by local land use change; Finally, impact of livelihood capitals’change on land use was analyzed from the perspective of farmers’ livelihood.The results showed as follows:firstly, for the five types of livelihood capitals, financial capital exhibited the highest index of 0.994, physical capital exhibited the lowest of 0.313, while natural capital, human capital and social capital ranked in between with respective indexes of 0.662,0.569 and 0.479. As farmers were transforming from pure agriculture to non-agriculture, their lilvelihood capitals showed an upward trend. Secondly, livelihood capital is the basis for farmers’livelihood strategies. Natural and physical capitals exerted the most significant impact on farmers’choice of pure agricultural livelihood strategies; natural, physical and social capitals exerted the most significant impact on farmers’choice of agricultural dominant ones, while human, financial and social capitals exerted the most significant impact on farmers’choice of non-agricultural dominant ones. Meanwhile, financial and social capitals were the key factors affecting farmers’ conversion from pure agricultural to agricultural dominant strategies, financial and human capitals were the key factors affecting farmers’conversion from pure agricultural to non-agricultural dominant strategies. Thirdly, as farmers were transforming from pure agriculture to non-agriculture, the labor force gradually shift to non-agricultural activities, which results in more simple planting structure, reduced planting acreage and finally total land transfer. Finally, with changes of livelihood capitals, farmers’planting structure and planting acreage also change accordingly. Change of livelihoods capitals was one of the drivers for local land use change.