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The vast majority of rural settlements in Western China are located in the ecologically sensitive and diverse mountainous environment, which also experienced rapid changes in policy and institutional interventions over the past 40 years. At present, in the transitional period of "post-poverty alleviation," they have more opportunities to re-integrate themselves into the large regional development. However, there is a lack of systematic evaluation and cognition of the related functions of the spatial structure between the settlements at the regional village scale and town scale. Therefore, in this paper, the theory of complex adaptive system and its analytical NK model were introduced, and a quantitative measurement framework was constructed for the adaptability level of this kind of rural settlement spatial structure organization so as to explore the effective path for its global optimization. Taking Xinglong Town of Chongqing in the western mountainous area as an example, it was found from the analysis that (1) the number of villages at a high comprehensive adaptation level has increased over time, which has an obvious positive correlation with the construction of transportation network, and a structural adsorption effect. (2) The spatial structure of the rural settlement system in the region has changed from weak industrial nodes – traffic single branch connection – public service decentralized coverage in 2010 to the organizational adaptation characteristics of stable industrial agglomeration – traffic expansion and extension – public service continuous coverage in 2019. (3) The spatial elements related to industry and public service in each village have an increasingly significant impact on the reconstruction and differentiation of its spatial structure. Finally, based on the changing trend of adaptability level and the correlation characteristics of regional space, in this paper, the spatial structure optimization strategy of Xinglong Town is put forward, which provides a reference basis for the coordinated development of the town and village space under the township-level planning in the western region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The variability of renewable energy generation and its mismatch with demand may lead to curtailment issues, which necessitates the deployment of energy storage on a significantly larger scale. A‐CAES is a promising technology for its green ability and technology maturity to serve as grid's load following. However, previous research mainly focuses on system analysis and core component optimal, and the performance of A‐CAES when constructing with renewable resources has not been fully addressed. In this paper, a comprehensive evaluation on A‐CAES is presented based on an annual photovoltaic (PV) output in western China. The A‐CAES is modeled from the systematic perspective and the PV output is classified into four types (sunny, mostly‐sunny, mostly‐cloudy, and cloudy). First, the performance with different weather and different rated power of A‐CAES is fully investigated. Then, performance availability with different rated power has been proposed—the optimal condition occurs with average 5.936 MWh/day capacity and 53.49% efficiency on 1800 kW rated power. The evaluation framework is suitable for evaluating the role of CAES with other sources and such result provides a reference for A‐CAES designing and further application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coordinated development of rural infrastructure and ecological environment is an effective way to improve agricultural productivity. The primary focus of the current research is how the two can work together to promote regional economic development in rural areas and in related fields. This study takes the western region as the research object, constructs an evaluation index system for rural infrastructure and ecological environment, and uses the Min-max Scaling method, coupling coordination model, gray GM (1, 1) model, and standard deviation elliptical model for evaluation. The trends and driving factors for the coordinated development of rural infrastructure and ecological coupling in the region from 2012 to 2021 are analyzed. The main results are as follows: (1) Except for Tibet, Qinghai, and Ningxia, the coupling degree of rural infrastructure and the ecological environment in western China reached the maximum level during the research period, also the coordination degree showed a gradual upward trend. (2) A prediction for the development and evolution of rural infrastructure and the ecological environment in western China indicates a trend of agglomerative development in the southern region. (3) By strengthening the construction of reservoirs, improving sanitary conditions, improving cultivated land use area and forest coverage, and controlling soil erosion, the coordinated development of the two can be effectively promoted. The purpose of this study is to promote the sustainable and coordinated development of rural infrastructure and ecological environment, and to provide a reference for policy formulation in the relevant sectors and other countries and regions with similar situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The establishment of enterprises as the mainstay of commercial breeding mechanism is the inevitable choice of China's seed industry modernization and food security. But the R&D strength of Chinese seed enterprise is still weak; they need to cooperate with scientific institutions. This paper aims to investigate scientific institutions'[1] willingness to participate in science-enterprise cooperation[2] and the factors influencing their selection. The Logistic model was used to analyze the impact factors of scientific institutions' willingness.365 respondents from 53 units of four major agricultural province in western China were surveyed. The results indicate that the factors such as technology transfer mode, the cooperation enterprise' ability to accept and recreate, leaders' recognition degree, personnel regulation, incentive regulation, distribution of benefit and risk regulation, support from the government's policy and law guarantee have positive effect on scientific institutions' selection. It first analyzes the scientific institutions' selection of choosing cooperative breed enterprises in transition period, and investigates the commercial breeding mechanism more scientifically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to global warming and other climate changes, it is increasingly important to study the response of regional environmental changes and dynamic changes in vegetation to climate change. Based on meteorological data from the last 60 years, this paper calculates the humidity index of western China under a wide range of long time series in different regions and explores the cross-correlation effect between series by offering a comparison with NDVI data, to analyze the cross-correlation between wet and dry changes and changes in vegetation in western China on a spatial scale. The results show that the spatial distribution of the interdecadal humidity index is different between different regions in western China. For example, the semi-arid and the semi-humid zones of the Weihe River region exhibit significant changes, while the Xinjiang and Qinghai–Tibet regions show a trend of constant wetness, on the whole, and the Sichuan and Yunnan–Guizhou regions are relatively humid and the distribution of wetness and dryness is relatively stable. The distribution of high and low values of the humidity index is very obvious and consistent with that of the distribution of desert bare land and precipitation in western China. In common with the distribution in the humidity index, the maximum correlation number between the NDVI and the humidity index in the whole western region is also significantly different in spatial distribution. There is a positive correlation between the NDVI and the humidity index in 99% of the study area. However, the delay in response time of the NDVI to changes in the humidity index in each region is inconsistent. For example, changes in the NDVI lag changes in the humidity index in the Menggan region by generally either 2 months or 5 months, while in the Sichuan region the delay in response time is generally 3 months. The variation and trend in dry and wet areas are closely related to the geographical location, climate zone, and topographic terrain, which may be the reason for the differences in the distribution of vegetation types and the response time to dry and wet changes. There is significant interaction between the humidity index and the vegetation type or precipitation distribution in western China. The positive correlation between the NDVI and the humidity index means that the positive effect is more sensitive, and the response of grassland is the most sensitive in the ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Architectural Journal / Jian Zhu Xue Bao is the property of Architectural Journal Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Entrepreneurial followers are defined as the crucial members of a specific entrepreneurial team and do not include the leader or normal employees in the present paper. This population can be viewed as indispensable factors in the success of entrepreneurship, especially in the start-up stage. In addition, according to the following time, they can be divided into two groups, namely long-term entrepreneurial followers and short-term entrepreneurial followers. However, studies focusing on entrepreneurship cultivation for entrepreneurial followers are relatively few. The main purpose of this paper is to determine the needs of Chinese entrepreneurial followers in entrepreneurship cultivation from the early stage of entrepreneurship. In this paper, a sample of 200 long-term entrepreneurial followers from Tianfu New Area in China was investigated. To enable the researchers to explore the unique opinions of entrepreneurial followers, a mixed data collection approach that combined interviews and questionnaires was chosen in this study. The results revealed following findings: (a) high levels of social capital, good entrepreneurial opportunities and projects, and highly cooperative teams were viewed as the most important factors for entrepreneurship by entrepreneurial followers in China; (b) most entrepreneurial followers believed that the primary difficulty in the cultivation process was the inefficiency in talent training mechanism; and (c) nearly 40% of samples suggested that the cultivation and enhancement of local talents should be firstly carried out by the Chinese government, indicating a gap between the supporting force for local and returned talents in China. In addition, various types of incentive policies and good environments for talent growth were also considered as important suggestions by entrepreneurial followers. We found that unlike entrepreneurial leaders, entrepreneurial followers focus more on income expectation, and personal development rather than supporting the development of companies in China. These findings should be viewed as priorities when enhancing current entrepreneurship cultivation in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Geography & Geographic Information Science is the property of Geography & Geo-Information Science Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Migrant workers in China and their children too frequently are treated as outsiders in the city. This paper explores and compares the opportunities for female Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) students in western rural areas of China. Learning from migrant girls how they perceive and evaluate benefits in and from their schooling provides us insights into how TVET played a role in achievements that rural migrant girls value and enact. The capability approach specified for education is used as a structure to assess TVET as experienced by its participants. This research shows that despite its deficiencies and obscurity within socio-economic structures, for the current generation of young rural migrant girls, TVET education was highly accessible, provided a singular opportunity and space to equip them with some skills and knowledge, and enhanced their capabilities to participate in a rapidly changing urbanizing economy. TVET education created changes on both individual and collective levels. Rural migrant girls' opportunities were constrained by unequal migration patterns and were structured along intersections of gender and ethnic lines. Implications for improving TVET policy include improved information flow, diversification of TVET curriculums, standardization of regulations, and increased opportunities for female and ethnic students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study uses the 2012 household skills survey conducted by the World Bank in Kunming, China, to investigate the relationship between personality traits and entrepreneurial development with a discrete choice model. The paper systematically examines whether different kinds of personality characteristics measured by the Big Five traits (extroversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness, emotional stability. and openness) and risk preference influence entrepreneurial development in western China. The analysis indicates that personalities have significant effects on entrepreneurship behavior in general. In particular, individuals with higher risk preferences, extroversion, emotional stability, and conscientiousness are associated with a higher probability of choosing entrepreneurship. However, other factors have negligible impacts on entrepreneurship in our results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Groundwater quality issues are becoming as important as groundwater quantity issues, making groundwater quality research a hot topic worldwide. With human activity intensifying in western China as a result of the West Development Program and the Silk Road economic belt project of China, groundwater quality in western China is deteriorating rapidly. This special issue of Exposure and Health promotes groundwater quality research to respond to these challenges. This introductory article details the challenges faced by contemporary groundwater quality researchers, and proposes ways to advance groundwater quality research in western China. The paper also introduces the articles that follow in this special issue. The key goal of this work is to encourage new and experienced scholars to engage with this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Burnout is prevalent among pediatric residents. Self-efficacy and resilience, as concepts of positive psychology, may be protective factors for burnout. However, no current data demonstrates the mechanism of their interaction. Objectives: To investigate the pediatric residents' status of self-efficacy, resilience, and job burnout in a university-affiliated hospital in western China. To explore relationships among them, especially the mediating effects of resilience. Methods: The study was conducted with 190 pediatric residents from an A-Class women's and children's hospital in western China. Data included demographic characteristics, status of pediatric residents, measures of burnout (using the Physicians' Career Burnout Questionnaire), self-efficacy (using the General Self-Efficacy Scale) and resilience (using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale). Multiple regression analysis and mediation analysis with bootstrapping were used to identify whether resilience mediates the relationship between self-efficacy and burnout. Results: Female pediatric residents exhibited significantly lower self-efficacy (t = 2.53, p<0.05) and higher levels of job burnout (t=-2.64, p<0.01) compared to male residents. Residents in the standardized training stage experienced higher levels of job burnout compared to those who had completed the training, as indicated by t-values of -3.21, -2.13, and − 2.80 (p<0.05). Significant correlations (p ≤ 0.01) were found among self-efficacy, resilience, and burnout. Additionally, our findings indicated that pediatric residents' self-efficacy can positively predict job burnout and its three dimensions through a major mediating effect of resilience. Conclusions: The findings regarding the mediating effect of resilience on the influence of self-efficacy on burnout, and their association with gender and residency status, have practical implications for interventions aimed at reducing burnout and improving the well-being of pediatric residents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, China has entered the development stage of a "low birth rate" demographically. There is a huge contradiction between the unbalanced and inadequate distribution of preschool education facilities (PEFs) and the people's expectations for "full and good education for children". This study took the Lingui New District, a typical new urban area in West China as the research area, and through the introduction of POI big data and GIS analysis methods, supplemented by GeoDA Bivariate Moran index analyses, established a kindergarten spatial database. The study found that preschool education facilities have problems such as insufficient quantity, uneven quality, low service coverage, poor accessibility, etc. Therefore, it is suggested to increase the proportion of public affordable preschool education facilities including kindergartens and nurseries, optimize the spatial distribution of preschool education, and improve the accessibility of preschool services to promote affordable, safe, and high-quality development of preschool education and to provide reference suggestions for the revision of relevant standards and the adjustment of the layout of preschool education in undeveloped regions of China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to reveal the unsafe factors in the whole life cycle of the water diversion open channel in the dry and cold areas in western China, it is necessary to avoid frequent diseases of open channel in this area, which brings great losses to society and economy. In this paper, for the western dry and cold regions unique climatic and geological conditions, according to the Code for Design of Irrigation and Drainage Canal System Structures and combined with the expert consultation and the previous team’s study on characteristics of open channel diseases in this area, this paper established the safety index system of diversion channel and used the gray Euclid theoretical model to evaluate the safety of the whole life cycle. This paper used IAHP to solve the weight of each index, used gray Euclid association theory to determine the correlation between the indicators and finally got the relative gray Euclid weighted correlation degree of diversion channel safely sort. Taking four open channel sections in the dry and cold areas of western China for an example, the paper applied the gray Euclid model to evaluate the safety. The conclusion was in agreement with the actual situation. The research result shows that the model is effective and practical for the safety evaluation of the open channel in western China and it can provide an important basis for the safety management of open channel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poverty is a chronic problem all over the world. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China was held in 2012, the Chinese government has continuously increased its poverty alleviation efforts. In addition, absolute poverty in China was eliminated by the end of 2020. Tourism has played an important role in poverty alleviation. To explore the role of the tourism industry in reducing poverty, this paper takes the Liupan Mountain area of Gansu Province in western China, as a case site. An input–output evaluation index system was constructed, and a Super-SBM model was used to evaluate the tourism poverty alleviation efficiency in 40 districts and counties in the Liupan Mountain area from 2009 to 2018. The results show that the overall starting point of tourism poverty alleviation efficiency in the study area was high, which needed to be further optimized. The difference in tourism poverty alleviation efficiency among districts and counties tended to decrease in the time series. The restrictive factors were the lack of technological progress and lack of innovation. The spatial distribution of tourism poverty alleviation efficiency in the study area presented a pattern of high in the east and low in the west, high in the north and low in the south. In the future, the tourism poverty alleviation efficiency in the concentrated and contiguous destitute areas of the Liupan Mountain area in Gansu Province could be improved by cultivating the tourism industry, strengthening technological innovation, cultivating core growth poles, and exerting radiation effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ancient marine strata in large basins in western China (the Ordos, Sichuan and Tarim Basins) are complicated by multi-stage structural transformation, which makes it difficult to accurately identify and analyze sedimentary formations and identify oil and gas exploration targets. This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the sedimentary tectonic background and infill sequences of the marine carbonate rocks in these basins, and establishes the geological structural model of typical sedimentary formations. It is found that the marine carbonates in these basins were deposited during the pre-Mesozoic discrete period of the China Block; the Ordos Basin is quasi-stable, and there was almost no clastic rock cushion in most areas before the deposition of the ancient carbonate rocks. The sub-stable Sichuan Basin and active Tarim Basin each have a clastic base. Ancient underlying rifts developed in the basement and at the margins of the three basins, containing ochsenkopf (Niutou)-type formations. During the pre-Indosin-ian, a number of different-scale paleo-uplifts were extensively formed, around which para-anticlinal formations were deposited. During tectonically stable intervals, an epicontinental sea covered the marine interior craton, and dolomite sheet formations developed in the wide tidal platform. Few of these have been studied until now. The strongly concealed Niutou, para-anticlinal and dolomite sheet formations at great burial depths and subject to tectonic/ sedimentary differentiation, are all important targets for oil and gas exploration. Therefore, how to accurately extract information about these structures that were formed and re-formed by multiple cycles of tectonic movement, and identify the fine structures of the three basins and their hydrocarbon accumulation, are challenges for the oil and gas exploration of deep marine strata, and further study is very necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving eco-efficiency can promote sustainable development. This study first evaluated the urban eco-efficiency of 84 cities in Western China from 2004 to 2017 by the undesirable-super-slack-based measure (US-SBM) and analysed their spatiotemporal characteristics, and then investigated its influencing factors using spatial econometric models. The results indicated that the urban eco-efficiency in Western China was at a relatively low level and showed a fluctuating upward trend with the highest average value of 0.65; however, capital cities of Western China have improved their eco-efficiency rapidly. Furthermore, there were obvious spatial spill-over impacts of the urban eco-efficiency in Western China. This paper also found that both the economic development level and urbanization level have “U” shaped impacts on Western China’s urban eco-efficiency, which decreases at first and then rises. Similarly, increasing the proportion of secondary industry promotes urban eco-efficiency, and FDI, trade activities, improved environmental regulations as well as technological innovation capabilities have a positive impact on urban eco-efficiency in Western China. This paper also put forward corresponding policy suggestions to promote Western China’s urban eco-efficiency. The present study may be helpful for policy-makers to balance economic development and environmental protection in Western China.

With the development of remote sensing (RS) technology and increasing demand for the application of RS in natural resources survey, RS is promoting the transformation of procedure and method in natural resources survey by means of prior-observation, prior-detection and prior-monitoring to enhance the acquisition of natural resources data and improve the accuracy and speed of survey. Based on the new changes of natural resources survey system in the new era, the paper puts forward the concept, goal and development direction of Remote Sensing First as follows: RS-first is an important part of the construction of natural resources survey and monitoring technology system, which can realize the total-factor, full-coverage, all-weather and full-scale survey and monitoring of natural resources; Through the innovation of RS technology and transformation/application of RS products, RS can play an important leading role in survey and monitoring of minerals, ecology, water, soil and disaster; The integrated satellite-aero-ground RS observation is the most effective technical means to promote the accurate and rapid survey of natural resources in western China, as well as monitoring of global-scale environmental problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Yushenfu mining area is located in an ecological fragile area in western China, the coal seam of which is the Jurassic Yan’an Formation. The Jurassic Yan’an Formation contains five minable coal seams, the top layer of which is thick, covered by shallow overburden and located under aquifers. Therefore, the mining induced water flowing fractured zone can easily extend to the aquifers of both the Quaternary Sarahu and Jurassic Zhiluo Formation. This would result in a series of negative hydrological and ecological effects, including groundwater leakage, groundwater lowering, furtherly causing surface vegetation withering and dying, surface water body reduction, spring drying out, and water flow of river being decreased substantially. To solve these environmental problems, several technologies have been carried out by Chinese scientists, one of which is water-preserved coal mining. This paper presents a review of the origin, definition and development of water-preserved coal mining, and its applications in Yushenfu mining area. The applicable conditions, research contents, research methodology, and technical foundation of water-preserved coal mining are addressed in this paper. The future research focuses regarding water-preserved coal mining in China are also discussed in this paper. Its results serve as a guide for selecting the methods to be preferred for mining in case the geological conditions, roof overburden structure and coal mining process are similar to Yushenfu mining area.

In the late 1990s, the entire population of the Aksay Kazakh Autonomous County in Gansu, China, was resettled to the newly built town of Hongliuwan. About onethird of Aksay's Kazakh population had already left before the resettlement started, migrating predominantly to Kazakhstan. In order to keep the favourable status of an Autonomous County, the remaining Kazakhs had to be persuaded to stay. This paper argues that by building the new town, the Chinese state has considerably shaped its citizen's decision-making process regarding migration. The state has offered appealing options regarding financial safety and a modern lifestyle, so that most Kazakhs in Hongliuwan would see no reason to leave anymore. This case presents an example of how the Chinese state impacts the decisions of its citizens by manifesting itself in an urban context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Entrepreneurial followers are defined as the crucial members of a specific entrepreneurial team and do not include the leader or normal employees in the present paper. This population can be viewed as indispensable factors in the success of entrepreneurship, especially in the start-up stage. In addition, according to the following time, they can be divided into two groups, namely long-term entrepreneurial followers and short-term entrepreneurial followers. However, studies focusing on entrepreneurship cultivation for entrepreneurial followers are relatively few. The main purpose of this paper is to determine the needs of Chinese entrepreneurial followers in entrepreneurship cultivation from the early stage of entrepreneurship. In this paper, a sample of 200 long-term entrepreneurial followers from Tianfu New Area in China was investigated. To enable the researchers to explore the unique opinions of entrepreneurial followers, a mixed data collection approach that combined interviews and questionnaires was chosen in this study. The results revealed following findings: (a) high levels of social capital, good entrepreneurial opportunities and projects, and highly cooperative teams were viewed as the most important factors for entrepreneurship by entrepreneurial followers in China; (b) most entrepreneurial followers believed that the primary difficulty in the cultivation process was the inefficiency in talent training mechanism; and (c) nearly 40% of samples suggested that the cultivation and enhancement of local talents should be firstly carried out by the Chinese government, indicating a gap between the supporting force for local and returned talents in China. In addition, various types of incentive policies and good environments for talent growth were also considered as important suggestions by entrepreneurial followers. We found that unlike entrepreneurial leaders, entrepreneurial followers focus more on income expectation, and personal development rather than supporting the development of companies in China. These findings should be viewed as priorities when enhancing current entrepreneurship cultivation in China.

This paper quantifies urban land use eco-efficiency (ULUEE) and explores its improvement in the context of western China. We propose a hybrid model that includes the Super-slack-based measure model (Super-SBM) and a varying co-efficient panel model using data from 11 provincial cities in the western regions of China from 2000 to 2018. The results show that overall ULUEE, pure technical efficiency and scale efficiency were ecologically inefficient. Meanwhile, ULUEE differences between cities mainly reflect different levels of pure technical efficiency. Further, the linkage between urban population density and ULUEE can be expressed in inverted-U and U-shape curves, and most cities' industrial development positively affects ULUEE, while most cities' fixed asset investments negatively affect ULUEE. Moreover, land management institutions (LMIs) play a moderator role, shaping the main impacts of industrial development on ULUEE. Therefore, the findings suggest that improving ULUEE in the western region of China should focus on attracting inflows of highly skilled people, optimizing resource allocation, and guiding/regulating local government actions. [Display omitted] • Overall urban land use eco-efficiency (ULUEE), scale efficiency and pure technical efficiency of ULUEE are estimated and found to be eco-inefficient in the studied areas. • Slowing ULUEE improvement during the studied period results from slowing improvement of scale efficiency. • ULUEE differences between cities were mainly caused by pure technical efficiency. • LMI plays a moderator role in reducing the main impacts of industrial development on ULUEE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's highly complex world, urban security has become a focus of attention for people in various positions due to its enormous uncertainty. As an essential path towards urban safety, resilient development can effectively provide emergency management capability for cities when they are exposed to unknown risks. In this study, an evaluation-index system for urban-safety resilience was constructed from the perspective of sustainable urban development. The urban-safety-resilience evaluation model was established with the help of catastrophe theory to study and analyze urban-safety resilience. The corresponding spatial–temporal-evolution analysis used the geographic information system (GIS) and Moran index to evaluate the urban-security resilience of 10 regions in western China. Finally, it was concluded that (1) the urban-safety resilience of most regions in western China showed an increasing trend over time in 2017, 2019, and 2021; (2) the urban-safety resilience of Chongqing, Sichuan, and Shaanxi provinces is at a relatively high level compared to the western region overall; and (3) regions such as Ningxia and Gansu are disaster-prone, and urban infrastructure conditions are relatively backward. Therefore, urban planning and governance should be flexibly transformed to explore and apply appropriate urban-safety-resilience models, with sustainable development as the cornerstone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Droughts have caused damage to regional agriculture in western China. The standardized precipitation index (SPI) and standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI), widely used around the globe, are employed here to increase our understanding of the drought indices, spatiotemporal characteristics, and factors related to agricultural droughts in western China; this is important for water resource management and drought forecasting in the region. Results show that both the SPEI and SPI can monitor typical agricultural droughts, but some differences appear against a background of climate change. The SPEI can generally accurately reflect variations in soil moisture in humid regions, while the SPI shows a better performance in other climate zones. Three spatially well-defined sub-regions with different temporal evolutions of droughts were identified to explain the main dry/wet variations across western China. Large-scale circulation patterns, daily extreme precipitation, daytime heatwaves, and geographic factors were found to have a potential connection with droughts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We analysed the influencing factors of urban eco-efficiency in Western China. • The US-SBM model and spatial econometric models were used for 84 cities' data. • Urban eco-efficiency showed a fluctuating upward trend during 2004–2017. • Economic development and urbanization had U-shaped impact on urban eco-efficiency. • Four explanatory variables showed a positive impact on urban eco-efficiency. Improving eco-efficiency can promote sustainable development. This study first evaluated the urban eco-efficiency of 84 cities in Western China from 2004 to 2017 by the undesirable-super-slack-based measure (US-SBM) and analysed their spatiotemporal characteristics, and then investigated its influencing factors using spatial econometric models. The results indicated that the urban eco-efficiency in Western China was at a relatively low level and showed a fluctuating upward trend with the highest average value of 0.65; however, capital cities of Western China have improved their eco-efficiency rapidly. Furthermore, there were obvious spatial spill-over impacts of the urban eco-efficiency in Western China. This paper also found that both the economic development level and urbanization level have "U" shaped impacts on Western China's urban eco-efficiency, which decreases at first and then rises. Similarly, increasing the proportion of secondary industry promotes urban eco-efficiency, and FDI, trade activities, improved environmental regulations as well as technological innovation capabilities have a positive impact on urban eco-efficiency in Western China. This paper also put forward corresponding policy suggestions to promote Western China's urban eco-efficiency. The present study may be helpful for policy-makers to balance economic development and environmental protection in Western China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]