Characterising the urban–rural fringe area (URFA) in China: a review of global and local literature on urban–rural fringe areas
Ke Wang, İan Mell, Jeremy Carter
Abstract
Urban-Rural Fringe Areas (URFAs) in China have experienced significant change since 1978 due to extensive urban growth and sprawl. This article explores the characteristics of URFAs in China through a scoping review approach. Analysis identifies that URFAs in China possess features that are located in and connected to urban and rural areas, mixed land use, occupied by both urban and rural populations, and driven by changes in social structure, economic development and policy implementation. These findings are consistent with URFAs in a global context, illustrating synergies in academic and practitioner approaches. However, China’s URFAs are unique due to the country’s social structure, topographical diversity, divergent urban diversity and the regional variations that exist within urban development policies and strategies. The article contributes to a better understanding of the characteristics of URFAs in China, providing guidance for future policy to support more effective and sustainable development. This article was published open access under a CC BY licence: https://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/ .