Rapid urbanization has accelerated farmland transfer in China, which in turn has increased the cultivation intensity of non-grain farmland (NGF). The aim of this paper was to analyze the spatial patterns of non-grain farmland (NGF) at municipal-level cities in China from 2000 to 2014, and explore the influence of urbanization and farmland transfer on the spatial patterns of non-grain farmland (NGF). The study found that both NGF area and share have a consistent variation trend which increased first, then decreased, and increased again. There were great differences between NGF area and share, which had various spatial patterns. Global Moran’s I of NGF area and share had strong positive spatial autocorrelations in 2000, 2005, 2010, and 2014, and revealed remarkable clustered spatial patterns. Local spatial autocorrelation analysis found that the spatial agglomeration pattern of the NGF area and the share changed significantly from 2000 to 2014. The spatial patterns of NGF were significantly influenced by regional differences in urbanization and farmland transfer. These results provide critical insights for formulating differential farmland transfer policies and policies for sustainable development of agriculture and rural economy in China.

Rapid urbanization and industrialization with their negative repercussions draw attention to the need for urban sustainability. This research built on the urban systems understanding linked with resource utilization, environmental effects, people-environment interactions, and adaptive management by integrating quantitative modelling of urban metabolism with a qualitative investigation into human responses. A hybrid methodology was applied in a typical industrial city of Jinchang, China, which exemplified a model of how complex urban dynamics link to and inform sustainability transitions. The study found that Jinchang City had taken on an unsustainable trajectory underpinned by continuous growth of material consumption, whereas a potential for sustainability transitions was also observed in decoupled negative material outputs, improved material efficiency, and environment regeneration collectively. The challenges in industrial cities have been framed in terms of development model lock-in, conceptual and institutional constraints, innovation and human capital deficiencies, and governance failure. The research proposed a government-led transformation system that integrates multi-level and multi-perspective transformations and management employing discipline insights to facilitate urban sustainability transitions. This involves governance, economic and technological innovations, social transformations, and implementations, in which urban governance and public engagement are essential elements for adapting to undesirable difficulties and exploring locally appropriate strategies. This research provided a theoretical and empirical basis along with scientific and policy implications, which contributed to the developing interdisciplinary knowledge on the understanding of complex urban systems and provided insights into real-world sustainability solutions.

A spatial autocorrelation analysis method is adopted to process the spatial dynamic change of industrial Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) discharge in China over the past 15 years. Studies show that amount and intensity of industrial COD discharges are on a decrease, and the tendency is more remarkable for discharge intensity. There are large differences between inter-provincial discharge amount and intensity, and with different spatial differentiation features. Global spatial autocorrelation analysis reveals that Global Moran’s I of discharge amount and intensity is on the decrease. In space, there is an evolution from an agglomeration pattern to a discretization pattern. Local spatial autocorrelation analysis shows that the agglomeration area of industrial COD discharge amount and intensity varies greatly in space with time. Stringent environmental regulations and increased funding for environmental protections are the crucial factors to cut down industrial COD discharge amount and intensity.

Along with the globally increasing concern for environmental sustainability, improving urban industrial land use efficiency (UILUE) is critically important for China’s development trajectory. However, the existent studies on UILUE in China are mainly conducted at the provincial level, which significantly undermines their value for tailoring practical policy formulations for lower-level governments. To fill this gap, this paper aims to investigate the spatial and temporal pattern of UILUE in China at the prefectural level, examining the underpinning influential factors for the period 2000–2014. Employing the means of spatial autocorrelation and regression, it is found that UILUE in China has improved significantly over the past decade in general but is also accompanied by significant spatial variations. UILUE is positively related to the agglomeration of industries, labour, capital, and technology, in which technology has fundamental effects upon the other factors. It is suggested to policy makers that government policy interventions should be placed predominantly upon technology regulation, i.e., setting admittance criterion for foreign direct investment (FDI), and industrial investment. For future studies, consistent efforts ought to be exerted to examine UILUE at and even under the prefectural level to achieve better understanding among academics and policy practitioners.