A New Perspective on Functional Zoning by Integrating Coupling Coordination Analysis of Ecological Environment and Urbanization Level: A Case Study of Inner Mongolia

Yu Liu, Zhengjia Liu (), Wenfeng Chi (), Bowen Jin, Xun Zhang and Yu Wang
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Yu Liu: Department of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, Beijing Technology and Business University, Beijing 100048, China
Zhengjia Liu: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Wenfeng Chi: College of Resources and Environmental Economics, Inner Mongolia University of Finance and Economics, Hohhot 010070, China
Bowen Jin: Department of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, Beijing Technology and Business University, Beijing 100048, China
Xun Zhang: Department of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, Beijing Technology and Business University, Beijing 100048, China
Yu Wang: Department of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, Beijing Technology and Business University, Beijing 100048, China

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 8, 1-18

Abstract: Rapid urbanization intensifies disturbances to the ecological environment, underscoring the urgent need for effective strategies to guide regional development towards sustainability. Functional zoning offers a promising approach to address this challenge. However, in eco-fragile regions, functional zoning has often failed to incorporate the spatially explicit coupling coordination degree (CCD) between ecological environment and urbanization level. Taking Inner Mongolia as a case study, this study evaluated the spatial coordination between these two systems by leveraging geographic big data. Functional zones were then delineated using the K-means clustering method, incorporating the geospatial relationships between ecological environment and urbanization level. Results revealed significant geospatial heterogeneity in both ecological environment and urbanization level. Ecological environment generally declined from east to west, while urbanization was generally low throughout the region. Substantial variations in CCD were observed, with the global Moran’s I value confirming a significant spatial clustering pattern. Based on the findings above, five functional zones were identified, with the urbanization promotion zone as the dominant one. This study provides a valuable reference for regional pattern optimization and sustainable development of social-ecological systems.

Keywords: coupling coordination degree; ecological environment; urbanization level; geographic big data; functional zoning (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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