Evaluation of the sustainable livelihoods of farming households in traditional village tourism areas: A case study of four typical traditional villages in Chenzhou City, Hunan Province

Abstract

Farming households are the main actors of traditional village protection and tourism development, and their livelihood sustainability is closely related to the sustainable development of traditional villages. In the past decade, under the influence of national policies and relevant systems concerning the protection and utilization of traditional villages, village cultural heritage protection and tourism development are gradually integrated into the original livelihood system of farmers and a complex and dynamic livelihood system has being formed. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the sustainable livelihoods of farmers in traditional village tourism areas from a systematic and comprehensive perspective. This can not only provide decisionmaking support for farming household sustainable livelihood construction and poverty alleviation, but also help to understand the internal reasons for the hollowing out and decline of traditional villages, and provide a scientific decisionmaking basis for stimulating the endogenous development power of traditional villages. Based on the Sustainable Livelihood Framework (SLF) proposed by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the special attributes of traditional villages as living heritages, a sustainable livelihood evaluation indicator system of traditional village farming households in the context of tourism development was constructed from five aspects: Vulnerability background, livelihood capital, livelihood strategy, structure and process transformation, and livelihood outcome, and four typical traditional villages, including Shazhou Village in Rucheng County, Banliang Village in Yongxing County, Aoshang Village in Suxian District, and Yangshan Village in Guiyang County of Chenzhou City, Hunan Province, were empirically examined. The study found that: 1) The sustainable livelihood level of farming households in Chenzhou traditional village tourism areas is at a medium level, and the levels in different traditional villages are significantly different. Shazhou Village is at a relatively high level and the other three are at a medium level. 2) The sustainable livelihood level of farming households participating in tourism in traditional villages is significantly higher than those who do not participate in tourism. Participation in tourism can not only improve the sustainable livelihood level of farming households, but also help them to understand the policies and institutions related to the protection and utilization of traditional villages, increase their awareness of cultural relic protection, cultural inheritance, and environmental protection, and enhance their cultural confidence. 3) The shortage of natural and human capitals, the lack of diversity of farming household livelihood strategies, the low willingness of farmers to participate in tourism, and the weak role of the government and tourism enterprises in promoting tourism are the key factors hindering the sustainable livelihood of farming households in Chenzhou traditional village tourism areas. Therefore, the sustainable livelihood level of farming households in traditional village tourism areas should be improved by optimizing the quality and structure of household natural and human capitals, encouraging farmers to actively participate in tourism, and strengthening the leading role of the government and enterprises.