Evaluation of rural restructuring on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau of China from the perspective of Production-Living-Ecological functions

Rural development plays a critical role in national progress by narrowing the urban-rural gap and advancing sustainable development. Rural restructuring is an important way to assess the level of rural development, and comprehensive research into rural restructuring serves as the foundation for rural development. The Qinghai–Tibet Plateau in China has poor natural conditions, a weak rural economic foundation, a fragile ecological environment, and a lack of sufficient research on rural restructuring in this region. This paper develops a comprehensive evaluation indicator system for rural restructuring from the perspective of the Production-Living-Ecological functions, analyzes the spatiotemporal patterns of rural restructuring on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau from 2000 to 2020, investigates the characteristics of the evolution of rural restructuring in the region, and classifies rural restructuring types. The results show that: (1) Rural restructuring on the plateau continued from 2000 to 2020, but comprehensive functional restructuring intensity decreased from 7.333 to 5.991. Although living restructuring showed a fluctuating increase. production and ecological functional restructuring intensities declined. (2) The spatial differences and aggregation of rural restructuring are evident. Spatially, production and living functional restructuring are high in the south and east but low in the north, whereas ecological functional restructuring shows high values in the north and south with low intensities in the central plateau. (3) Based on the contribution rate at each stage of rural restructuring, rural restructuring of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau can be categorized: slow restructuring type, rapid restructuring type, and lagging restructuring type. This study provides a dynamic measurement of rural development changes and offers insights for promoting sustainable rural development.