Role-Co-Authored

The study presents the CHANS-SD-YRB model, developed using a System Dynamics approach to simulate coupled human-natural systems in the Yellow River basin, effectively integrating ten critical sectors for human-water interactions. The model demonstrates strong historical accuracy and projects that while economic growth and food security may improve by 2100, significant challenges such as ecological trade-offs and resource limitations will complicate sustainable development in the region, highlighting the necessity for integrated policy solutions.

This review highlights the significant anthropogenic impacts on the hydrological cycle and sediment dynamics of the Yellow River Basin since the 1950s, noting a 90% reduction in sediment transport due to conservation efforts, which has led to increased evapotranspiration and reduced runoff. The findings emphasize the need for dynamic monitoring and a better understanding of human-hydrological interactions to address potential resource crises and ecosystem degradation in the region.

This study classifies 166 countries based on their performance in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into five groups, revealing that no country excels in all SDGs and highlighting the need for targeted actions and better-aligned development aid to facilitate sustainable transformations. The findings emphasize that prioritizing certain SDGs, like industry and innovation, can help lower-performing countries achieve more sustainable development.

This study quantifies the spatiotemporal variations in irrigation water requirements (IWR) for major crops in the Yellow River Basin, revealing significant mismatches between IWR and actual water supply, particularly in the middle and lower reaches, with future projections indicating that these discrepancies may worsen. The findings underscore the need for institutional adaptations to improve water resilience and sustainability in the region.

The article highlights the ongoing challenges in the human-water relationship in the Yellow River basin, despite progress in controlling soil erosion and river flow interruptions. It identifies key issues such as decreased sediment transport, worsening water scarcity, and significant changes in human-water dynamics, while proposing future strategies focused on data collection, infrastructure development, integrated water management, and ecological restoration to ensure sustainable water resources and maintain the river’s flow.

This study presents a conceptual modeling framework for coupled human and natural systems (CHANS) in the Yellow River Basin, focusing on human-water dynamics through a system dynamics approach. The framework effectively captures interactions between key human and natural components, successfully reproducing historical trends and predicting future scenarios, thereby offering valuable insights for enhancing regional sustainability efforts.

This study of the Lower Yellow River Floodplain reveals that hydrological changes since the 1990s have weakened the flood-prone nature of the area, leading to reduced surface water and inundation of cropland, while agricultural intensity has increased more rapidly within the floodplain compared to surrounding areas. The findings highlight the impact of river stabilization from upstream regulation on human-nature interactions, emphasizing the need for integrated river governance in floodplain management.

SDG interactions showed nonlinear changes as the SDG Index increased:SDGs were both more positively and more negatively connected at low and high sustainable development levels, but they were clustered into more isolated positive connection groups at middle levels.

Understanding how ecological restoration affects the regional water balance is important for scientific desertification management. Using remote sensing satellite images and meteorological data, we analyzed the impacts of ecological restoration on water resources in the Kubuqi Desert during 1986–2017.

After reviewing the social-ecological effects of 23 ecosystem restoration programs in Asia’s drylands, we find that these programs mainly contribute to SDGs synergistically, but the tradeoffs between social-ecological effects still exists.