Abstract
In the 21st century, China’s unique governance pathways for sustainable grassland transformation offer insights for the global pursuit of green development. Here, we review the transition governance pathways of grasslands across representative countries and categorise them into three types: regulatory, market-based, and hybrid. In China, the transition is predominantly guided by a hybrid governance pathway, specifically encompassing three pathways: pressure control and mitigation, vertical transfer of pressure, and horizontal transfer of pressure. Using pathway observation data from 2000 to 2021, we find these pathways often follow a three-dimensional upgrade process and multi-layered nested structure, showing pronounced stage-specific succession and significant county-level heterogeneity. Utilising fixed-effects models and random forest analysis, we further demonstrate that these governance pathways have reversed the unsustainable development trends in most grassland counties within the study area, thereby largely achieving China’s sustainable grassland transformation goals.
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Acknowledgements
Y.W., Y.C.Y., and W.Z. acknowledge funding from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 42261032 and 42371198 to Y.C.Y., W.Z.). Y.W., Y.C.Y. acknowledge funding from the Chinese Tibetan Plateau Expedition Team (grant numbers 2019QZKK1005). Y.W., Y.C.Y., and W.Z. acknowledge support of the Earth and Environmental Sciences College of Lanzhou University. OpenAccess funding enabled by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 42371198).
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Wang, Y., Yang, Y. & Zhang, W. Hybrid governance pathways driving western China’s sustainable grassland transformation.
Commun Earth Environ (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-026-03650-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-026-03650-5
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