China’s multi-dimensional ecological well-being performance evaluation: A new method based on coupling coordination model

Abstract

With increasing pressure on the global ecological environment, natural capital has become scarce. Improving the well-being of residents within a limited ecological environment is a fundamental requirement for sustainable development. This paper constructs a novel multidimensional evaluation framework to make well-being performance (EWP) evaluation results comprehensive and universal. Meanwhile, the vertical and horizontal opening grade method, coupled coordination model, and spatial exploratory data analysis (ESDA) were introduced to measure and analyse EWP, which provides new ideas for EWP evaluation research. The results show that (1) the EWP of each dimension in China is not high, but the EWP of each dimension shows a good upwards trend. The EWPs of each dimension can basically remain stable or enter the primary coordination stage. (2) There is a north–south difference in EWP, which is opposite to the economic difference; that is, EWP in the north is better than that in the south. (3) The EWP of each dimension is also different, which shows an arrangement pattern of city dimension > province dimension > region dimension. (4) EWP is generally higher in provincial capital cities, which is significantly different from other cities in local provinces. The basic reason for this difference comes from the snowball effect of the provincial capital city itself and the siphon effect it has on the surrounding cities. (5) The spatial autocorrelation characteristics of EWP were significantly positive, showing a strong agglomeration pattern in space..