Zone-Based Clustered Rural Development: Functional Value, Collaborative Mechanisms, and Practice Typologies

Abstract

Zone-based clustered rural development represents an important practical exploration in advancing rural revitalization. Compared with single-village development, zone-based clustered rural development demonstrates functional extensions in resource coordination, benefit sharing, and public service provision. At the mechanism level, zone-based clustered rural development operates through three interconnected mechanisms: resource reorganization, benefit coordination, and scalar governance. At the typological level, this study distills the eight models in Zhejiang into three practice pathways—organizational intermediary construction, industrial network collaboration and spatial platform activation—each corresponding to distinct resource endowments and local conditions.