To interpret the intrinsic relationship between the order of desertification control and the order of residents' production and life from the perspective of residents' subjectivity is of great practical significance for promoting sustainable ecology restoration in karst mountainous areas. This study takes Zhenfeng county, Guizhou province as the research area, and identifies typical villages for desertification control through remote sensing interpretation. Based on the theoretical framework of cultural ecosystem services, an evaluation index system for village residents' perception of desertification control is constructed. Regression models are used to examine the impact of residents' perception of desertification control on cultural benefits, and to delineate the mechanism through which cultural benefits for village residents are shaped under such initiatives. Results indicate that: (1) Village residents have shown a positive feedback trend towards the effectiveness of desertification control. (2) The three variables that characterize the perception of environmental space governance have a significant positive impact on the level of cultural ecosystem benefits. From the perspective of sub-dimensional effects, there is a correlation between the perception of cultural benefits and the interaction characteristics between space and residents. (3) The two variables representing perceptions of cultural practice reshaping both exhibit a significant positive effect on the level of cultural ecosystem benefits, though their influences vary across different sub‑dimensions. Among them, the impact of reshaping perception through leisure activities on ability development is not significant. (4) Under the influence of desertification control initiatives, the cultural ecosystem benefits for village residents emerge through a sequential mechanism: "governance project implementation → community practice response → cultural ecosystem benefits generation." This pathway further promotes the expansion of governance objectives from ecological restoration to broader community development.
Li et al. (Thu,) studied this question.