Examines the evolution of Sustainable Rural Livelihoods research, highlighting the transition from asset-based to socio-ecological approaches in relation to sustainable development goals.
Sustainable Rural Livelihoods (SRL) research remains anchored in an asset‐based framework that inadequately explains how livelihood transformations occur within broader sustainability transitions. Using the Scientific Procedures and Rationales for Systematic Literature Reviews (SPAR‐4‐SLR) protocol and mapping tools (biblioMagika, Biblioshiny and VOSviewer), this study examines the intellectual structure and thematic evolution of SRL‐SDGs research across the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and post‐COVID periods. The findings reveal a conceptual shift from an asset‐based interpretation towards a relational perspective that positions livelihoods within an interconnected socio‐ecological system. However, institutional differentiation and distributional dynamics remain underexplored in the literature. Interpreting the bibliometric clusters through the Sustainable Livelihood Framework (SLF), Capability Approach (CA) and socio‐ecological resilience perspective reveals how governance conditions shape capability expansion and mediate livelihood transformation. This study provides a theoretically grounded interpretation of conceptual change in SRL‐SDGs research, directly relevant to SDGs 1, 2, 8, 13 and 17.
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Moyo et al. (2026) studied this question.
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