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Cultivated land is the cornerstone of agricultural production, and its green utilization efficiency is directly linked to the sustainable development of the ecological environment. To investigate the impact and mechanisms of rural entrepreneurship and innovation (REI) on the cultivated land green utilization efficiency (CLGUE), this study employs a Super-SBM with undesired output to estimate the CLGUE of 27 provincial-level administrative units in China from 2014 to 2022. Using a fixed-effects model, the study analyzes the impact of REI on CLGUE and reaches the following conclusions: (1) An increase in REI has a significant positive effect on CLGUE across all provinces, and this conclusion remains robust after testing. (2) Heterogeneity analysis indicates that the positive impact of REI on CLGUE is more pronounced in the eastern and central regions, as well as in areas with lower urbanization rates and higher levels of digital inclusive finance development. (3) Mechanism analysis reveals that REI promotes improvements in CLGUE through three pathways: driving agricultural technological progress, increasing investment in agriculture, and optimizing labor allocation. (4) The impact of REI on CLGUE exhibits a threshold effect; once REI reaches a certain level, its promotional effect is further strengthened. (5) Farm household cultivation scale acts as a negative moderator in the relationship between REI and CLGUE; the higher the proportion of farm households cultivating large-scale cultivated land, the less significant the impact of REI on CLGUE. (6) Stable farmland tenure relationships better facilitate the promotional effect of REI on CLGUE. This study provides theoretical support and practical guidance for optimizing green cultivated land utilization models and improving the quality of cultivated land utilization.
Kong et al. (Sat,) studied this question.