The Influence Mechanism of Agricultural Heritage Systems Conservation on Farmers’ Sustainable Livelihoods: Evidence from Tea Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems in China

Agricultural Heritage Systems (AHS), which embody economic, ecological, and social sustainability, are critically important for leveraging these dimensions to advance the sustainable development of farmers’ livelihoods. Utilizing a newly developed evaluation index system for sustainable livelihoods, this study applies mediating effect models to cross-sectional survey data collected from farmers to investigate the mechanisms through which AHS conservation influences their sustainable livelihoods. The analysis focuses on two Tea Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (Tea-GIAHS) sites in Fujian Province, China: the Anxi Tieguanyin Tea Culture System (ATTCS) and the Fuding White Tea Culture System (FWTCS). The findings indicate that Tea-GIAHS conservation significantly enhances farmers’ sustainable livelihoods, primarily by fostering the scaling and industrialization of traditional agricultural operations. Furthermore, the positive effects are more pronounced among households with higher initial livelihood levels, higher incomes, and those primarily engaged in agriculture. Consequently, this study recommends that AHS sites enhance support for large-scale traditional farming practices among farmers and continuously improve and extend the industrial and value chains of traditional agriculture to further promote livelihood sustainability.