Accounting for spatial coupling to assess the interactions between human well-being and environmental performance

Understanding the spatio-temporal interactions between ecosystem services (ESs) and the progress of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is crucial in arid regions due to the more intense conflicts between human well-being and environmental performance. However, the interactions over distance and their spatial connectivity network among regions are often neglected, influencing the advancements in policy making especially in arid basin. Here a comprehensive framework that integrated ESs and SDGs was proposed to assess the spatial coupling between human well-being and environmental performance within and across regions in the Heihe River Basin (HRB), the second largest inland river basin in China. Then the Random Forests method was employed to identify the key driving factors of the interactions. The results are as follows: (1) The coupling that accounts for both local and distant effects was higher than that only considers local effects. The interactions of all regions that considered both were more balanced, suggesting that spatial interactions among regions promoted the supplies of ES and the progress of SDGs. (2) The midstream of HRB formed a stronger spatial connectivity network. (3) Land use intensity, population density, and water scarcity showed a strong influence on the interactions. This study provides targeted suggestions to guide sustainable development for better human well-being while maintaining ecosystem health for better environmental performance. [Display omitted] •The human well-being and environmental performance interactions were assessed.•The interactions are quantified with region and between regions over distance.•The coupling that considers distant effect was more balanced than that does not.•Strategies for sustainable management of Heihe river basin were suggested.