Chapter 1 Introduction 1
1.1 Background 1
1.2 Statement of the Research Problem 5
1.3 Research Objectives 7
1.4 Research Questions 7
1.5 Rationale of the Study 8
1.6 Conceptional Framework 12
1.7 Contribution and Significance of this Study 16
1.8 The Thesis and its Structure 18
Chapter 2 Literature Review 20
2.1 Gender and Migration:Debates and Insights 20
2.1.1 Neo-classical migration theories 21
2.1.2 Political economy/structuralist 24
2.1.3 Structuration/structure-agency 28
2.1.4 Transnationalism and translocalism 33
2.1.5 A reinvigorated feminist political ecology 36
2.2 Migration,Gender and Environment:Linkages 39
2.2.1 Remittance and gender-impacts on natural resource management/resource use 39
2.2.2 Mediations in natural resources management/resource use 43
2.2.3 Migration,gender and natural resources management 49
2.3 Collective Action,Leadership and Social Remittances 50
2.4 Rural-Urban Migration in China 52
2.4.1 Social differentiations within rural societies 52
2.4.2 Social networks and social remittances 53
2.4.3 Gender dimension in understanding rural-urban migration in China 54
2.4.4 Social impacts of return migrants on sending areas 56
2.5 Social Institutions in China 57
Chapter 3 Methodology 59
3.1 Background on the Research Project 59
3.2 Qualitative Approach to Research 60
3.3 Data Collection Techniques 61
3.3.1 Secondary data 61
3.3.2 Primary data 61
3.4 Triangulations,Reflections and Validations 68
3.5 Data Analysis 69
3.6 Researcher's Role 70
Chapter 4 Wider Context of Change in China:Economy,Migration and Gender 72
4.1 Introduction 72
4.2 Economic Development and Migration 72
4.3 Collectivization,Household Contract Responsibility System(HCRS),Migration and Gender 74
4.3 Easing up rural-urban migration 74
4.3.2 Gender regimes during and after collectivization 77
4.4 The hukou System:The Reasons behind Circular Migration 79
4.5 Contemporary Migration in China 81
4.5.1 Phases 81
4.5.2 Scales and trends 81
4.5.3 Receiving and sending areas 82
4.5.4 Conditions in cities 83
4.5.5 Return migration and its social influence 83
4.6 Discussion 84
Chapter 5 Study Site:Gender,Livelihoods,Migration and Collective Actions 86
5.1 Introduction 86
5.2 Background on the Site under Study 86
5.2.1 Location of village 86
5.2.2 Village population and migrants 88
5.2.3 Village kinship and marriage system 89
5.3 Livelihood,Gender and Migration 91
5.3.1 Village Livelihoods 91
5.3.2 Gender relations within household and its changes 99
5.4 Village Migration and Gender 107
5.4.1 Contemporary migration and its gender implications 107
5.4.2 Returnees'profiles and gender 109
5.4.3 Social remittances from migration by gender 111
5.5 Resource Rights and Public Goods Provision 113
5.5.1 Exclusion and inclusion in user rights,entitlements and gender 113
5.5.2 Shifting public goods provision paradigm 114
5.6 Collective Action for Livelihood Improvement 116
5.6.1 Spontaneous collective road building 116
5.6.2 Participatory water tanks construction and management 117
5.7 Impacts of Collective Action on Natural Resources and its Management 125
5.8 Discussion 126
Chapter 6 Return Migration and Their Social Resources in Collective Road Building 129
6.1 Introduction 129
6.2 Migrant Social Remittances and Collective Action in Road Building 129
6.2.1 The possibility of a road 129
6.2.2 Pooling resources 132
6.2.3 Rule-making for labor organization 135
6.3 Changing the Ways of Leadership in the Context of Rural Migration 137
6.4 Discussion:Investing Social Capital and Re-asserting Gender,Kin and Migrant Identities for Collective Road-building 139
Chapter 7 Migrant Returnees in Village Politics and Collective Water Tanks Construction and Management 149
7.1 Introduction 149
7.2 Social Remittances in Water Tank Construction and Management 149
7.3 Male-centric Employment of Social Remittances 151
7.4 Support from the Rear 156
7.5 Gendered Kinship Support 162
7.6 Gendered Struggle for Water Access:I Am Drinking Lijia's Water 165
7.7 Younger Migrant Returnees and Their Kinship Positions 169
7.8 Discussion:Gender and Kinship in Collective Action and Village Politics 173
Chapter 8 Main Findings,Discussions and Conclusions 176
8.1 Main Findings 176
8.1.1 Circular migration in the study site 177
8.1.2 Received social remittances in promoting village conective action 178
8.1.3 Harnessing of social remittances and gender dynamics of collective action 178
8.1.4 Effects of social remittances on local social and gender hierarchies 180
8.2 Discussion 183
8.2.1 Dynamics at the macro level 183
8.2.2 Changes in gender relations 189
8.2.3 De-collectivization and gender 192
8.3 Conclusions 194
8.3.1 Migration and gender 194
8.3.2 Gender and natural resource management 195
8.3.3 Redefining social remittance as a process in gender and migration studies 196
8.3.4 Capital,politics,society and gender 197
8.3.5 Recommendations for policy action 198
References 199
Appendix 1 Checklist for key informant interviews 214
2 Checklist for focus group discussions 215
3 Checklist for semi-structured individual interviews 216
4 Questionnaire for Household Survey 218