Peri‐Urban Landscapes, Ecosystem Services, and Multidimensional Wellbeing: The Evidence From Caidian District in Wuhan, China

ABSTRACT Peri‐urban landscapes play a critical role in supplying ecosystem services (ES) that support human wellbeing in rapidly urbanizing areas. While numerous studies have examined land‐use changes and ES, few have empirically analyzed their relationships with multidimensional wellbeing across different social groups. This study addresses this gap through an integrated assessment of Wuhan's Caidian District, combining geospatial analysis of landscape changes (2009–2018) with household surveys. Our results reveal several key findings: First, peri‐urban natural or semi‐natural landscapes are reduced and spatially fragmented at the edges of built‐up areas, which thus leads to the loss of ES, especially the values of food supply, maintenance of soil fertility, and air quality regulation. Second, we identify strong synergies that exist between three aspects of wellbeing (basic material for a good life, health, and freedom) and ES, whereas significant trade‐offs are found between security and ES. Third, different social groups have differentiated abilities to benefit from ES. The negative impact of food supply on health in peri‐urban regions has been recognized by females, the elderly, and poor households. These findings highlight the need for targeted policies that address both ecological conservation and social equity in urbanizing landscapes.