Frontiers in Business, Economics and Management ISSN: 2766-824X | Vol. 15, No. 1, 2024 89 Research on Social Participation Willingness and Path Optimization of Characteristic Towns from the Perspective of Rural Revitalization -- Take Yingang Art and Innovation Town in Wuhu City as an Example Yanan Liu1, *, Deyu Li2 1School of Finance and Public Administration, Anhui University of Finance and Economics, Bengbu 233030, China 2School of Economics, Anhui University of Finance and Economics, Bengbu 233030, China *Corresponding author: Yanan Liu (Email: 2245138841@qq.com) Abstract: In the context of promoting new urbanization and supply-side structural reform in China, the establishment of characteristic towns has become an important starting point for local governments to implement the "rural revitalization strategy" and accelerate industrial agglomeration, so it is necessary to conduct systematic analysis and research on characteristic towns. As one of the 27 cities in the central area of the Yangtze River Delta, Wuhu has enjoyed the reputation of "Jiangdong Famous Town" and "Wuchu Resort" since ancient times. Based on the research of previous literature, this paper summarizes the development process of cultural and creative towns in China, focusing on the current situation of the public's cognition of Yingang Town, the willingness to participate in the construction of Yingang characteristic town, and the fit and satisfaction between the actual situation and expectations after participating in the characteristic town, which is of great significance for the construction of Yingang Yichuang characteristic town. Keywords: Characteristic town, Yingang art and innovation town, Willingness to participate. 1. Introduction 1.1. Background Under the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, we will implement the spirit of the Central Economic Work Conference, further promote the people-centered new urbanization strategy, and improve the quality of new urbanization. At the same time, the report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China also pointed out that "promote a new type of urbanization with people as the core". This is an important measure to promote coordinated regional development and an important path to create a better life for the people. Only by adhering to the development concept of innovation, coordination, green, openness and sharing, taking people's urbanization as the core, and continuing to concentrate on implementation, can we make the new urbanization construction stand at a new starting point and achieve new development. There is no doubt that the development of characteristic towns will play an extremely important role and role. As one of the characteristic towns in Wuhu City, Wuhu Yingang Art and Innovation Town has been committed to building a unique town that integrates art, innovation, tourism and other elements. However, in terms of social participation, there are still some problems and challenges in Yingang Arts Town. Therefore, this paper selects Yingang Art and Innovation Town in Wuhu City as the research object to deeply discuss the social participation willingness and path optimization of characteristic towns, in order to provide theoretical support and practical reference for promoting the development of characteristic towns. 1.2. Research implications 1.2.1. Actively respond to the development requirements of the times As a product of the progress of human civilization, urbanization is an inevitable requirement for promoting the all-round progress of society. In the past decade, China's urbanization level has been steadily improved, the development vitality has been continuously released, the service function has been continuously improved, the living environment has become more beautiful, the quality of urban development has been steadily improved, and urbanization has entered a new stage of improving quality and efficiency. In the past decade, about 180 million rural people have moved to cities to become permanent urban residents, with an average of more than 13 million new urban jobs per year, 39.61 million urban shantytowns have been renovated, benefiting more than 90 million residents, and more than 20 million households have been renovated old communities...... Behind every number, there is a person, a family, who can not only enter and stay, but also live well and develop in the city. To a large extent, these achievements are supported by a series of policies: the reform of the household registration system, the provision of basic public services in urban areas, the improvement of the employment and entrepreneurship service system, the expansion of social security coverage, and the optimization of urban spatial layout...... Practice has fully demonstrated that only by firmly grasping the core of human urbanization and improving the quality of people, and using reform methods and innovative spirit to provide a more scientific and rational institutional guarantee for the new type of urbanization, can the broad masses of the people continuously enhance their sense of gain, happiness, and security in the process of urbanization. 90 1.2.2. Promote local economic development and narrow the gap between urban and rural areas The construction of characteristic towns can promote the economic development and facility construction of a large number of villages and towns, improve the living standards and quality of rural residents, and provide jobs for many farmers and increase their incomes, thus helping to narrow the gap between urban and rural areas and promote social equity. The construction of characteristic towns is of great significance to promote the development of rural areas and agriculture, such as the development of agricultural tourism towns, which can not only promote the improvement of town infrastructure and villagers' living conditions, but also promote the development of agricultural industrialization and modernization. With the help of the east wind of the construction of characteristic towns, the original characteristic industry of the town can achieve industrial transformation and upgrading, improve competitiveness, at the same time, the original town that did not form the characteristic industry can achieve industrial structure upgrading and improve the level of industrial development by building characteristic industries. 1.2.3. It is conducive to the inheritance, protection and innovation of traditional culture China's intangible cultural heritage is widely distributed and diverse, with more than 1,300 representative items of national intangible cultural heritage and more than 13,000 representative items at the provincial level. Taking characteristic towns as the carrier to promote the living inheritance of intangible cultural heritage and promote the creative protection and innovative development of traditional culture is not only conducive to injecting cultural elements into the town, but also conducive to protecting excellent traditional culture. The construction of characteristic towns can strengthen the protection, restoration, development and publicity of cultural relics and historic sites in these areas, carry forward excellent culture, and disseminate excellent ideas. The construction of characteristic towns will certainly enable the residents living in them to be affected by the impact of rapid economic development, constantly understand new things, receive more and more information and technology, and come into contact with more and more people, and their ideological consciousness will undergo certain changes in this process, which is conducive to the improvement of their quality and the correction of some backward behaviors. Through the construction of various types and distinctive characteristic towns, tourists have more choices when traveling, meet the diverse needs of tourists, and also promote tourism product developers to change their thinking and constantly innovate when designing and developing tourism products. 1.2.4. Promote ecological and environmental protection Characteristic towns emphasize the integration of life, production and ecology, to create a livable, workable and travel-friendly space, a good ecological environment is necessary for characteristic towns, which requires that the construction of characteristic towns must pay attention to the protection of the ecological environment, town planning should be organically combined with the topography and landform, into the natural elements such as mountains, rivers, forests, fields and lakes, highlighting the beautiful landscape pattern and the skyline. Therefore, characteristic towns are also of great significance for promoting ecological and environmental protection. 2. The Current Situation of the Public's Cognition of Characteristic Towns 2.1. Overall cognitive improvement, individual errors With the continuous advancement of the construction of characteristic towns and the increase of publicity, the public's awareness of characteristic towns has gradually improved. People have begun to realize that as an urbanization development model, characteristic towns have unique local culture, industrial characteristics and tourism resources, which play a positive role in promoting local economic development, improving the living environment and protecting traditional culture. There are certain differences in the cognition of characteristic towns among different social groups. On the one hand, some people's understanding of characteristic towns is still at the cognitive level of traditional rural scenic spots or tourist resorts, and they fail to deeply understand the urbanization development concept and functional positioning behind them. On the other hand, urban residents' perception of characteristic towns is usually more open and modern, and they pay more attention to the urban function, innovative design and livable environment of characteristic towns. 2.2. There are challenges in the process of social cognition Although characteristic towns play an important role in the development of urbanization, there are also some challenges in the process of public awareness. For example, the construction cost of characteristic towns is high, and the operation model is not yet perfect, so some members of the public have reservations about the sustainable development and economic benefits of characteristic towns; In addition, the construction, operation and management of characteristic towns also face certain difficulties, resulting in a certain impact on the public's perception of characteristic towns. In addition, the publicity of social cognition needs to be strengthened urgently, and in order to improve the public's awareness of characteristic towns, it is necessary to strengthen relevant publicity and education. At this stage, the number of characteristic town activities, theme publicity activities, and characteristic cultural displays is too small, and the public cannot have a deeper understanding and understanding of the value and significance of characteristic towns, and it is difficult to strengthen the enthusiasm of public participation and support. 3. Analysis of the Participation Status of Yingang Art and Innovation Town in Wuhu City 3.1. Policy support has been strengthened The government's financial support has played a key role in promoting the development of the town, and during the construction of the town, the government has introduced various financial support policies to fund the town's infrastructure construction, cultural activities, artist residencies and creative enterprises. The investment of these funds has not only helped the town improve the event venues and transportation facilities, but also attracted more art institutions and talents to settle in, promoting the rapid 91 development of the creative industry. At the same time, the government has provided a lot of policy support and assistance in cultural festivals, art exhibitions, creative markets, etc., and organized and held various forms of cultural activities, attracting the active participation of community residents and the public. The government's policy support has made the cultural activities of the town more diversified and rich, which not only enriches the cultural life of the residents, but also enhances the public's sense of identity and enthusiasm for participation in the town. In addition, the government has provided tax breaks for creative businesses and arts institutions in the town, reducing their burdens, reducing operating costs, and promoting innovation and development. The promotion of this policy has brought more artistic and creative talents to the town, which has promoted the prosperity of the cultural industry and the development of society. 3.2. Raise the awareness of community residents' participation With the popularization and promotion of art and culture, residents' awareness of participating in cultural activities in the town has gradually increased. Some residents actively participate in various cultural events, art exhibitions and creative workshops held by the town to showcase their creativity and artistic talents. This kind of active participation of community residents not only promotes the richness of cultural activities in the town, but also makes the community life more colorful. At the same time, art exhibitions, cultural festivals and creative markets held in the town have attracted more and more residents. The participation of the public not only promotes the development of the town's cultural industry, but also injects new vitality and fashion into the town, and their participation also reflects the popularity of the town's activities, further enhancing the town's social status and cultural influence in the local area. 3.3. Integration and innovative development of traditional culture The town pays attention to the protection and inheritance of traditional culture, and also encourages innovation and integration, combining traditional cultural elements with modern art to create cultural products and works of art with unique local characteristics and the atmosphere of the times. This practice of integrating traditional cultural inheritance and innovation makes the town culture more dynamic and creative, attracts more people's attention and love, and continues to innovate and improve in the future development and inheritance, so as to make greater contributions to the prosperity of local culture and social progress. 4. Suggestions for Optimizing the Construction Path of Yingang Art and Innovation Town, Wuhu City 4.1. Individual level 4.1.1. Mining background resources Background resources are the foundation of the development of characteristic towns, and it is necessary to put an end to copying and taking. It is necessary to find unique resources in the history, humanities and geography of the place, rather than arbitrarily applying vague concepts. The excavation and utilization of background resources will lead to the creation of characteristic industries, which are scarce, relative, pluralistic and sustainable. industrial characteristics, which can support economic revitalization; Cultural characteristics, which can support quality improvement; style and characteristics, which can support cultural rejuvenation; Livable features, which can support social development. Characteristic towns must have an industrial foundation, and local residents must learn to use their own characteristic industries to develop industries. The positioning of characteristic towns should rely on the endowment of regional resources and location advantages, and avoid making something out of nothing and doing it reluctantly. 4.1.2. Innovate the recruitment mechanism In addition to adopting homestead replacement and commercial housing operation methods to attract local village and town residents and some wealthy groups in other regions to enter the "nest", it is also possible to mobilize the original town residents to replace the whole area as a whole to quickly gather popularity. In addition, on the premise of satisfying the relocation of local residents first, due consideration should be given to relaxing household registration restrictions to admit non-local and foreign nationals to relocate. Some of the listings are rented out as "special holiday homes" to attract "temporary homes". As a new measure, the value of building characteristic towns requires people to understand with a long-term vision, and the benefits are in the present and the long-term. If it can be planned and implemented from a high starting point, in the near future, the characteristic town will generate economic and cultural promotion for local residents and the surrounding areas. 4.2. Government level First, the new characteristic town is an indispensable part of the urban system, and the construction of the town is closely related to the effective macroeconomic orientation, the government's preferential policies and incentive mechanisms, and the dynamic capital market. After the development in recent years, although China has made certain achievements in the construction of new small towns, there are still many deficiencies, among which, the lack of strong guidance and policy support by the government in the development process of new small towns is the main factor restricting the development of small towns with special characteristics, which is bound to affect the long-term development of small towns with special characteristics. Therefore, when planning and constructing new small towns, governments at all levels should stand in a leading position, stand in the perspective of the overall situation, uphold the planning concept of adapting measures to local conditions, reform and innovation, make every effort to develop industrial clusters with distinctive characteristics, and strive to create an efficient, livable and flexible economic and social development mode of small towns, further promote the transformation and upgrading of the dual economic structure of urban and rural areas, and realize the economic and social integration of urban and rural areas as soon as possible. Second, the construction of characteristic towns has a large investment and a long cycle, and in order to ensure the efficient and orderly development of the construction of characteristic towns, it is necessary to have policy escort and realize mechanism innovation. The construction of characteristic towns involves major issues such as economy, culture, politics, and people's livelihood, and must be implemented by the government by setting up special 92 institutions and implementing policy preferences. Staffing, capital investment, land acquisition, security guarantees, etc., all need to be coordinated and coordinated by special structures. In addition, it is necessary to study all kinds of problems that may be encountered, formulate relevant policies and standards, and remove obstacles and hidden dangers for the construction of small towns. Third, the investment in the construction of characteristic towns is huge, and the government must broaden the channels of funds and reform the existing investment and financing system. It is suggested that on the basis of government participation, strategic cooperation should be sought, and all kinds of domestic enterprises, individuals and foreign businessmen should be encouraged to participate in the infrastructure construction, real estate construction and supporting project construction of characteristic towns in a variety of ways, so as to form an effective guarantee mechanism for the construction of characteristic towns and funds. The government must focus on innovating the investment promotion mechanism and operation mechanism of the commercial, service industry, cultural undertakings and other industries in line with the development of the town's characteristics to ensure the rapid formation of "characteristics" and the prosperity of the town after the nest is built. 4.3. Yingang Art and Innovation Town level 4.3.1. Determine the core leading industries The added value of the science and technology industry can enhance the competitive advantage of characteristic towns, and the complementarity of the upper and lower industrial chains is also the need for the development of core industries. In the industrial planning and construction of Yingang Town, it is first necessary to combine the existing industrial structure of the region and the surrounding areas, fully consider the actual local situation and the leading direction of future industrial development, pay attention to the overall planning, and promote the formation of core industries. When selecting the core industry, it is necessary to fully consider the relative regional comparative advantages of the industry, the elasticity of demand income, the ability to transform science and technology, and the ability to radiate and drive other industries. Considering whether an industry can become the core leading industry of the construction of Yingang Town, the primary factor is the exclusivity of the region, if there are similar or similar functional industrial clusters within a certain range, and at the same time have reached the maturity of supporting facilities and a good foundation, then it is extremely difficult to adopt a homogeneous development path, and it is difficult to attract mainstream industries in a short period of time. The leading industries of new small towns should also have a certain demand income elasticity, which has more development potential than rigid demand. The overall fluctuation of the rigid demand market is small, and the regional consumption capacity is basically the same. Elastic demand is greatly affected by the strategic direction of the market, such as culture and entertainment, tourism, health and wellness, etc., which has both development risks and profit potential. In order to achieve sustainable development, the leading industries of new small towns are inseparable from the vitality injection of scientific and technological innovation capabilities, so the supporting capacity of science and technology is indispensable when choosing the leading industries, and the science and technology industry has great added value, has competitive advantages, and can greatly improve productivity. Finally, the vigorous and rapid development of the core industry needs to complement the upper and lower industrial chains, through the integration of the upstream and downstream industrial chains, effectively reduce the development cost of the core industries, and at the same time drive the common development of the upstream and downstream industrial chains, realize the optimization and upgrading of the existing industrial structure, and promote the upstream and downstream industries to drive each other, so as to achieve interaction and win-win results. 4.3.2. Control the scale and build intensively The size of the scale is subject to three principles: the economic principle, the demand principle, and the intensive principle. The construction of characteristic towns not only requires a lot of manpower, material and financial resources, but also occupies a lot of land resources, which is extremely expensive, so it is necessary to control the scale according to actual needs and avoid serious waste of resources. In addition, due to the fact that the creation of characteristic towns is still a new thing in many areas, market recognition requires a process, coupled with the particularity of the geographical location of many regions, as a tourism resource, the market demand of the town may be insufficient. Coupled with other unpredictable factors, it is not advisable to blindly pursue scale. Economic characteristic towns not only make full use of resources, but also facilitate management and adjustment of industrial strategies, so the construction of characteristic towns should conform to the principle of intensification and maximize benefits. 4.3.3. Maintain the relationship between ecology and humanities and characteristic towns Ecological humanities are the spiritual connotation of the construction of Yingang Town, and the inheritance and continuous cultivation of culture play a vital role in the future development of new small towns. In the construction of Yingang Town, we should focus on handling all kinds of relationships, the most important of which is to handle the relationship between the planning and construction of small towns and the relationship between history, culture, ecology and environmental protection. That is to say, in the construction of new small towns, shape the cultural soul, establish ecological awareness, leave a humanistic impression, pay special attention to the realization of sustainable development strategies in planning and construction, and organically combine natural ecology, economic development and cultural inheritance, fully reflect the principles of convenience, economy and ecological sustainability that need to be upheld in the construction of characteristic towns, and build modern characteristic towns where ecology, industry and humanity complement each other. 5. Conclusion Through the analysis of the current situation of public cognition in Yingang Art and Innovation Town, Wuhu City, this paper discusses the related issues of social participation willingness and optimization path of Yingang Art and Innovation Town in Wuhu City. In the context of rural revitalization, the construction of characteristic towns is of great significance to promote regional economic and social development. By strengthening government guidance, 93 enhancing the participation awareness of community residents, strengthening public information dissemination, and paying attention to the integration of traditional cultural inheritance and innovation, the sustainable development of characteristic towns and the process of rural revitalization can be better promoted. In the future, it is necessary to further study the issue of social participation in the construction of characteristic towns, and provide more effective measures and strategies for rural revitalization. Acknowledgment This study was funded by Anhui University of Finance and Economics National College Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program Project (No: 202310378063). References [1] Li Ming. 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