Spatial development of two villages: Bordering, debordering, and rebordering in a community scenic area

This study integrates Lefebvre's theory of space production with the local border perspective as a theoretical basis to analyze the dynamic impacts of tourism development on changes to space, identity, and social relations in a destination and its surrounding community. Taking China's Hongcun Village, a bordered UNESCO cultural World Heritage Site, and its neighboring community Jicun as study cases, interviews and observations were conducted to achieve these research objectives. Results illustrate the multi-dimensional and dynamic development of local borders between a scenic area and its surrounding villages, further suggesting that local borders formed and developed through tourism are socially constructed and embody a process of bordering, debordering, and rebordering under the influences of different stakeholders and power relations.