Rural areas in Gansu Province have long been constrained by multiple factors, including harsh natural conditions, weak economic foundation, and scarce educational resources, resulting in a complex interaction between environment, economy, and education. This study uses rural areas in Gansu as a case study, employing questionnaire surveys and semi-structured in-depth interviews to explore the constraints of environmental factors on economic development, the impact of economic development on the distribution of educational resources, and the short- and long-term feedback effects of education on household economics. The study found that: First, the survey and interviews suggest an urban-rural gap in educational resources in rural Gansu, including reported teacher shortages and underutilized facilities in the interviewed cases; second, families face significant pressure from education expenditures, and the vulnerability of agricultural income exacerbates the economic burden; third, although families generally have a strong willingness to invest in education, the short-term returns to household economics are weak, leading some families into the paradox of "education-induced poverty"; fourth, the positive feedback effect of education on the economy has not yet been fully realized, and there is a structural imbalance between input and return. Under environmental constraints, educational development in underdeveloped areas cannot solely rely on household investment but requires a coordinated approach involving environmental governance, economic diversification, and the allocation of educational resources. This study provides empirical support for understanding the mechanisms behind educational poverty in underdeveloped areas and offers recommendations for policy formulation.

Yuxiyi Wu. A Study on the Interaction between Environmental Constraints, Economic Development, and Educational Resource Allocation: A Case Study of Rural Gansu. International Journal of Frontiers in Sociology (2026), Vol. 8, Issue 3: 57-66. https://doi.org/10.25236/IJFS.2026.080309.

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