In recent years, problems have arisen in rural construction and cultural development in Northwest China with the rapid urbanization. There is a tradition of constructing earth buildings in Northwest China, where earth construction is still common in rural areas. However, villagers influenced by urban culture regard raw earth construction as a symbol of poverty and thus admire residence in fancy modern style. Poordesigned buildings trying to imitate the city residence forms spread in villages and towns, and consequently the disorder of the built environment has also aggravated the decline of regional culture. The strategy of rural revitalization and the general requirements of it are put forward in the report of the 19th Communist Party of China National Congress. Within the context of rural revitalization, how to find suitable solutions for the urbanrural complex to solve the "rural disease" of multi-systems consisted of culture, space and ecology promoting the sustainable development of both urban and rural areas has aroused new attention. Earth construction has both cultural and ecological characteristics, and may become a breakthrough point to solve these problems. At present, the domestic research on raw earth architecture mainly focuses on four aspects: the first is the investigation and analysis of the current situation of raw earth architecture in terms of spatial forms and construction modes, focusing on the study of regional architectural types and characteristics; the second is the exploration of new-type earth architecture design, focusing on the application of new technologies and forms in the practice of modern raw earth buildings; the third is research on technical improvement aiming at the defects of poor seismic and waterproofing performance of raw earth materials, focusing on the technical means of improving mechanical properties, such as material modification and structure reinforcement; the fourth is the review and case study of raw earth culture, education, laws and regulations, focusing on the research and promotion of raw earth architecture. Current research provides theoretical assistance and technology for the development of earth construction, but it often focuses on architecture itself or a subdivision (such as materials, forms, etc.) and lacks macro-thinking on the rural areas where earth construction is widely distributed. How to transform the theoretical research achievements of earth construction into the real motive force to solve rural problems is still a blank in the current research, but there is no doubt about the value of it. In the context of rural revitalization, aiming at the practical problems of rural development, through field research, literature review, case studies and other methods to extract the advantages of local traditional dwellings, drawing lessons from advanced technology and educational experience at home and abroad, this paper puts forward the strategies of eco-livable development and regional cultural inheritance in Northwest China with earth construction as the breakthrough point, and takes Tongwei County, Dingxi, as an example to demonstrate how to work it under the guidance of this framework. Strategies are recommended including to extract the ecological characteristics of local traditional dwellings, to optimize earth material performances and building structure by means of engineering technologies and therefore maximizing the benefits of ecological and social sustainability. In order to promote regional culture, it is suggested that the cultural characteristics of earth dwellings could be condensed as the basis of design and construction, and inserting technological research, green education and artistic activities into rural areas can activate the endogenous power of native culture, and proper systems of laws and regulations can support culture development. It is hoped that these strategies can help not only inherit the ecological and cultural characteristics of traditional earth construction, but also construct stable and beautiful residential buildings with new technologies, inherit and innovate regional culture in a new way, and thus meet the pursuit of livability and sustainability.