This paper analyzes the dynamic impact of economic, social, and governance factors on PM2.5 concentrations in 89 countries from 2006 to 2019. Using the GMM-PVAR approach and Impulse-Response Functions, we examine how shocks to specific variables affect PM2.5 concentrations over a 10-year period. Our findings reveal that the influence of these factors on PM2.5 levels varies over time. For example, a shock in urbanization has no effect on PM2.5 concentrations in the first year, but in the second year, pollution increases significantly. In the third period, PM2.5 levels decrease, but they rise again in the fourth period, albeit not significantly. By the fifth period, pollution decreases until a new equilibrium is reached in the sixth period. Additionally, a shock in financial development, government effectiveness, industrialization, trade openness, or GDP has no effect on PM2.5 concentrations in the initial period. However, during the second period, air pollution decreases, followed by an increase in the third period and a decrease again in the fourth period. These dynamic patterns highlight the need for environmental policies that consider the evaluation time horizon. Our analysis is supplemented by the Granger causality test, guiding specific policy recommendations based on our findings.
Carbon emission trading is an important environmental policy tool to promote carbon emission reduction. With the panel data of carbon emissions trading (CET) pilots, this paper used the spatial difference-in-difference model (SDID) to test whether CET can affect the enterprise environmental responsibility and the spatial spillover effect of carbon emissions trading. The study found that CET can significantly improve the environmental responsibility level of enterprises in pilot areas. The environmental responsibility level of enterprises in surrounding areas are also improved driven by CET. In the time dimension, the role of CET in improving the enterprise environmental responsibility is gradually increasing. The impact of CET on enterprise environmental responsibility has significant heterogeneity in the dimension of ownership attributes and environmental regulation. Promoting corporate environmental protection investment is the main path for CET to improve the enterprise environmental responsibility.
Globalization persists the tendency to alter numerous aspects of today's world including religion, transport, language, living styles, and international relations; however, its potential to influence quality of environment is the prime concern for trade and environmental policies guidelines (Audi and Ali 2018). In response to the growing interest for identifying the dynamic relationship between globalization and environmental performance, the present study seeks to investigate the critical link between globalization and ecological footprints in top 15 globalized countries between 1970 and 2016. Applying the novel methods of quantile-on-quantile regression (QQ) and Granger causality in quantiles, the findings examine the manners in which quantiles of globalization affect the quantiles of ecological footprints and vice versa. The empirical results suggest that globalization has a long-term positive effect on ecological footprint and vice versa in case of Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Canada, and Portugal. On the other hand, the estimated results indicate a negative effect between globalization and ecological footprint in the case of France, Germany, the UK, and Hungary. These results extend the recent findings on the globalization-environment nexus implying that the magnitude of relationship among both variables varies with countries demanding individual focus and cautions for postulating environmental and trade policies.
Much of the environmental policy literature tends to focus on democratic contexts where environmental innovation is a product of pluralistic interactions among state and non-state actors. By bringing the (authoritarian) politics into the analysis, this article seeks to discover the processes leading to environmental innovation under nondemocratic conditions. We utilise case studies in China and then-nondemocratic Malaysia, both grappling with the twin imperatives of rapid development and social control, where the governments initiated environmental innovations to expand space for public participation and monitoring against noxious plants. We adapt the conceptual framework of "environmental innovation strategies" to illustrate the mechanisms underpinning innovative practices that address environmental issues by going beyond pre-existing public regulatory provisions. We highlight aspects distinguishing the interactive processes under authoritarianism. First, the drivers of environmental innovation are contingent on the government's role and concerns over social control and state legitimacy. Second, due to limits over political space, environmental nongovernmental organisations (ENGOs) act as issue entrepreneurs-instead of policy entrepreneurs-who turn conditions into problems deserving government attention and solution, as they engage in conflictual interactions with state authorities. Third, such innovations can strengthen nondemocratic governance while not fully plugging the gaps in existing environmental regulations. This contributes to illuminating the behaviours of state-based environmental innovators under illiberal political regimes, potentially offering lessons to activists on how to stimulate further innovations in such contexts.
Microplastic pollution has become a major global environmental issue, negatively impacting terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems as well as human health. Tackling this complex problem necessitates a multidisciplinary approach and collaboration among diverse stakeholders. Within this context, the Quintuple Helix framework, which highlights the involvement of academia, government, industry, civil society, and the environment, provides a comprehensive and inclusive perspective for formulating effective policies to manage atmospheric microplastics. This paper discusses each helix's roles, challenges, and opportunities and proposes strategies for collaboration and knowledge exchange among them. Furthermore, the paper highlights the importance of interdisciplinary research, innovative technologies, public awareness campaigns, regulatory frameworks, and corporate responsibility in achieving sustainable and resilient microplastic management policies. The Quintuple Helix approach can mitigate microplastics, safeguard ecosystems, and preserve planetary health by fostering collaboration and coordination among diverse stakeholders.
Many drivers of mangrove forest loss operate over large scales and are most effectively addressed by policy interventions. However, conflicting or unclear policy objectives exist at multiple tiers of government, resulting in contradictory management decisions. To address this, we considered four approaches that are being used increasingly or could be deployed in Southeast Asia to ensure sustainable livelihoods and biodiversity conservation. First, a stronger incorporation of mangroves into marine protected areas (that currently focus largely on reefs and fisheries) could resolve some policy conflicts and ensure that mangroves do not fall through a policy gap. Second, examples of community and government comanagement exist, but achieving comanagement at scale will be important in reconciling stakeholders and addressing conflicting policy objectives. Third, private-sector initiatives could protect mangroves through existing and novel mechanisms in degraded areas and areas under future threat. Finally, payments for ecosystem services (PES) hold great promise for mangrove conservation, with carbon PES schemes (known as blue carbon) attracting attention. Although barriers remain to the implementation of PES, the potential to implement them at multiple scales exists. Closing the gap between mangrove conservation policies and action is crucial to the improved protection and management of this imperiled coastal ecosystem and to the livelihoods that depend on them.
The number and extent of roads will expand dramatically this century. Globally, at least 25 million kilometres of new roads are anticipated by 2050; a 60% increase in the total length of roads over that in 2010. Nine-tenths of all road construction is expected to occur in developing nations, including many regions that sustain exceptional biodiversity and vital ecosystem services. Roads penetrating into wilderness or frontier areas are a major proximate driver of habitat loss and fragmentation, wildfires, overhunting and other environmental degradation, often with irreversible impacts on ecosystems. Unfortunately, much road proliferation is chaotic or poorly planned, and the rate of expansion is so great that it often overwhelms the capacity of environmental planners and managers. Here we present a global scheme for prioritizing road building. This large-scale zoning plan seeks to limit the environmental costs of road expansion while maximizing its benefits for human development, by helping to increase agricultural production, which is an urgent priority given that global food demand could double by mid-century. Our analysis identifies areas with high environmental values where future road building should be avoided if possible, areas where strategic road improvements could promote agricultural development with relatively modest environmental costs, and 'conflict areas' where road building could have sizeable benefits for agriculture but with serious environmental damage. Our plan provides a template for proactively zoning and prioritizing roads during the most explosive era of road expansion in human history.
This work aims to assess multidimensional energy poverty and energy efficiency for environmental policy measures using data envelopment analysis (DEA), a DEA-Like mathematical composite indicator applied on a dataset based on multiple sets of variables from South Asian economies. The multidimensional energy poverty index (MEPI) is computed to analyze the combining effects and energy poverty in these countries. Simultaneously, South Asia's metropolitan areas' population rose by 130 million between 2001 and 2011 and is projected to expand by approximately 250 million by 2030. The findings reveal that endogenous increasing population shocks account for about 72% of energy use. In contrast, the long-term effects of remittance revenue, economic growth, and urbanization on energy use are approximately 20%, 8.25%, and 0.03%, respectively. This work advocates more coordinated and innovative policies to eliminate energy poverty. It can act as a base for policymakers and government officials to make efficient policies and enforce them properly in the regional power sector. Policies should be designed around a smarter use of biomass for cooking, alternate sources for domestic energy production, increased programs for biomass-based cookstoves, and periodic regional-level energy database development.
Environmental degradation and ecological devastation have become widespread global concerns in recent years as a result of the expansion of the international economy. China's rapid economic development has been accompanied by a sloppy economic growth model that has damaged the local ecological environment. The Chinese government intends to improve the ecological environment by the end of 2020 in an effort to direct and improve these environmental issues. The strictest environmental laws became effective in 2015. In light of this, this research uses panel data analysis to examine the environmental strategy and environmental governance of Chinese corporations. This article analyses 14,512 samples of listed mainland Chinese enterprises from 2015 to 2020. This research investigates the connection between Corporate Sustainability Development Strategy and Corporate Environmental Governance, as well as the moderating effect of Corporate Environmental Investments.
Climate change repercussions such as temperature shifts and more severe weather occurrences are felt globally. It contributes to larger-scale challenges, such as climate change and biodiversity loss in food production. As a result, the purpose of this research is to develop strategies to grow the economy without harming the environment. Therefore, we revisit the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis, considering the impact of climate policy uncertainty along with other control variables. We investigated yearly panel data from 47 Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) nations from 1998 to 2021. Pooled regression, fixed effect, and the generalized method of moment (GMM) findings all confirmed the presence of inverted U-shaped EKC in BRI counties. Findings from this paper provide policymakers with actionable ideas, outlining a framework for bringing trade and climate agendas into harmony in BRI countries. The best way to promote economic growth and reduce carbon dioxide emissions is to push for trade and climate policies to be coordinated. Moreover, improving institutional quality is essential for strong environmental governance, as it facilitates the adoption of environmentally friendly industrialization techniques and the efficient administration of climate policy uncertainties.
The Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the People's Republic of China formally proposed an environmental interview system in May 2014, which applies pressure on local governments to fulfill their responsibility toward environmental protection by conducting face-to-face public interviews with their officials. In this paper, 48 cities that were publicly interviewed from 2014-2020 were considered the experimental group and 48 cities surrounding them were the control group. First, the dynamic panel model is applied to initially determine the effect of the policy. Then, a regression discontinuity method (Sharp RD) is used to analyze the short-term and long-term effects and compare the reasons for the differences observed among the estimates of various types of samples. Finally, a series of robustness tests were also conducted. The results show that the environmental interview system can improve air quality. However, because an emergency short-term local governance system exists at present, the governance effect is not long-term and, therefore, not sustainable. Therefore, it suggests that the government should continue to improve the environmental interview system, establish an optimal environmental protection incentive mechanism, and encourage local governments to implement environmental protection policies effectively in the long term. The results of the research are of great significance to the environmental impact assessment system of the world, especially in countries with similar economic systems, which are facing a trade-off between economic growth and environmental sustainability.
With increasing environmental regulation (ER), the requirements for green technology innovation (GTI) in enterprises are also rising. However, there are relatively few systematic summaries of the themes of ER-affecting GTI. Adopting the method of bibliometrics and visual analysis, this research discusses the status of research and development trends of ER-affecting GTI and summarizes the research in this field. The paper takes 738 papers from 2001 to 2021 in the core database of Web of Science as the research sample. Based on CiteSpace, this paper makes a visual analysis of the number of published papers, institutions, authors, keywords, countries (regions) and journals. The study found that to some extent, favorable collaboration between authors and institutions in this field needs to be strengthened. Research hotspots in this field include innovation, technology, performance, policy and environmental regulation. Renewable energy consumption, the pollution haven hypothesis, sustainable development, carbon dioxide emission, energy technology and environmental Kuznets curve are the current research frontiers in this field. In terms of the number of published papers, research in this field has been conducted in a national (regional) layout with China as the core force, and Italy, America, Britain, Germany and other European countries as important forces. This field covers three main research areas: enterprise performance, policy instruments and research methods, going through the start-up phase (2001-2011), the growth phase (2012-2018) and the development phase (2019-2021). Future research can further incorporate the digital economy and synergy of multiple environmental regulation policies into this field, which will continuously enrich the theoretical research system in this field. The content, methods and conclusions of research in this field are becoming increasingly diverse.
The study proposes to examine how environmental, social and governance disclosure (ESG) affect the financial performance (FP) of Indian firms. Furthermore, it aims to evaluate the moderation impact of CEO power (CEOP) on the association between ESG on the FP. The study's target population is all firms indexed in NIFTY 100, representing the top one hundred firms by market capitalisation from 2017 to 2021. Data relating to ESG were collected and built based on the available data on Refinitiv Eikon Database. Results reveal that EDI positively and significantly impacts the ROE and TQ of Indian firms. Furthermore, SDI and GDI negatively and significantly affect the ROE and TQ of Indian firms. Moreover, ESG and CEOP have a significant impact on ROE. Nevertheless, ESG has a negative but highly significant impact on ROE, whilst it has a negative and low considerable impact on the TQ of Indian firms. Nonetheless, CEOP does not moderate the association between ESG and FP measured by ROE and TQ. This research contributes to the existing literature by introducing a moderator variable that has not been used in the Indian context; CEO power, which provides stakeholders and regulators with useful findings that would encourage firms to create an ESG committee to enhance ESG disclosure to compete on the world market and reach the United Nations (UN) Sustainable goal 2030. Furthermore, this paper provides insightful recommendations for creating an ESG legal framework for decision-makers.
This paper estimates Malaysian farmers' willingness to pay (WTP) for a planned adaptation programme for addressing climate issues in the Malaysian agricultural sector. We used the contingent valuation method (CVM) for a monetary valuation of farmers' preferences for a planned adaptation programme by ascertaining the value attached to address climatic issues in the Malaysian agricultural sector. Structured questionnaires were distributed among the sampled farmers. The study found that 74 % of respondents were willing to pay for a planned adaptation programme and that several socioeconomic and motivation factors have greater influence on their WTP. This paper clearly specifies the steps needed for all institutional bodies to better address issues in climate change. The outcomes of this paper will support policy makers to better design an efficient adaptation framework for adapting to the adverse impacts of climate change.
Four formal rounds of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) negotiations took place in 2010. They involved over 200 officials from Australia, the United States, New Zealand, Chile, Singapore, Brunei, Peru, Vietnam and Malaysia. Future negotiations officially are set to include three issues with public health and medicines policy implications for Australia and our region: ways to approach regulatory coherence and transparency; how to benefit multinational and small-medium enterprises; and multilateral investor-state dispute settlement. US-based multinational pharmaceutical companies are lobbying for TPPA provisions like those in the Australia-US Free Trade Agreement, which reduce government cost-effectiveness regulatory control of pharmaceuticals, threatening equitable access to medicines. They also advocate increased TPPA intellectual monopoly privilege protection, which will further limit the development of Australian generic medicine enterprises and restrict patient access to cheap, bioequivalent prescription drugs. Of particular concern is that proposed TPPA multilateral investor-state dispute settlement procedures would allow US corporations (as well as those of other TPPA nations) to obtain damages against Australian governments through international arbitral proceedings if their investments are impeded by Australian public health and environment protection legislation.
Life-cycle assessment (LCA) is one of the most attractive tools employed nowadays by environmental policy-makers as well as business decision-makers to ensure environmentally sustainable production/consumption of various goods/services. LCA is a systematic, rigorous, and standardized approach aimed at quantifying resources consumed/depleted, pollutants released, and the related environmental and health impacts through the course of consumption and production of goods/service. Algal fuels are no exception and their environmental sustainability could be well scrutinized using the LCA methodology. In line with that, this chapter is devoted to present guidelines on the technical aspects of LCA application in algal fuels while elaborating on major standards used, i.e., ISO 14040 and 14044 standards. Overall, LCA practitioners as well as technical experts dealing with algal fuels in both the public and private sectors could be the main target audience for these guidelines.
This paper examines the common themes delivered in studies on corporate reporting in relation to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Articles of the aforesaid studies were mostly acquired from Scopus and Web of Science (WoS) archives from year 2015 to 2022 in which the contents were carefully reviewed for selection. To systematise the literature, PRISMA 2020 statement is used. Descriptive analysis reveals an increase in publications on corporate SDG reporting, although most are focused on developed nations. The analysis also shows a scarcity of studies on the consumer goods, agricultural, fishery, and forestry sectors. Furthermore, current studies have yet to adopt a qualitative or mixed-method approach. There are fundamentally six themes that emerged from the review of literature-the degree of SDG engagement, the quality of SDG reporting, the determining factor in SDG reporting mechanism, the consequences of SDG reporting, the legitimisation approaches, as well as the institutional/stakeholder pressure. For determinants of SDG reporting, it is observed that environmental governance is not explored. This paper identifies the least addressed SDGs that businesses can focus on to accelerate their SDG contribution rate. This paper guides future research and informs decision-making by organisations and stakeholders interested in promoting sustainable development through SDG reporting.
The rapid rise in climate and ecological challenges have allowed policymakers to introduce stringent environmental policies. In addition, financial limitations may pose challenges for countries looking to green energy investments as energy transition is associated with geopolitical risks that could create uncertainty and dissuade green energy investments. The current study uses PTR and PSTR as econometric strategy to investigate how geopolitical risks and financial development indicators influence energy transition in selected industrial economies. Our findings indicate a non-linear DCPB-RE relationship with a threshold equal to 39.361 in PTR model and 35.605 and 122.35 in PSTR model. Additionally, when the threshold was estimated above, financial development indicators and geopolitical risk positively impacts renewable energy. This confirms that these economies operate within a geopolitical context, with the objective of investing more in clean energy. We report novel policy suggestion to encourage policymakers promoting energy transition and advance the sustainable financing development and ecological sustainability.
We examined the links between the science and policy of habitat corridors to better understand how corridors can be implemented effectively. As a case study, we focused on a suite of landscape-scale connectivity plans in tropical and subtropical Asia (Malaysia, Singapore, and Bhutan). The process of corridor designation may be more efficient if the scientific determination of optimal corridor locations and arrangement is synchronized in time with political buy-in and establishment of policies to create corridors. Land tenure and the intactness of existing habitat in the region are also important to consider because optimal connectivity strategies may be very different if there are few, versus many, political jurisdictions (including commercial and traditional land tenures) and intact versus degraded habitat between patches. Novel financing mechanisms for corridors include bed taxes, payments for ecosystem services, and strategic forest certifications. Gaps in knowledge of effective corridor design include an understanding of how corridors, particularly those managed by local communities, can be protected from degradation and unsustainable hunting. There is a critical need for quantitative, data-driven models that can be used to prioritize potential corridors or multicorridor networks based on their relative contributions to long-term metacommunity persistence.
Drop-off recycling is one of the most widely adopted recycling programs in the United States. Despite its wide implementation, relatively little literature addresses the demand for drop-off recycling. This study examines the demand for drop-off recycling sites as a function of travel costs and various site characteristics using the random utility model (RUM). The findings of this study indicate that increased travel costs significantly reduce the frequency of visits to drop-off sites implying that the usage pattern of a site is influenced by its location relative to where people live. This study also demonstrates that site specific characteristics such as hours of operation, the number of recyclables accepted, acceptance of commingled recyclables, and acceptance of yard-waste affect the frequency of visits to drop-off sites.