Impacts of digitalization on energy security: evidence from European countries

Do the climate-related financial policies promote green innovation? Insights from global sample

This paper is an attempt to empirically examine the influences of climate-related financial policies (CRFP) on green innovation (GI). By applying diverse econometric techniques, namely a panel-corrected standard error model (PCSE), feasible generalized least square (FGLS), and two-step general method of moment (the two-step GMMs), to a global sample of 23 European countries in the period from 2012 to 2019, the estimation results demonstrate that the CRFP has a favorable impact and is statistically significant on all four aspects of green innovation implementation. We find robust results by utilizing various econometric techniques and adding more explanatory variables. To shed light on the relationship between CRFP and GI, we demonstrate the short-run and long-run effects of CRFP on GI. The results suggest that climate-related financial policies only significantly negatively affect investments in environmental activities in the short run. Notably, our findings imply that climate-related financial policies are more likely to have long-term impacts than short-term ones. Our findings are critical to suggest policy implications to employ climate policies more effectively to promote the use of green innovation.

Dynamic interrelations between environmental innovations, human capital, and energy security in Vietnam: new evidence from an extended TVP-VAR approach

This study employs an extended joint connectedness approach, as well as a time-varying parameter vector autoregression technique (ETVP-VAR), to characterize the interrelationships among six factors, namely, renewable energy, environmental innovations (EI), gross domestic product (GDP), human capital, energy consumption, and energy productivity (EP), from 1995 to 2019 in Vietnam. Taking a holistic view, it appears that both energy consumption and GDP are net recipients of contagion shocks. In addition, renewable energy, as well as environmental innovations, is critical net transmitters during our studied period. From 1995 to 2003, human capital constantly acted as a crucial net shock absorber before switching to a crucial net transmitter after that year. With a significant exception around 1997, this variable is mostly a shock transmitter when it comes to energy production. Pairwise connectedness reveals that renewable energy consistently appears as a shock transmitter to GDP, human capital, energy consumption, and energy productivity. That being said, environmental innovations consistently contribute to renewable and green energy volatility by transmitting shocks from other markets.

Does circularity mean environmental sustainability? Novel evidence from European countries

The objective of this research is to evaluate the effects of green economy initiatives (GEI) on environmental sustainability (ES) through empirical means. The degree of green economy efforts is measured using six different metrics: the percentage of circular material consumption (GEI_MA), municipal trash generation per person (GEI_MW), recycling waste performance (GEI_RW), and recycling and secondary raw materials-related patents (GEI_PA). The latter particularly comprises the biowaste (GEI_RB) and e-waste (GEI_RE) recycling shares. Our analysis, which included information gathered from 19 European nations from 2012 to 2019, shows that GEI_MW significantly improves EPI and ECO. On the other hand, there is no meaningful connection between ecological sustainability and GEI_PA. EPI is strongly positively impacted by GEI_MA and EPI and ECO are positively impacted by GEI_RW. Additionally, GEI_RB has a beneficial impact on EPI, HLT, and ECO, but GEI_RE has a considerable favorable impact on both HLT and ECO. These findings highlight how crucial it is for the government to fund R&D for green economy projects in order to achieve ecological sustainability.

Investigating the unparalleled effects of economic growth and high-quality economic development on energy insecurity in China: A provincial perspective

China has changed its focus from traditional high-speed economic growth to high-quality economic development (HQED) and the implementation of environmentally friendly practices. This transition can have parallel or unparallel impacts on energy insecurity (EIS). In this regards, HQED, inter Alia, is crucial in mitigating EIS and combating the energy crisis. Our study explores the impact of economic growth (EG) and HQED on EIS using the provincial panel data of China for the period 2011-2017. From the perspective of comparative analysis, the results reveal that HQED reduces EIS while EG increases it. The robustness checks indicate that industrial structure (IS) has a negative impact on EIS, whereas industrial structure upgrading (ISU) and green innovation (GI) have a positive influence. This implies that IS contributes to an increase in EIS, whereas ISU and GI result in a decrease in EIS. In addition, the analysis reveals that digital financial inclusion (DFI) exhibits a significant positive relation with EIS, albeit occasionally a negative but insignificant link. The policy implication is that the government should stimulate policies to promote HQED which reduces the EIS.

Effects of digitalization on energy security risk: do financial development and environmental trade matter?

Trade in environmental goods and financial development may harness factors such as green investment, technological development, and renewable energy production, which are crucial in reducing energy security risks by diversifying energy sources. However, not many empirics have shed light on the impact of digitalization, environmental trade, and financial development on energy security risks in top energy-consuming countries. To fill this vacuum, this study intends to investigate the influence of digitalization, environmental trade, and financial development on energy security risk in top energy-consuming countries from 2003 to 2021. The study employs the 2SLS and GMM estimates for empirical estimation of top energy-consuming developed and developing economies. The results show that ICT negatively affects energy security risks in developed economies. The findings of the analysis also suggest that environmental trade and financial development cause energy security risks to be reduced in both developed and developing economies. Likewise, the energy security risks in both developed and developing nations are mitigated by ICT, GDP, carbon emissions, and renewable energy production. In contrast, the energy security risks are escalated by the rise in natural resource rents. In order to fully capitalize on the potential advantages of these elements and eventually ensure a more sustainable and secure energy future, governments, businesses, and financial institutions must work together.

Scrutinizing the nexus between green innovations and the sustainability of environmental system: novel insights from European database

A study is presented in this paper that examines the effect of environmental innovation (EI) on environmental performance (EP). Six measures are used to reflect environmental innovation, including the percentage of enterprises that invest in environmental innovation, the percentage of enterprises implementing environmental innovation activities, the number of ISO 14001 certificates, patents related to environmental innovation, the total R&D personnel and researchers, and the amount of green early-stage investments. The estimation results show that EI positively impacts EP in 21 European countries using different econometric techniques during the 2011-2019 period. By using various econometric techniques (namely a panel-corrected standard errors (PCSE) model, a feasible generalized least square estimates (FGLS) model, and the two-step general method of moment (the two-step GMM), our research demonstrates how environmental innovation impacts on environmental quality. The short- and long-term effects of autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) methods were also investigated using pooled mean groups (PMGs) to distinguish the short-run and long-run influences of EI. The relationship between EI and EP is explored by demonstrating how EI affects EP short- and long-term and comparing its influence on EP across many component measures of EI: air quality, sanitation, drinking water, heavy metals, waste management, biodiversity, habitat, ecosystem services, water resources, and agriculture. Notably, we find that the influences of EI become more pronounced in a country characterized by a well-developed institutional system. Our findings suggest policy implications to help countries invest in research and development with concerns about environmental damage mitigations more effectively. These findings are critical to suggest a way to help countries pursue ecological sustainability.

Scrutinizing interlinkages between digitalization, economic complexity, green technologies, green energy consumption and CO2 emission by quantile spillovers in Vietnam

We use quantile vector autoregression (QVAR) to identify the connection between six variables related to digitalization (proxied by a number of Internet users and mobile cellular subscriptions), green technology development, green energy consumption, carbon dioxide emissions, and economic complexity index from 1996 to 2019 in Vietnam. The dynamic connectedness of the system is 62% and 14% in the short and long term, respectively. Their connectedness is intense for highly positive and negative quantiles (over 80% quantile). In contrast, economic complexity transmits shocks in the short term and manifests itself even more in the long term. Green technology development is the central receiver of short- and long-term shocks. Besides, digitalization captured by a number of Internet users has switched from shock transmitters to shock receivers in the short term. Other metrics like mobile cellular subscriptions, green energy consumption, and CO2 emissions are mainly shock-receiver-driven. In the short term, there was volatility, especially from 2009 to 2013, due to unprecedented events like destructive changes in political, economic, and financial issues in the globe. Our findings are critical for economists and policymakers in promoting a country's digitalization, green technology performance, and green energy on the path toward sustainable development.