Evaluating the synergistic effect of digitalization and industrialization on total factor carbon emission performance

The impact of digital technology innovation on energy-saving and emission reduction based on the urban innovation environment

In recent years, with the rapid development of digital technology and the growing emphasis on environmental protection, the interaction between digital technology innovation (DT) and energy-saving and emission reduction (ESER) has drawn widespread attention. Nevertheless, when discussing the relationship between DT and ESER, existing studies have seldom considered the external influence of the regional innovation environment. Taking a research sample of 270 Chinese cities, this paper conducts an empirical study on the effect of DT on ESER, focusing on the moderating effect of the urban innovation environment. The empirical findings are that: (1) digital technology innovation endows ESER performance with a boost, serving as an emerging driving force for resource conservation and environmental management. (2) Digital technology innovation indirectly pushes ESER in Chinese cities by facilitating digital industrialization and enhancing energy efficiency. (3) Considering the urban innovation environment, DT is more advantageous in facilitating local ESER in cities with better human capital. However, the increase in fiscal expenditure on science and technology does not significantly affect the marginal effect of DT on ESER. Studying the impact of DT on ESER as well as its related moderating factors can offer valuable references for cities to formulate targeted policies and strengthen their capacities in economic transformation and environmental governance, thereby facilitating the attainment of sustainable development goals.

A multi-objective optimization approach for interprovincial carbon emission reduction in China: Considering industrial structure and ownership attributes

Balancing economic growth with carbon emission control requires the coordination of policy preferences for economic and carbon reduction goals, as well as the low-carbon transformation of industrial and ownership structures. This study employs a multi-objective input-output optimization model to investigate the trade-offs among maximizing GDP growth, minimizing carbon emissions, and minimizing energy consumption within the planning period of 2017-2035 in China. The model accounts for the heterogeneity of industrial structures and ownership attributes, examining both national aggregates and the adjustment paths and ownership trends across different provinces. The findings reveal: (1) Sectors with high output and low energy consumption are growing, while high pollution and high energy-consuming sectors are declining, driven primarily by technological levels, followed by policy and development preferences. (2) Domestic capital expanding into high technology and capital-intensive sectors, HMT capital favoring the economically developed high technology regions, and foreign investment declining. (3) Regional adjustment in high-value or high-energy-consumption sectors are more pronounced in central and western provinces and less economically developed regions, while industries that are neither high-energy-consumption nor high-value show greater increases in resource-rich provinces with better infrastructure.

Industrial circular water use practices through the application of a conceptual water efficiency framework in the process industry

Increased industrial water demand and resource depletion require the incorporation of sustainable and efficient water and wastewater management solutions in the industrial sector. Conventional and advanced treatment technologies, closed-water loops at different levels from an industrial process to collaborative networks among industries within the same or another sector and digital tools and services facilitate the materialization of circular water use practices. To this end, the scope of this paper is the application of the Conceptual Water Efficiency Framework (CWEF), which has been developed within the AquaSPICE project aspiring to enhance water circularity within industries in a holistic way. Four water-intensive process industries (two chemical industries, one oil refinery plant and one meat production plant) are examined, revealing its adaptability, versatility and flexibility according to the requirements of each use case. It is evident that the synergy of process, circular and digital innovations can promote sustainability, contribute to water conservation in the industry, elaborating a compact approach to be replicated from other industries.

Balancing growth and sustainability: COP 28 policy implications of green energy, industrialization, foreign direct investment, and globalization in South Asia

This research investigates the intricate relationships between economic variables and how they affect South Asian nation's ability to develop sustainably. Given the growing concerns about climate change and global warming brought on by emissions of greenhouse gases, this study looks into the connection between emissions of CO2, green energy, industrialization, foreign direct investment, economic globalization, and financial development from 1995 to 2022. Second-generation panel techniques were employed in this study to look at the relationship between variables because of the potential of residual cross-sectional dependency and heterogeneity. The empirical outcomes display that green energy, economic globalization, and financial development reduce CO2 emissions by 1.839%, 1.223%, and 3.902% respectively. Industrialization and foreign direct investment degrade the environment by 4.302% and 1.893% respectively. A bidirectional causality link between green energy, industrialization, economic globalization, and CO2 emissions was found by Dumitrescu and Hurlin (D-H). Based on our findings, we recommend legislative support for renewable energy, cleaner technologies, and strict environmental regulations, aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Encouraging FDI, sustainable practices, and financial development can drive economic growth while preserving the environment. As we approach COP28, this holistic approach to sustainable development becomes increasingly vital for South Asian countries to achieve their SDG targets and combat climate change.

Internet development, information availability, and Chinese enterprises' cooperative green technology innovation

Cooperative green technology innovation is potentially the answer to the lack of motivation for independent green innovation, which can effectively alleviate many difficulties faced by enterprises engaging in independent green innovation. Internet development provides new opportunities to stimulate innovative cooperation of enterprises. However, little literature has studied the impact of Internet development on enterprises' cooperative green technology innovation. Based on the data of Chinese A-share 3284 listed companies from 2010 to 2019, this paper uses a panel two-way fixed effects model to assess the effect of Internet development on enterprises' cooperative green innovation. The findings are: (1) Internet development significantly drives firms' collaborative green innovation behavior. The result remains robust even after performing a series of robust tests. (2) The Internet empowers green innovation cooperation among firms by improving information availability, including market information availability and technical information availability. (3) The heterogeneous results show enterprises use the Internet to accomplish high-quality collaborative green innovation. Internet development is more helpful in encouraging the cooperative green innovation of enterprises located in central cities and state-owned enterprises. This study provides novel and targeted policy implications to empower enterprises' green innovation cooperation and drive sustainable economic development through Internet development.

Unveiling the impact of digital industrialization on synergistic governance of pollution and carbon reduction in China: a geospatial perspective

The impact of digital industrialization on regional pollution control and carbon reduction in China is an area that remains largely unexplored despite being a new driving force in promoting high-quality economic development. This study constructs a combined system synergy model to measure the synergistic governance effect of regional pollution and carbon reduction in China from 2011 to 2020 and then estimates the direct impact and spatial spillover effect using a spatial dual-weight model. Our findings indicate that digital industrialization has a greater impact on regional pollution reduction and carbon reduction as geographical distance decreases, with the spillover effect with close geographical relationships being higher than that of adjacent. Furthermore, the heterogeneity analysis reveals that the added value of digital technology and services has a significantly positive effect, while the spatial spillover effect of the added value of digital infrastructure is significantly negative. Finally, our mechanism judgements prove digital industrialization can impact the level of regional co-governance of pollution and carbon reduction through source prevention, process control, and end-treatment. Our study provides a factual basis for further promoting China's environmental pollution control and carbon reduction behavior and offers a method to use different spatial weights in depth.

Impact of digitization on carbon productivity: an empirical analysis of 136 countries

Enhancing carbon productivity (CP) is key to achieving carbon reduction goals while maintaining economic growth. Digital technology plays a significant role in improving CP. Based on panel data from 136 countries worldwide from 2000 to 2020, this study empirically examines the impact of digitalization on CP and its mechanisms using fixed-effects and mediation models. The conclusions are as follows: (1) Overall, digitalization significantly enhances CP. (2) In terms of the mechanism, digitalization primarily improves CP through technological innovation and mitigating income inequality. (3) In terms of the quantile regression results, as the quantile level of CP increases, the promoting effect of digitalization on CP gradually strengthens. (4) From the perspective of heterogeneity among regions, income levels and human capital levels, digitalization has the greatest promotion effect on carbon productivity in European countries, high-income countries and high human capital countries. This study provides a reference for policymakers worldwide to use digital technology in achieving carbon emission reduction targets.