• Energy Research

The globalized world has experienced significant environmental degradation together with raising global production and population. In this context, the employment of renewable energy use has become crucial for a sustainable environment and development. In the research, the mutual causality among renewable energy, trade and financial globalization, real GDP per capita, and CO2 emissions in EU transition economies experiencing the integration with global economy was explored through bootstrap panel Granger causality test for the period of 1995–2015. The causality analysis revealed a unilateral causality from trade globalization to renewable energy in Estonia, Latvia, and Slovenia, and from renewable energy to trade globalization in Croatia and Lithuania. However, no significant causality between financial globalization and renewable energy was revealed. On the other side, a unilateral causality from CO2 emissions to renewable energy in Lithuania and Slovenia, and from renewable energy to CO2 emissions in Czechia, Hungary, and Latvia and a reciprocal causality between renewable energy to CO2 emissions in Romania and Slovakia and a unilateral causality from real GDP per capita to renewable energy in Czechia, Romania, and Slovenia was discovered in the causality analysis.

Since the 1950s, the remarkable amount of global environmental degradation has heightened environmental concerns at both national and international levels. This shift has spurred intensive research into the causes of environmental degradation and potential remedies, including environmental taxes, fines, education, and regulations. The drivers of CO2 emissions have been widely explored in the literature, but the nexus between business climate, human capital, and CO2 emissions has not been examined sufficiently. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to delve into the interplay between renewable energy, business climate, human capital, and CO2 emissions in BRICS countries from 2000 to 2020 using panel causality and cointegration tests. Our research hypotheses suggest that there are significant mutual interactions among renewable energy, business climate, human capital, and CO2 emissions based on the associated literature. The results of the causality test verify the research hypotheses by uncovering a bidirectional causality between business climate, renewable energy use, human capital, and CO2 emissions. Furthermore, the cointegration analysis reveals that increases in renewable energy use and human capital decrease CO2 emissions at the panel level, but a positive business climate increases CO2 emissions at the panel level. However, the impact of business climate on CO2 emissions at the country level varies among BRICS economies based on environmental policies. In conclusion, investing in green energy technologies and education is a useful tool to decrease CO2 emissions. In addition to this, the positive effect of business climate on CO2 emissions should be balanced by regulations to increase environmental, social, and governance awareness of firms.

Countries have turned to developing renewable energy production, avoiding the risks posed by the disruptions in global energy trade, the high volatility in energy prices, and the remarkable environmental impairment. Numerous economic, environmental, institutional, and social factors have been put forward as driving factors toward renewable energy. The goal of this research article is to study the causal nexus among energy dependency, human capital, real GDP per capita, CO2 emissions, and renewable energy of the 27 EU members between 2000 and 2020 through Emirmahmutoglu and Kose causality test. The results of the panel-level causality tests demonstrate feedback interplay among energy dependency, human capital, real GDP per capita, CO2 emissions, and renewable energy use. However, the results of the country-level causality analysis unveil that the interplay among renewable energy utilization, energy dependency, real GDP per capita, CO2 emissions, and human capital remarkably varies among EU members. The results of this study suggest that renewable energy investments are significant instruments to make progress in energy security, human capital, real GDP per capita, and CO2 emissions. Furthermore, energy security, human capital, real GDP per capita, and CO2 emissions are significant drivers of renewable energy development.

Environmental degradation is one of the most significant problems of the globalized world. This paper explores the impact of institutional development and human capital on CO2 emissions in 11 EU transition economies over the period of 2000–2018 through co-integration analysis. The co-integration analysis revealed that human capital negatively affected CO2 emissions in Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovenia, and that institutions had a negative impact on CO2 emissions in the Czech Republic. However, both institutions and human capital positively affected CO2 emissions in Latvia and Lithuania.

Energy is life blood of all economies and an indispensable prerequisite for all economic activities and consequently factors influencing the energy consumption are of vital importance. Therefore, this study investigates the effect of education together with financial development on energy consumption in sample of BRICS economies over the 1990–2019 period by means of second-generation cointegration and causality analyses thanks to the small number of empirical studies. The causality analysis unveils a one-way causal effect from education to primary energy consumption, but an insignificant causality between financial development and primary energy consumption. The cointegration analysis uncovers a strong positive effect of education at panel level and in all BRICS economies in the long-term, but financial sector development has a significant positive influence on primary energy use only in South Africa in the long-term. The findings of the study reveal that education considerably increases the primary energy use in the BRICS economies through economic growth channel, but financial sector development has not been a significant determinant of primary energy use yet. However, the BRICS economies should attach more importance to green technology and energy focused growth for sustainable growth and development.

Renewable energy has become a crucial factor for circular economies, sustainable development, and the environment given the limited non-renewable energy reserves and global environmental degradation mainly resulting from non-renewable energy use. This study explores the effect of educational attainment and economic growth on renewable energy use in a sample of selected emerging markets over the 2000–2018 period through causality and cointegration analyses. Causality analysis points out a significant unidirectional causality from indicators of educational attainment and economic growth to renewable energy use. In other words, educational attainment indicators and economic growth are significant determinants of renewable energy in the short run. Furthermore, the cointegration analysis ascertains a positive influence of indicators of educational attainment and economic growth on renewable energy use in the long run. The findings of both analyses indicate that educational attainment and economic growth have a significant impact on renewable energy use in the short and long term. Therefore, the policies fostering educational attainment can be used as instruments to increase the share of renewable energy use in total energy consumption.

Both health and human capital are simultaneously resources and indicators of sustainable development. Therefore, this research article studies the causal interaction among total health expenditures, out-of-pocket expenditures, human capital, and sustainable development in eleven EU member countries during 2000–2020 through the panel causality test. The result of the causality test indicates that indicators of health expenditures, human capital, and sustainable development are closely interrelated, but the causal interaction among indicators of health expenditures, human capital, and sustainable development differs among the new EU members. On the one hand, health expenditures and human capital are significant factors underlying sustainable development. On the other hand, sustainable development is a significant determinant of health expenditures and human capital. Considering the significant role of human capital for sustainable development, education and training programs should especially be revised in a way to improve the sustainability and healthy life awareness and qualifications of the individuals. Furthermore, the digital transformation of health systems from both supply and demand sides should be supported by public health policies.