• Energy Research
• Frontiers in Environmental Science close

The present study examines the potential of the traditional environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) with an extension for growing industrialized economies, including Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Russia, Mexico and Turkey (E-7 economies) spanning from 1995 to 2019. Since the E-7 economies are still in a growing phase, this study adds to the EKC phenomenon by taking into description human development, the use of renewable energy, and technological innovations for investigation. Second-generational panel econometrics techniques, such as cross-sectional augmented autoregressive distributive lag (CS-ARDL), Augmented Mean Group (AMG), and Dumitrescu-Hurlin causality tests, form the basis of the experimental framework’s design. The study confirms the existence of the EKC phenomena in E-7 economies, where income expansion is prioritized in relation to environmental sustainability. The study’s findings demonstrate that technological modernization helps to mitigate pollution level. Therefore, human development, technological innovation, and the use of renewable energy are held up as the panacea for reducing carbon emissions over the time period under study. Finally, some further policy suggestions are provided.

Heterogeneous anthropogenic and insufficient development strategies have caused an international compromise between sustainable growth and environmental deterioration. Environmental concerns have necessitated rules and human capital to protect the global ecosystem. Literature is ambiguous on the usefulness of environmental rules in reducing environmental deterioration. This study examines the impact of environmental regulations and education as a proxy for human capital in Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria, and Turkey (MINT) countries’ ecological footprints between 1990 and 2020. The econometric research shows that present environmental restrictions in MINT countries are unsuccessful at reducing their ecological footprints. Energy consumption and trade-openness also increase ecological footprints. The MINT countries panel also confirms the Environmental Kuznets Curve idea. The country-specific findings show that energy use silently harmed the environment in MINT nations, whereas environmental legislation, economic growth, and trade-openness had diverse effects. These findings suggest that in order for MINT nations to achieve environmental sustainability, they should strengthen and enforce environmental regulations; adopt policies that promote sustainable economic growth; reduce their reliance on fossil-fuels; improve quality education and awareness; and actively engage in sustainable trading activities.

As a national pillar industry, the carbon emissions generated by the construction industry have received significant attention. As a large developing country, China has unbalanced regional development and imperfect modern energy infrastructure in some regions, leading to a prominent problem of energy poverty in China. Therefore, this study constructs the index system of energy poverty using panel data of 30 provinces and cities from 2004 to 2016. This article analyzes the influence of energy poverty on carbon intensity of the construction industry and constructs the influence model of carbon intensity of the construction industry. The results show that 1) the carbon intensity of the construction industry increases by 1.683 units per unit increase of energy poverty, showing a positive impact. 2) Energy consumption structure has a mediating effect on the impact of energy poverty on carbon intensity of the construction industry. 3) The technological level plays a moderating role in the main effect of energy poverty and carbon intensity in the construction industry; the degree of marketization plays a moderating role in the indirect effect of energy consumption structure and carbon intensity of the construction industry. These results offered valuable policy recommendations for sustainable industrial growth.