• Energy Research

The main objective of the present study was to examine the impact of socioeconomic factors on environmental degradation or preservation using the logarithmic mean disivia index (LMDI). The study used the latest data from thirty Chinese provinces from 2012 to 2020. Pooled mean group (PMG) results were estimated to determine the long-term and short-term impact of the aforementioned compound variables on carbon emissions. The study results revealed that population growth, per capita GDP growth, and fossil fuel-led energy consumption, positively impacted environmental degradation in China at the provincial level. However, clean energy intensity and a transition towards renewable energy in China are helping to reduce carbon emissions. Similarly, clean energy intensity is also helping to lower carbon emissions. The study proposed that at the provincial level, joint efforts were required to control environmental degradation in China. The positive impact of renewable energy intensity on carbon emissions encourages the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy sources for environmentally friendly growth.

Research on forecasting the seasonality and growth trend of natural gas (NG) production and consumption will help organize an analysis base for NG inspection and development, social issues, and allow industrials elements to operate effectively and reduce economic issues. In this situation, we handle a comparison structure on the application of different models in monthly NG production and consumption forecasting using the cross-correlation function and then analyze the association between exogenous variables. Moreover, the SARIMA-X model is tested for US monthly NG production and consumption prediction via the proposed method for the first time in the literature review in this study. The performance of that model has been compared with SARIMA (p, d, q) * (P, D, Q)s. The results from RMSE and MAPE indicate that the superiority of the best model. By applying this method, the US monthly NG production and consumption is forecast until 2025. The success of the proposed method allows the use of seasonality patterns. If this seasonal approach continues, the United States’ NG production (16%) and consumption (24%) are expected to increase by 2025. The results of this study provide effective information for decision-makers on NG production and consumption to be credible and to determine energy planning and future sustainable energy policies.

The COP-27 meeting held in Egypt in November 2022 aimed to build on past successes and set the foundation for future objectives in the fight against global warming. Achieving ecological responsibility remains a significant challenge, particularly in light of the Post-Glasgow Agreement goals, necessitating increased pressure on participating nations to act. Despite its importance, previous literature has inadequately explored the factors that effectively reduce carbon emissions in E7 economies. This study addresses this research gap by forecasting the impact of green environmental technology, technological innovation, renewable energy adoption, structural changes (measured by the contribution of services to GDP), and institutional quality (IQ) on carbon emissions in E7 economies. Using the advanced Method-of-Moments Quantile procedure on data from 2000 to 2020, the study finds that environmental technology significantly reduces carbon emissions, while technological innovation increases emissions within the bloc. Additionally, IQ, structural changes, and renewable energy adoption exhibit a significant inverse relationship with pollution levels. These findings underscore the importance of policies that restore and promote environmental technology while simultaneously fostering technical advancements. Such strategies are essential for achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs) 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and 13 (Climate Action).

This study aims to investigate the impact of corporate social responsibility disclosures (CSRD) on the financial performance of the Islamic banking industry of Pakistan. The study employed the method of content analysis for collecting the required data from annual reports of all four full-fledged Islamic banks operating in Pakistan from 2012 to 2017. The study developed a novel comprehensive CSRD index by using the “Global Reporting Initiative” (GRI) and “Accounting and Auditing Organization of Islamic Financial Institutions” (AAOIFI). This index consists of five dimensions and 105 sub-dimensions of CSRD. The use of Ordinary Least Squares (OLS), Panel Corrected Standard Errors (PCSEs), and Generalized Least Squares (GLS) using random-effect (RE) and fixed-effect (FE) estimators revealed a significant negative relationship between CSRD and the financial performance of the sample firms. Regarding separate dimensions, the relationship of the Environmental and Economic dimensions of CSRD is significantly positive with current performance, but it is insignificant for the relationships of Legal, Philanthropic, and Ethical dimensions of CSRD with the current financial performance. In addition to contributing to the scarce literature in the Islamic banking industry of a developing country like Pakistan, the study will also help the policymakers and other stakeholders, including the AAOIFI, to develop a comprehensive CSRD policy or index and further improve the already established standards for CSRD.

Abstract The relationship among economic growth, energy, and the environment is very complex and sensitive, demanding a comprehensive set of policies. This study examines the role of clean technological innovation in attaining win-win conditions for the involved sectors, along with some other macroeconomic variables. For this purpose, the five main indices used are the energy index, financial index, human index, fiscal index, and environmental index of vital macroeconomic indicators developed for G-7 countries. We employ the recently developed quantile autoregressive distributed lag (QARDL) model to assess clean technological innovation's impact on economic and environmental conditions along with other indicators for the 2008–2018 period. According to the results, the energy index, which consists of research and development (R&D) in clean technological innovation in energy and renewable energy, has a significant and negative impact on greenhouse gasses (GHG) emissions and has a positive and significant impact on economic growth. This study is pioneering in its nature, finding that productive expenditures on R&D for clean technological innovation can simultaneously enhance economic growth and improve environmental conditions. Based on empirical outcomes, this study suggests advanced policies to enhance economic growth without compromising environmental conditions in G-7 countries.

Abstract This study determines the role of natural resources’ utilization, foreign direct investment (FDI), and fossil fuel consumption in economic growth by utilizing panel data of 25 developing Asian countries from the period 1996 to 2016. Pool Mean Group (PMG) regression is used for this purpose, and the results show that the rent received from forests has a sizeable share in the economic growth of developing Asian Countries. The study shows that an increase in FDI is stimulating economic growth in developing countries. However, although the utilization of natural resources has a positive impact on economic growth, the results show a statistically insignificant role of natural resources in improving economic growth. Finally, the results show that the rent obtained from forest resources, mineral resources, and oil extraction makes a significant contribution to economic growth. The findings highlight that FDI and the rent received from the pool of natural resources are significant contributors to economic growth, as they are both helping to develop industrialization in the nations concerned and improve the level of per capita income. However, the findings also suggest that there is a need to consider the limited availability of natural resources and to deal with this situation by (a) developing policies that can ensure the efficient use of such rent received from the natural resources by importing advanced technologies from developed nations and (b) using the rents from natural resources to promote the business environment and attract FDI in developing countries.

Although plenty of discussions have been conducted on the importance of top management’s ethical commitment (TMEC), companies’ ethical climate (EC), sustainable procurement practices (SPP) and organizational performance, empirical studies to explain the mechanism through which the top management’s ethical commitment generates favorable performance for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are still not yet established. Constructing a formal theory, we recommend that TMEC contributes to SMEs’ performance by promoting the company’s EC and SPP. This hypothetical outline was empirically tested using a sample of SMEs in Saudi Arabia. This study tested hypotheses using structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Our analysis shows that TMEC significantly predicts companies’ EC and SPP, which then fully mediate the effects of TMEC on SMEs’ non-financial performance (NFP). This research supports the reasonable theoretical statement that TMEC boosts SME performance by providing empirical validation. The results also show that TMEC, the company’s EC, and SPP impact SMEs’ performance directly, except for the impacts of SPP on FP.