• Energy Research
• 2021-2025close
• English close
• Frontiers in Environmental Science close

Climate change poses an urgent challenge to both developed and developing economies, with varying degrees of vulnerability and institutional capacity. This study investigates the impact of energy efficiency, technological and financial innovations, industrial-economic development, and institutional quality on climate change effects (CCE), measured by ecological footprint, across G20 countries. Using panel data from 2000 to 2022, we apply Method of Moments Quantile Regression (MMQR), Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares (DOLS), and Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares (FMOLS) to capture both distributional effects and long-run relationships. The results reveal that energy and technological innovations significantly reduce CCE in both groups, though the impact is more pronounced in developing economies. In contrast, financial technologies are positively associated with CCE in developing economies, suggesting that the expansion of digital infrastructure without green safeguards may exacerbate environmental degradation. Energy efficiency exhibits a rebound effect in these contexts, undermining its potential benefits. Institutional quality and industrial development, however, consistently demonstrate a mitigating effect on ecological footprint. These findings offer differentiated policy insights: while innovation and governance reforms are critical across all contexts, developing economies require stronger regulatory frameworks to align digital and industrial growth with climate objectives. The study contributes to the broader discourse on sustainable development by identifying context-specific levers for reducing environmental pressures in alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Climate change poses an urgent challenge to both developed and developing economies, with varying degrees of vulnerability and institutional capacity. This study investigates the impact of energy efficiency, technological and financial innovations, industrial-economic development, and institutional quality on climate change effects (CCE), measured by ecological footprint, across G20 countries. Using panel data from 2000 to 2022, we apply Method of Moments Quantile Regression (MMQR), Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares (DOLS), and Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares (FMOLS) to capture both distributional effects and long-run relationships. The results reveal that energy and technological innovations significantly reduce CCE in both groups, though the impact is more pronounced in developing economies. In contrast, financial technologies are positively associated with CCE in developing economies, suggesting that the expansion of digital infrastructure without green safeguards may exacerbate environmental degradation. Energy efficiency exhibits a rebound effect in these contexts, undermining its potential benefits. Institutional quality and industrial development, however, consistently demonstrate a mitigating effect on ecological footprint. These findings offer differentiated policy insights: while innovation and governance reforms are critical across all contexts, developing economies require stronger regulatory frameworks to align digital and industrial growth with climate objectives. The study contributes to the broader discourse on sustainable development by identifying context-specific levers for reducing environmental pressures in alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Freshwater emits substantial volumes of CO2 to the atmosphere. This has largely gone unnoticed in global carbon budgets. My aim was to quantify the CO2 emanating from freshwater from 66° N to 47° S latitudes via in situ bacterial respiration (BR). I determined BR (n = 326) as a function of water temperature. Freshwater is emitting CO2 at a rate of 58.5 Pg C y−1 (six times that of fossil fuel burning). Most is emitted from the Northern Hemisphere. This is because the high northern summer temperatures coincide with most of the world’s freshwater. Diffuse DOC sources, for example dust, may be driving high freshwater BR. However, many sources remain elusive and not individually quantified in the literature. We must include freshwater CO2 emissions in climate models. Identifying, quantifying and managing freshwater’s diffuse sources of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) will hopefully provide us with another opportunity to change our current climate trajectory.

Freshwater emits substantial volumes of CO2 to the atmosphere. This has largely gone unnoticed in global carbon budgets. My aim was to quantify the CO2 emanating from freshwater from 66° N to 47° S latitudes via in situ bacterial respiration (BR). I determined BR (n = 326) as a function of water temperature. Freshwater is emitting CO2 at a rate of 58.5 Pg C y−1 (six times that of fossil fuel burning). Most is emitted from the Northern Hemisphere. This is because the high northern summer temperatures coincide with most of the world’s freshwater. Diffuse DOC sources, for example dust, may be driving high freshwater BR. However, many sources remain elusive and not individually quantified in the literature. We must include freshwater CO2 emissions in climate models. Identifying, quantifying and managing freshwater’s diffuse sources of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) will hopefully provide us with another opportunity to change our current climate trajectory.

Resilience thinking is increasingly promoted to address some of the grand challenges of the 21st century: providing water, energy, and food to all, while staying within the limits of the Earth system that is undergoing (climate) change. Concurrently, a partially overlapping body of literature on the water–energy–food (WEF) nexus has emerged through the realization that water, energy, and food systems are intricately linked—and should therefore be understood and managed in conjunction. This paper reviews recent scientific publications at the intersection of both concepts in order to i) examine the status quo on resilience thinking as it is applied in WEF nexus studies; ii) map the research landscape along major research foci and conceptualizations; iii) and propose a research agenda of topics distilled from gaps in the current research landscape. We identify key conceptualizations of both resilience and nexus framings that are used across studies, as we observe pronounced differences regarding the nexus’ nature, scope, emphasis and level of integration, and resilience’s scope, type, methodological and thematic foci. Promising research avenues include i) improving the understanding of resilience in the WEF nexus across scales, sectors, domains, and disciplines; ii) developing tools and indicators to measure and assess resilience of WEF systems; iii) bridging the implementation gap brought about by (governing) complexity; iv) integrating or reconciling resilience and nexus thinking; v) and considering other development principles and frameworks toward solving WEF challenges beside and beyond resilience, including control, efficiency, sustainability, and equity.

Resilience thinking is increasingly promoted to address some of the grand challenges of the 21st century: providing water, energy, and food to all, while staying within the limits of the Earth system that is undergoing (climate) change. Concurrently, a partially overlapping body of literature on the water–energy–food (WEF) nexus has emerged through the realization that water, energy, and food systems are intricately linked—and should therefore be understood and managed in conjunction. This paper reviews recent scientific publications at the intersection of both concepts in order to i) examine the status quo on resilience thinking as it is applied in WEF nexus studies; ii) map the research landscape along major research foci and conceptualizations; iii) and propose a research agenda of topics distilled from gaps in the current research landscape. We identify key conceptualizations of both resilience and nexus framings that are used across studies, as we observe pronounced differences regarding the nexus’ nature, scope, emphasis and level of integration, and resilience’s scope, type, methodological and thematic foci. Promising research avenues include i) improving the understanding of resilience in the WEF nexus across scales, sectors, domains, and disciplines; ii) developing tools and indicators to measure and assess resilience of WEF systems; iii) bridging the implementation gap brought about by (governing) complexity; iv) integrating or reconciling resilience and nexus thinking; v) and considering other development principles and frameworks toward solving WEF challenges beside and beyond resilience, including control, efficiency, sustainability, and equity.

In this research, data from 36 countries from 2013 to 2018 were used to examine the factors influencing CO2 emissions in Islamic countries, focusing on the impact of Islamic financial growth. The spatial econometric technique estimation findings indicate that there is no geographical association between CO2 emissions in the analyzed countries. The test findings establish the existence of the Kuznets hypothesis for the environment. Additionally, trade openness and increased energy usage have resulted in an increase in CO2 emissions. The impacts of traditional financial development factors, such as financial market and financial institution variables, were examined in this research. The findings indicate that the two variables have no direct and substantial influence on CO2 emissions and that their significant effect on CO2 emissions appears only when their nonlinear and spillover effects on energy consumption and economic growth are included. Additionally, the growth of financial institutions is inversely proportional to the intensity of carbon emissions. The results indicate that while the development of financial markets and institutions results in a significant increase in CO2 emissions, the negative coefficient of the interaction between financial development and energy consumption indicates that financial development ensures energy efficiency, which reduces the intensity of carbon emissions. The findings indicate that the expansion and depth of Islamic finance, as measured by total assets, asset quality, earnings, and efficiency of Islamic banks, can result in a nonlinear increase in CO2 emissions with a U-shaped relationship. The study of spillover effects demonstrates that in addition to their direct and positive effects on CO2 emissions, the increase in Islamic social responsibility and consumer education, and awareness about Islamic banking reduce the enhancing effects of energy consumption on greenhouse gas emissions.

In this research, data from 36 countries from 2013 to 2018 were used to examine the factors influencing CO2 emissions in Islamic countries, focusing on the impact of Islamic financial growth. The spatial econometric technique estimation findings indicate that there is no geographical association between CO2 emissions in the analyzed countries. The test findings establish the existence of the Kuznets hypothesis for the environment. Additionally, trade openness and increased energy usage have resulted in an increase in CO2 emissions. The impacts of traditional financial development factors, such as financial market and financial institution variables, were examined in this research. The findings indicate that the two variables have no direct and substantial influence on CO2 emissions and that their significant effect on CO2 emissions appears only when their nonlinear and spillover effects on energy consumption and economic growth are included. Additionally, the growth of financial institutions is inversely proportional to the intensity of carbon emissions. The results indicate that while the development of financial markets and institutions results in a significant increase in CO2 emissions, the negative coefficient of the interaction between financial development and energy consumption indicates that financial development ensures energy efficiency, which reduces the intensity of carbon emissions. The findings indicate that the expansion and depth of Islamic finance, as measured by total assets, asset quality, earnings, and efficiency of Islamic banks, can result in a nonlinear increase in CO2 emissions with a U-shaped relationship. The study of spillover effects demonstrates that in addition to their direct and positive effects on CO2 emissions, the increase in Islamic social responsibility and consumer education, and awareness about Islamic banking reduce the enhancing effects of energy consumption on greenhouse gas emissions.