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Increased residential energy consumption and reduced income caused by the lockdown measures invoked to combat the COVID-19 pandemic have deepened energy poverty, particularly in vulnerable communities. In this context, the pathway through which COVID-19 impacts energy poverty is constructed, and six relief measures are proposed: consistent financing of energy suppliers and consumers, developing various forms of socio-economic aids, leveraging fiscal stimuli to promote renewable energy transition, identifying vulnerable populations to improve policy effectiveness, designing equitable resource allocation mechanisms, and rethinking socio-economic transition in the post-pandemic era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green finance is an effective policy instrument in mitigating climate change, but to date little is known about its impact on carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions. This study extends the literature on the relationship between green finance and CO 2 emissions while taking trade openness and economic development into consideration to comprehensively explore the conservation/feedback hypothesis using the Autoregressive-Distributed Lag–Error Correction Model (ARDL–ECM) on data collected from 2000 to 2019. By constructing a green finance index comprising green credit, green securities, green insurance, and green investment, results include the following. (1) Support was found for the conservation hypothesis running from green finance, trade openness, and economic development to emissions per capita; the conservation hypothesis also was supported for the unidirectional relationship running from trade openness and economic development to green finance. (2) Green finance is found to be significantly and negatively related to emissions per capita in both the short and long term. (3) Trade openness shows a positive effect on emissions per capita. Robustness tests are provided. This study deepens policy implications of green finance in the post-pandemic era and highlights the moderating role of renewable energy in the green finance impact on carbon mitigation. • This study constructs a green finance index for China. • The autoregressive distributed lag–error correction model is employed. • Green finance contributes to carbon mitigation in both the short and long run. • CO 2 emissions are Granger result of green finance, trade openness and economic growth. • Trade openness and economic growth are Granger causes of each other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As Internet usage reshapes our societies, digital inequalities have increased over the past few decades. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries accelerated their digital transformation processes, and it is widely believed the COVID-19 pandemic has deepened existing inequalities in the digital realm. Yet, few studies have empirically examined whether digital inequalities in the labor market increased during the pandemic. This analysis studies how the COVID-19 pandemic affected Chinese workers' Internet usage and how this influence varied across socioeconomic groups. By using the ordered probit model and leveraging the most recent data from the China Family Panel Studies and the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, we find that the pandemic significantly increased the overall level of Internet usage in the country, and the mediating effects of the perceived importance of the Internet and access to the Internet are confirmed. As Internet usage increased, digital inequalities in China's labor market deepened, especially among young and wealthy workers with high social status in urban areas, while older and poorer workers in rural areas benefited less from this new 'digital wave.' Moreover, during the pandemic, Internet usage increased among employees working in state-owned enterprises (SOEs), which suggests a growing digital inequality gap between SOEs and other sectors. Following a series of robustness tests, our research findings remain valid. We propose a policy redesign that embodies a comprehensive long-term vision and guarantees raising the levels of Internet usage for socially and economically disadvantaged groups in China. • COVID-19 pandemic in China causes a significant increase of Internet usage rate; • Mediating roles of perceived importance of Internet and access to Internet are confirmed; • Digital inequalities deepen as Internet usage increased for certain socioeconomic groups; • The young and wealthy citizens with a high social status are benefitted from such digitalization. • Internet usage rate is significantly increased for SOE employees than other sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• EKC, Porter Hypothesis, and Jevons' Paradox are tested in China IS industry. • Cointegration, VECM, IRF and granger causality techniques are used for analyses. • Environmental regulation exerts a critical role in emissions reduction. • The three hypotheses are confirmed under certain conditions. • Policy recommendations for IS industrial low-carbon development are posited. By comprehensively evaluating the potential effectiveness of environmental regulations and technical innovation in facilitating emission reductions, this study highlights the complexity of the relationships — short- and long-term as well as dynamic responses — between carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions, energy efficiency, economic performance, environmental regulation and technological innovation using the vector error correction model (VECM) by incorporating exogenous policy factors based on China IS industrial data during the period 1995–2017. Empirical analysis indicates: (a) the existence of the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) Hypothesis is established given an inverted U-shaped curve of CO 2 emissions along with the increase of industrial output value; (b) weak Porter Hypothesis (pH) stands in the short term as innovation can be spurred by environmental regulation, whereas strong pH is supported in both the short and long term when energy efficiency and emission reduction can be achieved under strict regulations;(c) Jevons' Paradox is confirmed since the emissions increment brought by the massive increase in demand is greater than the emission reduction volume brought by energy efficiency improvement and; (d) Environmental regulation exerts a critical role in emission reduction, especially for the policies with market-based and common-and-control functions implemented since 2006. Corresponding policy implications to facilitate low-carbon transition of the ISI are proposed. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We projected a future transition path for new energy vehicles in china. • Phases of predevelopment, take-off, acceleration, and sprint are identified. • Niches, regime, and landscape for each phase are analyzed respectively. • We illustrate the essential role of government in the chinese context. • Implications for technology innovation and industrial coordination are proposed. The transport sector is a key emitter of greenhouse gasses. We applied socio-technical transition theory and the multi-level perspective (MLP) approach to depict the interplay of three MLP layers (niche, regime, and landscape) and to project future paths for the transition from traditional (fossil fuel) vehicles to new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China. Specifically, the exogenous context nurtures nascent innovations and restrains the development of traditional fuel vehicles; however, the socio-technical system of NEVs is still in the primary stage and cannot meet the needs of consumers. Under double pressures, the socio-technical system of traditional vehicles is generally stable, but there are factors that impinge on this stability. Four phases are identified according to national plans: the initial pre-development phase (2001 – 2011) protects nascent innovations; core technologies are developed and market share is expanded in the take-off phase (2012 – 2020); the acceleration phase (2021 – 2035) strengthens the trend by encouraging key technological breakthroughs, infrastructure construction, and international cooperation; and the last sprint phase (2036–) further develops the low-carbon transition in China's automobile industry. We also illustrate the essential role of government in the Chinese context. Policy implications related to electric power, technological innovation, and industrial coordination are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Replacing traditional energy sources with renewable energy sources is an effective way to achieve emission reduction targets. Focusing on OECD countries from 1990 to 2018, this study examines the determinants of renewable energy innovation by applying a negative binomial model. There are four main findings: (1) Renewable energy patents show an inverted U-shaped curve, peaking in 2010; solar energy accounts for the largest share of patents; and the US is the largest renewable energy innovator, followed by South Korea and Germany. (2) Renewable electricity installed capacity, share of expenditure on research and development (R&D) of GDP, and implementation of the Kyoto Protocol are all found to promote innovation; by comparison, the proportion of renewable energy power generation of the total electricity generating capacity shows a negative effect. The price of crude oil shows no significant effect due to the offset effect between the European and non-European country groups. (3) Share of R&D expenditure of GDP is confirmed to be the force driving technological progress in the solar, geothermal, and marine sectors, and it plays a more important role in Japan than in the US or Europe. Implementation of the Kyoto Protocol has no significant effect on innovation in European countries. (4) Three institutional factors—namely, the legal system and property rights; regulations; and freedom to trade internationally—are confirmed to be the driving forces, whereas this is not the case for the growth and free circulation of money. Policy implications for the optimization of the renewable energy sector's structure, the enhancement of renewable energy capacity, and the improvement of R&D investment and the institutional environment are proposed. Future research should shed light on a broader sample, using micro-level and socio-technical analysis. • A negative binomial model is used for the OECD countries during the period 1990–2018. • Renewable capacity, R&D investment, and KP are the driving forces of innovation. • Share of renewable power generation capacity negatively affects innovation. • Institutional factors are confirmed to be the driving forces of innovation. • The determinants of five renewable innovation subcategories are examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]