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Recent Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) reports have highlighted the inadequacy of environmental sustainability efforts. Thus, it is clear that current efforts towards environmental sustainability (SDG 13) and affordable and clean energy (SDG 7) policies are insufficient and a comprehensive policy agenda is needed. Existing literature limitedly addresses the determinants of environmental sustainability but relatively ignores the impact of nuclear energy research and development investments (NCI) and green environment on environmental quality. The motivation of this study is to fill this research gap and propose an overarching policy structure to achieve SDGs. In this context, this study investigates the effects of green environment, economic growth, human capital, and NCI on environmental sustainability comparatively for the United States and France through the Asymmetric Autoregressive Distributed Lag, which considers structural break. Based on the empirical analysis results, economic growth and trade openness harm environmental sustainability, while positive shocks in NCI improve environmental quality in both countries. Negative NCI shocks deteriorate environmental quality in the United States but not France. In conclusion, this study provides detailed environmental sustainability policies for the United States and France. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concern that over-depleting natural resources (NAT) may somehow be costly for environmental quality is a recurrent topic in empirical analysis. However, the literature has predominantly focused on studying the effects of increases in NAT use on the environment, ignoring potential non-linear interactions. The current study seeks to expand the previous literature by examining the non-linear environmental ramifications of NAT in Russia, home to one of the world's richest natural resource reserves. In this regard, adopting the load capacity factor (LCF) as an environmental indicator, the study examines how the positive and negative changes in NAT affect the country's environmental well-being within the framework of the N-ARDL model for 1992–2021. This study uses artificial intelligence unit root and asymmetric Fourier causality approach for robustness analysis. Empirical evidence suggests that positive shocks to NAT have a deleterious influence on the LCF, while negative changes in NAT contribute to environmental well-being. Nonetheless, the long-term influence of a unit positive shock in NAT decreases the LCF by a greater amount than a unit negative shock increases it. The results also demonstrate a 'U-shaped' connection between income growth and ecological well-being, confirming the validity of the LCC hypothesis. Furthermore, the outcomes reveal that renewable energy consumption and human capital upgrade environmental quality. Therefore, Russian policymakers should focus on the SDG 7, 12, and 13 targets, which refer to substantially increasing the quality of primary and secondary education, the share of green energy in the total energy mix, and effective resource management and utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the efforts of the United Nations, environmental sustainability is becoming the subject of countries. Policymakers and researchers closely follow the environmental dimensions of Sustainable Development Goals. This study offers a new perspective for the European Union economies by directly targeting SDG 9 and considers environmental sustainability policies in selecting variables. To be more precise, this study probes the effects of economic growth, trade openness, renewable energy, human capital, and competitive industrial performance on the load capacity factor for EU countries over the period of 1995–2018. This study uses the CUP‐FM and CUP‐BC approaches due to cross‐sectional dependence and heterogeneity. In addition, the study does not ignore possible structural breaks. As a result of the empirical analysis, while economic growth, trade openness, and competitiveness worsen environmental quality, renewable energy and human capital contribute to environmental sustainability. Based on the panel data results, EU economies still rely on fossil fuels to maintain competitiveness in the industry. The EU, which has 2030 and 2050 targets, can eliminate the disadvantages of competitiveness by expanding the environmental quality‐enhancing feature of renewable energy and human capital. Moreover, this study provides SDG‐oriented policy recommendations for EU countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to expand the existing literature by bringing a new perspective to China's environmental quality. Existing literature concerning China's environmental sustainability disregards competitive industrial performance, which allows the analysis of Sustainable Development Goal-9. The study investigates the impact of competitive industrial performance, economic growth, and renewable energy consumption on the environmental quality (represented by load capacity factor) within the load capacity curve framework. Considering the positive and negative shocks in industrial competitiveness, the study runs the novel asymmetric ARDL with Fourier terms method to examine the non-linear connection between competitiveness and the environment. Empirical analysis shows that industrial competitiveness asymmetrically affects environmental quality and that the load capacity curve hypothesis is invalid in China. It is also evident that renewable energy contributes to environmental quality. Based on these findings, the study presents sustainable development policies for China within the framework of SDG targets. In this context, country's rapid growth and higher-order industrial competitiveness strategies need to be redesigned in order to increase the share of high-tech activities in total manufacturing and the portion of renewable energy in total energy use. Accordingly, the Chinese policymakers' primary objectives should be regulations that guide fundamental principles for enhancing environmental quality while preserving the country's rapid growth and competitive advantage in the industrial process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The energy resources of the economies play a critical role in reaching the 2030 and 2050 decarbonization targets. In this respect, research and development budgets for nuclear energy (NRD), which constitutes one‐fifth of the current energy resources in the United Kingdom, can be a step in the transition to a low‐carbon economy. However, the current literature neglects the impact of NRD on environmental quality for the United Kingdom. Thus, this paper explores the impact of NRD on CO2 in the United Kingdom by controlling income, trade openness, and financial development from 1974 to 2020 with a non‐linear autoregressive distributed lag (NARDL) approach. Empirical findings confirm the asymmetrical relationship between NRD and CO2. In this context, while positive changes in NRD reduce environmental degradation, negative changes in NRD hinder environmental sustainability. Another finding is that the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis is valid. Furthermore, the results show that while economic growth and trade openness reduce environmental quality, financial development contributes to environmental quality. Considering these findings, financial deepening activities should continue in the United Kingdom. More resources should be allocated to nuclear energy research and development budgets in the transition to a low‐carbon economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental sustainability has become the most critical global agenda of the 21st century. The Paris Agreement goals to keep the global temperature rise below 2°C compared to the pre-industrial period. BRICS, which use intensive natural resources, hold regular meetings, and announce policies to comply with the Paris Agreement. This article aims to help BRICS achieve their sustainable development goals. In order to achieve this aim, the relationship between renewable energy consumption, natural resources, and CO2 emissions is explored in depth using the non-linear panel autoregressive distributed lag method controlling for economic growth and foreign direct investments. Robust results are obtained by allowing for heterogeneity and crosssection dependence in econometric analysis. Contrary to the previous literature, it has been shown in the empirical analysis that the impact of natural resources on CO2 emissions is not the same in both the long and short-run. In the long-run, negative and positive changes in natural resources increase environmental degradation, while foreign direct investments improve environmental quality. In addition, it seems that renewable energy sources have not reached the level to enhance environmental quality. The empirical results indicated that natural resource and renewable energy consumption findings are novel and bring a different perspective to the existing literature. BRICS should take measures to ensure sustainable use of natural resources in order to minimize dependence on fossil fuels. China, Russia, India, and South Africa should increase the share of RSE in the total energy mix and support renewable energy infrastructure investments for moving towards sustainable environmental development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the literature on financial development, public finance, and other areas has substantially increased; however, remittances are among the most neglected sources with significantly larger resource inflow that may serve the purpose of reducing environmental degradation. The literature on export diversification and education is also limited, with conflicting findings. With this in mind, the current research examined the relationship among remittances, export diversification, education, and CO2 emissions controlling for renewable energy and economic growth in a panel of 22 top remittance‐receiving countries over the period 1986–2017. The study employed second‐generation unit root techniques in econometric methodology, Westerlund and Edgerton cointegration approach with structural breaks, Cup‐FM and CUP‐BC long‐run estimation techniques, and generalized quantile regression method. The findings indicate that remittances help in reducing environmental degradation as they have a negative effect on emissions. Likewise, export diversification reduces CO2 emissions, and renewable energy also contributes to decreasing CO2 emissions. In contrast, economic growth is conducive to environmental degradation. The study also finds a robust estimate of education as a stimulant of environmental degradation. Based on these novel findings, several policy suggestions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the asymmetric causal relations between Bitcoin and gold, Brent oil, US dollar, S&P 500 and BIST 100 Indexes for the weekly data of the period between November 2013 and July 2018 via by Hatemi-J (2012) test. The results indicate only a causal link going from the Bitcoin price to S&P 500 Index. Consequently, a change in Bitcoin prices appears to influence the investors' decisions on the S&P 500 Index. Therefore, it can be said that the investors in S&P 500 Index have closely followed the new macro-financial developments in the market and have been active on the S&P 500 market. However, the presence of a causality relation between Bitcoin price and other variables cannot be determined. Thus, it is supposed that Bitcoin may exist in association with the commodity market and other global indicators in the future, along with the recognition of the Bitcoin currency by countries, its being accepted as a means of exchange and its increased reliability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]