Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management

This study aims to highlight the asymmetric impact of economic growth (GDP), trade openness (TO), energy consumption (EC), foreign direct investment (FDI), and financial development (FD) on carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions in Vietnam over the period 1990–2022, using quantile-on-quantile regression and Granger causality in quantiles techniques. Our mainstream findings indicate that the selected macroeconomic indicators have a strong positive effect on CO₂ emissions in this country, and this effect is more pronounced in the lowest and highest quantiles of the respective variables. In addition, the results of Granger causality suggest a bidirectional causal relationship between the examined indicators. These findings suggest that fostering economic growth, promoting trade openness, managing energy consumption, encouraging foreign direct investment, and enhancing financial development can contribute to a sustainable environment in Vietnam.

This paper investigates the effectiveness of climate-related financial policies (CRFPs) in promoting sustainable development goals (SDGs). Using data from a sample of 71 countries between 2016 and 2021, we find robust evidence showing that CRFPs play a crucial role in assisting countries to achieve their sustainable development plans. However, the impact of CRFPs varies across different individual development goals. We find that CRFPs have the potential to foster food security, well-being, education quality, clean energy, innovation, decent work, innovation, equality, sustainable cities, marine life and peace. However, the CRFPs appear to hinder progress in responsible consumption and production as well as climate action. Our research further highlights the idea that institutional quality can act as a supporting mechanism to strengthen the positive impact of CRFPs on sustainable development in a country. Finally, we find that the implementation of CRFPs in advanced economies is more effective in promoting a country’s achievement of the SDGs. This study provides important policy implications of reinforcing institutional frameworks, fostering international partnerships and adopting holistic approaches that contribute to diverse facets of sustainable development.

Low-carbon energy technology (LCET) holds the key to unlocking a harmonious coordination between energy consumption and environmental preservation, paving the way for a resilient and sustainable future. We consider the role of information and communication technology (ICT) efficiency and environmental regulation (ER) in promoting LCET based on the dataset in China during 2001–2019. We also explore the joint effect of ICT efficiency and ER on LCET. Moreover, the impact mechanisms are fully explored. The findings are as follows: (1) ICT efficiency and ER both have positive impacts on LCET, which means that they have individual low-carbon technological innovation effects. (2) The interaction of ICT efficiency and ER contributes to the rise of LCET. In other words, these two factors work synergistically to promote the development of LCET. (3) Heterogeneous effect suggests that the combined promotion effect of ICT efficiency and ER on LCET is more remarkable in regions with better economic development. (4) ICT efficiency affects LCET by encouraging R&D and fiscal spending on the environment, which means that R&D and fiscal spending on the environment are two transmission mechanisms between ER and LCET. The conclusions recommend that the government should promote ICT efficiency and ER to spur LCET development.

Decarbonisation is seen as a critical factor of environmental protection policies. They include various forms of carbon emission control, carbon pricing, and the use of environmental, social, and governmental (ESG) standards and metrics. Although the urgent need for it was recognised by business communities, decarbonisation process is rather slow because of some contradiction between the interests of the company’s internal and external stakeholders. To solve this problem and achieve corporate strategic goals, we proposed a methodology based on the decoupling effect and green resource orchestration theory. In the paper, we explained the logic of aligning decarbonisation goals with company strategic objectives; described requirements and conditions for that; and confirmed that this approach can be used by companies worldwide.

This study examines the presence and determinants of the ‘greenium’ in Asian green bonds. The dataset includes green bonds issued by governments and corporations in Asian countries from 2016 to 2022. To analyse the determinants of the greenium, we applied a coarsened exact matching (CEM) model, an advanced form of the matching method. Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression was employed to assess the factors influencing the greenium. Our findings indicate that a greenium exists in green bonds issued in Asia, with significant effects observed in China, Korea, and Japan. Key drivers of the greenium include coupon rates, issuer type, oil prices, and the federal funds rate. This study contributes practical insights by highlighting that a greenium can be achieved through strategic project selection, transparent communication, and strong environmental commitment. Additionally, investors should account for coupon rates, issuer sector, and macroeconomic factors such as oil prices and the federal funds rate when investing in green bonds.