Economic growth, renewable energy consumption, and ecological footprint: Exploring the role of environmental regulations and democracy in sustainable development

• Published in: Sustainable development (Bradford, West Yorkshire, England) Vol. 30; no. 4; pp. 595 - 605
• Main Authors: Ahmed, Zahoor, Ahmad, Mahmood, Rjoub, Husam, Kalugina, Olga A., Hussain, Nazim
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.08.2022; Wiley Periodicals Inc
• Subjects: Alternative energy; Democracy; Ecological effects; Ecological footprint; Ecology; Economic analysis; Economic development; Economic growth; Economics; Empirical analysis; Energy consumption; Environmental degradation; Environmental management; environmental policy; Environmental regulations; environmental sustainability; Footprint analysis; G7 countries; Political institutions; Regulation; Regulations; Renewable energy; Resource management; Second generation; Sustainability; Sustainable development
• ISSN: 0968-0802; 1099-1719
• DOI: 10.1002/sd.2251

Countries enact environmental regulations to achieve sustainable development and ecological sustainability. However, environmental regulations do not guarantee environmental sustainability unless implemented efficiently. Furthermore, political institutions play a key role in the formulation and management of environmental regulations. This research examines the relationship between democracy, environmental regulations, economic growth, and ecological footprint (EF) in the panel of G7 nations from 1985 to 2017. Second generation econometric techniques are used to analyze the data. The empirical evidence indicates that economic growth enhances EF while democracy and environmental regulations positively contribute to ecological sustainability by reducing EF. The causal outcomes reveal that democracy Granger causes EF and renewable energy indicating that democracy curbs environmental degradation and stimulates the share of renewables. Further, democracy and environmental regulations Granger cause each other. Lastly, the implication of these findings for sustainable development and ecological sustainability are discussed.