Economic Growth and Environmental Sustainability Analysis
Summary
The analysis of economic growth alongside environmental sustainability examines how rising incomes, industrial development and urbanisation influence natural systems and resource stocks. Central concerns include the extent to which economic expansion can be decoupled from environmental degradation, and the pathways by which societies might reconcile development objectives with climate mitigation and biodiversity conservation. Models such as the Environmental Kuznets Curve and decoupling indicators have guided empirical assessment of trade-offs and thresholds, while systems approaches emphasise feedbacks between production, consumption and ecosystem services. Recent advances integrate spatial-econometric methods, lifecycle assessment and multi-criteria decision tools to capture complex interactions among policy, technology and behaviour. The global significance of this field lies in informing climate negotiations, sustainable-development strategies and industry standards, with practical applications ranging from carbon pricing to green infrastructure planning. By synthesising diverse methodologies, researchers aim to chart equitable and resilient growth trajectories that safeguard planetary health.
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Economic Growth and Environmental Sustainability Analysis publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in economic growth and environmental sustainability analysis across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC): A hypothesised inverted-U relationship between per-capita income and environmental degradation, implying that pollution first rises then falls as economies mature.
Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model: A time-series econometric approach that estimates both short- and long-run dynamics between variables, accommodating integration of different orders.
Cointegration: A statistical property indicating that non-stationary time series share a stable, long-term equilibrium relationship despite short-term fluctuations.
Circular economy: An economic paradigm prioritising waste reduction, resource reuse and closed-loop material flows to enhance sustainability.
Decoupling: The process by which economic growth becomes independent of environmental pressure, typically measured by resource or emission intensity relative to GDP.
References
- A systematic review of forest area development drivers estimated under the concepts of environmental Kuznets curve and forest transition hypothesis. Environmental Research Letters (2024).
- The role of foreign direct investments, urbanization, productivity, and energy consumption in Finland’s carbon emissions: an ARDL approach. Environmental Science and Pollution Research (2023).
- Integrating Fuzzy MCDM Methods and ARDL Approach for Circular Economy Strategy Analysis in Romania. Mathematics (2024).
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