Revisiting the N-shaped environmental Kuznets curve for economic complexity and ecological footprint

This study aims to investigate the impact of economic complexity on ecological footprint considering the N shaped environmental Kuznets curve (EKzC) hypothesis by designing two models in a sample of eighty-five countries (these countries are divided into four groups, high-income, lower-middle-income, upper-middle income, and overall countries), from 2001 to 2020. The two-step system GMM method is applied to compute estimations. For model 1, the findings of the study do not validate the N-shaped EKzC hypothesis for any group. However, for model 2, findings confirm N-shaped EKzC in all income groups, except for the upper-middle-income countries. Finally, a negative relationship between renewable energy consumption and the ecological footprint was found, which highlights the importance of promoting greener energy in order to combat global warming.

Automated summary

This study aims to investigate the impact of economic complexity on ecological footprint by considering the N-shaped environmental Kuznets curve (EKzC) hypothesis. Two models are designed for a sample of eighty-five countries from 2001 to 2020. The findings do not support the N-shaped EKzC hypothesis in model 1, but confirm it in all income groups except for the upper-middle-income countries in model 2. Moreover, a negative relationship between renewable energy consumption and the ecological footprint is found, highlighting the importance of promoting greener energy to combat global warming.