<p>This study investigates the determinants of the ecological footprint, focusing on financial development and agriculture, fisheries, and forestry&#xa0;(AFF) value added in BRICS-T&#xa0;(Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa and Türkiye). The motivation behind this study stems from the increasing pressure to balance financial growth with environmental sustainability, particularly in emerging economies. Using yearly data from 1990 to 2018, the study employs panel ARDL, the Method of Moments Quantile Regression (MMQR) and Dumitrescu–Hurlin causality tests. The results indicate that financial development and financial institutions are found to increase ecological footprint in the long run, although short-run dynamics show that financial development may help mitigate environmental degradation. These results highlight the crucial role of financial systems, which may either contribute to ecological harm through financing carbon-intensive activities or promote sustainability when aligned with green finance policies. Additionally, human development and energy consumption significantly raise the ecological footprint, corroborating the findings of earlier studies linking urbanization and fossil fuel use to environmental degradation. The empirical findings also&#xa0;reveal that AFF activities are associated with a significant reduction in ecological footprint in the long run. This suggests that, in these economies, increased sectoral activity may be aligned with sustainable practices or lower environmental impact per unit of output.Policy implications suggest promoting sustainable agricultural practices and strengthening green finance initiatives to mitigate ecological degradation.</p> Graphical Abstract <p></p>