Scholarlink

<p>The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector is one of the largest electricity consumers globally. It has the potential to become a major user of renewable energy, highlighting both the challenge and opportunity for reducing emissions. This is supported by previous studies that have produced inconsistent findings. This study aims to fill these gaps by examining both the direct and interactive effects of ICT on CO<sub>2</sub> emissions across different country panels, using both linear and non-linear models. Utilizing panel data from 1996 to 2021 and a two-step system Generalized Method of Moments (SYS-GMM) approach, the study analyzes internet usage (Int), mobile subscriptions (Mob), an augmented ICT index (AICT), and their interactions with renewable energy consumption (REC), GDP, natural resource rents (NRR), urbanization (Urban), education (Edu), foreign direct investment (FDI), and globalization (Glob) across high-income countries (HICs), upper-middle-income countries (UMICs), high-emission countries (HECs), and low- to medium-emission countries (LMECs). We found persistent CO<sub>2</sub> emissions in all country groups. In HICs, Mob reduces CO<sub>2</sub> emissions and supports the EKC hypothesis, while Int shows limited direct impact, although its interactions with variables like REC, GDP, Urb, and Glob reveal significant moderating effects. In UMICs, Int and Mob display a U-shaped relationship with CO<sub>2</sub> emissions, with Int contributing to emission reductions at lower levels but accelerating emissions beyond certain thresholds. The AICT confirms the robustness of our findings. These findings indicate that ICT is not inherently ‘green’ or ‘polluting,’ and underscore the importance of its interactions with socio-economic and environmental variables when formulating effective policies.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Digitization meets decarbonization: the interactive effects of renewable energy and socioeconomic drivers on CO2 emissions

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年12月15日

查看全文
  • B. Saboori,
  • S. Mahdavi

摘要

The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector is one of the largest electricity consumers globally. It has the potential to become a major user of renewable energy, highlighting both the challenge and opportunity for reducing emissions. This is supported by previous studies that have produced inconsistent findings. This study aims to fill these gaps by examining both the direct and interactive effects of ICT on CO2 emissions across different country panels, using both linear and non-linear models. Utilizing panel data from 1996 to 2021 and a two-step system Generalized Method of Moments (SYS-GMM) approach, the study analyzes internet usage (Int), mobile subscriptions (Mob), an augmented ICT index (AICT), and their interactions with renewable energy consumption (REC), GDP, natural resource rents (NRR), urbanization (Urban), education (Edu), foreign direct investment (FDI), and globalization (Glob) across high-income countries (HICs), upper-middle-income countries (UMICs), high-emission countries (HECs), and low- to medium-emission countries (LMECs). We found persistent CO2 emissions in all country groups. In HICs, Mob reduces CO2 emissions and supports the EKC hypothesis, while Int shows limited direct impact, although its interactions with variables like REC, GDP, Urb, and Glob reveal significant moderating effects. In UMICs, Int and Mob display a U-shaped relationship with CO2 emissions, with Int contributing to emission reductions at lower levels but accelerating emissions beyond certain thresholds. The AICT confirms the robustness of our findings. These findings indicate that ICT is not inherently ‘green’ or ‘polluting,’ and underscore the importance of its interactions with socio-economic and environmental variables when formulating effective policies.