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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Anthropogenic Circularity".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (7 April 2023) | Viewed by 34809

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Dr. Weixin Yang

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Guest Editor

Business School, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China
Interests: digital economy and finance; sustainable development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Yunpeng Yang

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Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200030, China
Interests: digital industrialization; internet platform research; game theory
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Dr. Lingying Pan

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Guest Editor

Business School, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China
Interests: energy system engineering; low-carbon development; energy-economy analysis
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Since 2020, the digital economy has become a new engine and new kinetic energy for the economic growth of countries around the world in the context of the global pandemic of COVID-19. Data from the 2021 Global Digital Economy Conference show that the total digital economy of forty-seven countries in the world has reached 32.6 trillion US dollars in 2020, accounting for 43.7% of their GDP. However, in the context of the rapid growth of the digital economy, the ensuing surge in energy consumption and pollution have put tremendous pressure on environmental pollution control and public health protection in countries around the world. The construction of digital economy infrastructure that relies heavily on fossil energy is facing severe challenges in energy saving and emission reduction, especially in developing countries. Meanwhile, the massive amount of waste packaging brought about by the rapid development of e-commerce platforms has also caused huge negative impacts on the environment and public health. Take China, the world’s largest developing country, as an example. To realize the international commitments of “carbon peak by 2030” and “carbon neutrality by 2060”, it is necessary for China to build a green and low-carbon digital economy development model as soon as possible on the premise of protecting public health, to achieve high-quality sustainable development.

Therefore, we have organized this Special Issue to discuss the novel issues and challenges that global digital economy development poses to environmental protection and public health, the environmental protection policies and public health policies implemented by countries in the context of digital economy and their effectiveness, and how to improve current policies to better protect the ecological environment and public health. Submissions for this Special Issue could relate but are not limited to the following topics: novel issues about environmental protection in the context of digital economy, new challenges in protecting public health in the context of the digital economy, environmental protection policies in the context of digital economy and their effectiveness, public health policies in the context of digital economy and their effectiveness, and how to improve current policies to better protect the ecological environment and public health.

Prof. Dr. Weixin Yang
Prof. Dr. Yunpeng Yang
Prof. Dr. Lingyin Pan
Guest Editors

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Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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Keywords

digital economy
environmental pollution
public health
governance policy

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Published Papers (8 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 900 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Corporate Digital Transformation and Green Innovation: A Quasi-Natural Experiment from Integration of Informatization and Industrialization in China

by Qincheng Zhang, Mingzeng Yang and Shanshan Lv

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(20), 13606; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192013606 - 20 Oct 2022

Cited by 26 | Viewed by 4256

Abstract

In the era of the digital economy, the rise and application of digital technologies have led to a series of systematic changes and disruptive innovations within enterprises. Based on the quasi-natural experiment of “Integration of Informatization and Industrialization”, this paper examines the economic consequences of digital transformation from the standpoint of corporate green innovation, utilizing China’s listed manufacturing firms as the research object. Using the DID model, it is discovered that through the implementation of corporate digital transformation, the output of green innovation increases significantly. The conclusions are still robust when using the parallel trend test, PSM-DID, placebo test, and the test of deleting the sample entering the pilot in the current year. Extended analyses find that corporate digital transformation has a greater effect on green innovation in regions with weaker digital economy, in industries with less rivalry, and in firms with larger size. The conclusions of this paper not only advance research on digital transformation and its economic consequences, but also provides theoretical proof and practical insights for advancing corporate digital transformation and enhancing the green development system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Economy, Environmental Protection and Public Health)

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22 pages, 904 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Empirical Analysis of the Impact of Digital Economy on Manufacturing Green and Low-Carbon Transformation under the Dual-Carbon Background in China

by Wei Zhang, Hao Zhou, Jie Chen and Zifu Fan

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(20), 13192; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192013192 - 13 Oct 2022

Cited by 35 | Viewed by 4528

Abstract

The deep integration of digital economy and green development has become an inevitable requirement and an important aid in achieving the goal of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality and promoting high-quality economic development. At the same time, the manufacturing industry is the main sector of energy consumption and carbon emissions in China and the main force for achieving the carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals. This paper constructs a mathematical model to measure the scale of the digital economy development and the efficiency of the green, low-carbon transformation of the manufacturing industry. It builds a panel data model to study the effect of the development of the digital economy on the green, low-carbon transformation of the manufacturing industry based on data of 30 Chinese provinces from 2016 to 2020. The results find that (1) there is a significant positive effect of the digital economy on the green, low-carbon transformation of the manufacturing industry, with an impact coefficient of 0.477, and this finding remains significant in the robustness test. (2) A further test of the mediating effect finds that the digital economy can drive the green, low-carbon transformation of the manufacturing industry by enhancing technological innovation, and it shows a partial mediating effect that accounts for 28% of the total effect. (3) In the regional heterogeneity analysis, it is found that the effect of the digital economy in promoting manufacturing transformation is more prominent in the central region, and the impact coefficients are 0.684, 0.806, 0.340, and 0.392 for the east, central, west, and northeast regions, respectively. This study can provide a theoretical basis and policy support for governments and enterprises. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Economy, Environmental Protection and Public Health)

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21 pages, 738 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Digital Economy and Environmental Sustainability: Do Information Communication and Technology (ICT) and Economic Complexity Matter?

by Asif Khan and Wu Ximei

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(19), 12301; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912301 - 28 Sep 2022

Cited by 31 | Viewed by 4214

Abstract

In the current era of digital economy, the role of information communication and technology (ICT) and economic complexity are important for controlling environmental unsustainability and formulating policies to deal with ecological concerns. However, the relationship between digital economy and environment has been studied widely; nevertheless, the relationship between ICT-based digital economy, economic complexity, and ecological footprint has not been studied extensively. Therefore, the aim of current study is to fill the existing gap by investigating the relationship between ICT, economic complexity, and ecological footprint in the case of G-seven (digital) economies. Furthermore, the past research studies were usually based on carbon emissions to measure environmental sustainability, while this study fills the gap using ecological footprint as a proxy for environmental degradation. By using the panel data over the period of 2001–2018 for G-seven economies, this study performs first-generation as well as second-generation unit root testing methods. Findings of both Pesaran’s and B&P’s cross-sectional dependence testing approaches confirm the presence of cross-sectional dependence across all G-seven economies. The empirical findings of cointegration (Pedroni and Kao) tests verify a stable long-run association between ecological footprint, ICT import, ICT export, economic complexity, economic growth, and other control grouped variables. The empirical evidence obtained from the fully modified OLS model suggests that ICT export, economic complexity, and economic growth enhance the intensity of ecological footprint, while ICT import, research and development (RD), and trade are helpful in reducing ecological footprint in G-seven economies. These empirical findings obtained are verified by pooled mean group-ARDL (PMG-ARDL) methodologies and confirm that there is no inconsistency in the results. On the basis of these results, some policy implications for ecological footprint, ICT, and economic complexity are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Economy, Environmental Protection and Public Health)

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17 pages, 1013 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Towards Sustainable Development: How Digitalization, Technological Innovation, and Green Economic Development Interact with Each Other

by Wei Yang, Qiuxia Chen, Qiuqi Guo and Xiaoting Huang

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(19), 12273; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912273 - 27 Sep 2022

Cited by 31 | Viewed by 5015

Abstract

Green technological innovation is one of the endogenous drivers of green economic growth, and digitalization can promote green economic development in the form of industrial empowerment. The interactive relationship and the degree of influence between digitalization, technological innovation, and green economic development is thus an urgent issue to be addressed. Based on the panel data of 30 Chinese provinces from 2011 to 2019, we measured digitalization, technological innovation, and green economic development for the first time using the entropy method and included them in the same analytical framework by constructing a PVAR model to empirically test their interrelationship and degree of influence. Our findings suggest that: (1) There is an inertial development and self-reinforcing mechanism among the three variables. (2) The impact of digitalization on green economic development has a positive promotion effect, while the impact of technological innovation on green economic development is not significant. (3) The impact of green economic development on technological innovation has a positive promotion effect in the short term, but this effect gradually declines and tends to zero in the long term. Finally, based on the findings, several practical suggestions are made. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Economy, Environmental Protection and Public Health)

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20 pages, 1281 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Environmental Information Disclosure, Digital Transformation, and Total Factor Productivity: Evidence from Chinese Heavy Polluting Listed Companies

by Hongnan Liu, Weili Liu and Guangchun Chen

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(15), 9657; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19159657 - 5 Aug 2022

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3387

Abstract

Environmental information disclosure, as a new environmental regulatory model, is important for achieving collaborative environmental pollution management and sustainable socioeconomic development. Based on the data of listed firms in China’s A-share heavy pollution industry from 2009 to 2019, this paper empirically tested the impact of environmental information disclosure on the total factor productivity of enterprises and the contribution of digital transformation to this impact. An increase in the level of environmental information disclosure had a significant positive effect on the total factor productivity of enterprises. However, with the increase in digital transformation among enterprises, the effect of environmental information disclosure on total factor productivity improvement is gradually being replaced. The heterogeneity test results showed that the positive effect of environmental information disclosure on total factor productivity changed depending on property rights, firm size, and geographical location. The effect of environmental information disclosure was stronger for non-state firms, large firms, and firms located in the east-central region. Further mechanism tests showed that the effect was induced through innovation incentives and facilitated financing. The above results provide a valuable reference for a comprehensive understanding of the effect of environmental information disclosure on productivity and adjustment by the digital transformation of enterprises. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Economy, Environmental Protection and Public Health)

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25 pages, 909 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Can the Digital Economy Facilitate Carbon Emissions Decoupling? An Empirical Study Based on Provincial Data in China

by Kaiming Zhong, Hongyan Fu and Tinghui Li

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(11), 6800; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19116800 - 2 Jun 2022

Cited by 22 | Viewed by 3439

Abstract

The digital economy plays a dual role in the process of global carbon emissions decoupling; for this reason, its overall impact direction and mechanism are worth discussing. This paper attempts to answer the question of the role of the digital economy, based on a review of the existing literature. By constructing a panel smooth transition regression (PSTR) model, this paper empirically tests the effect of the digital economy on carbon emissions decoupling, based on panel data from 30 provinces in China from 2010 to 2019. In order to study the impact mechanism of the digital economy on carbon emissions decoupling, the mediating effect of industrial structure optimization is analyzed through a mediating effect model; the moderating effect is also explored by analyzing the network centrality characteristics of the digital economy. The core-periphery analysis method is adopted to group the samples to test the impact heterogeneity of the digital economy on carbon emissions decoupling. Based on this empirical analysis, the following conclusions are drawn. First, the digital economy has a promoting effect on carbon emissions decoupling, but this effect gradually weakens with the development of the digital economy. Second, the digital economy can promote carbon emissions decoupling through industrial structure optimization, and network centrality has a positive moderating effect on this mechanism. Third, heterogeneity exists in the promoting effect of the digital economy on carbon emissions decoupling, which is reflected in the different intensities of the promotion effect between the core nodes and the peripheral nodes in the network; the attenuation range of the promotion effect is also different when the regime switches. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Economy, Environmental Protection and Public Health)

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28 pages, 617 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Executive Overconfidence, Digital Transformation and Environmental Innovation: The Role of Moderated Mediator

by Peiyan Zhou, Shuya Zhou, Ming Zhang and Shujuan Miao

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(10), 5990; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19105990 - 14 May 2022

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4417

Abstract

With the increasingly prominent energy and environmental problems, environmental innovation has become a critical path to achieving the goal of coordinating economic development and environmental protection fundamentally. This study aims to examine the impacts of executive overconfidence on environmental innovation and the mediating role of digital transformation. We conduct empirical tests based on the panel data of Chinese publicly listed enterprises during the period of 2007–2019. The results exhibit that (a) executive overconfidence can significantly promote environmental technology innovation but has no obvious effect on environmental management innovation; (b) executive overconfidence can significantly enhance digital transformation, and, accordingly, digital transformation can significantly promote environmental technology innovation and environmental management innovation; (c) industry competition and economic policy uncertainty can enhance the positive effect of executive overconfidence on digital transformation; and (d) a firms’ asset size can enhance the impact of digital transformation on environmental technology innovation; internal control positively moderates the impact of digital transformation on environmental technology innovation and negatively moderates the impact on environmental management innovation. This study not only breaks the stereotype about overconfidence and confirms its positive impact on digital transformation and environmental innovation but also provides insights for enterprises to improve environmental innovation through digital transformation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Economy, Environmental Protection and Public Health)

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16 pages, 6847 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Embodied Carbon in China’s Export Trade: A Multi Region Input-Output Analysis

by Weixin Yang, Hao Gao, Yunpeng Yang and Jiacheng Liao

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(7), 3894; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19073894 - 24 Mar 2022

Cited by 34 | Viewed by 3999

Abstract

With the rapid growth of China’s export trade and increasing pressure of domestic carbon emission reduction, the issue of carbon embodied in export trade has attracted increasing attention from academic circles. This paper has constructed a calculation model for embodied carbon in China’s export trade by using the multi-region input-output model and the international input-output data from the World Input-Output Database (WIOD) database in order to calculate the amount of embodied carbon. Our objective is to analyze the main source industry and specific sectors of embodied carbon in China’s export trade, and to provide a quantitative basis for emission reduction under the “carbon neutrality” strategy. The findings reveal that the embodied carbon in China’s export trade mainly comes from the secondary industry, which accounts for more than 90% of the total embodied carbon in export trade, while the proportions of embodied carbon in the primary industry and the tertiary industry are relatively low, about 1% and 5–7%, respectively. In terms of specific sectors, the crop and animal production and hunting sectors have the largest share (over 60%) of embodied carbon in the export trade of the primary industry; in the export trade of the secondary industry, the main sources of embodied carbon are the manufacturing sector and the power, gas, steam and air-conditioning supply sectors, respectively accounting for around 50% and 45% of the total embodied carbon in the export trade of the secondary industry; as for the tertiary industry, the transport and storage sectors have the largest share of embodied carbon in the export trade, which is around 70%. Based on the above research results, this paper has provided relevant policy recommendations, which are optimizing the export structure, improving the energy consumption structure and the carbon emissions trading system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Digital Economy, Environmental Protection and Public Health)

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