Navigating Chinese green deals through green investment, green technology, and green energy development: a race for sustainability or greenwashing? Buhari Doğan, Mohammad Razib Hossain, Rabeh Khalfaoui, Abdelmohsen A. Nassani, Sudeshna Ghosh Financial Innovation, 2026 Drawing from the recent COP28, which espouses a boom in clean energy transition through technological forwardness, and the framework of the SDG, we address critical questions related to green investment, energy investment, and environmental sustainability. We scrutinize whether green technology genuinely leads to green investment and energy investment in China and whether the causal nexus between these variables holds amid an EKC postulation. We use Chinese provincial data from 1998 to 2020 and deploy the quantile moment-based non-parametric regression technique and the newly developed Granger noncausality strategy. Our findings reveal that energy-related investment significantly improves green investment in China. Similarly, green investment increases energy-related investment. Our empirical findings reveal that green technology does not significantly enhance green investment across the sampled Chinese provinces, which may suggest inconsistencies between technological innovation and firms’ green investment behavior. This could be partially associated with potential greenwashing tendencies observed in some enterprises. This observation also indicates the presence of the greenwashing hypothesis for running enterprises in China. Moreover, financial development and industrial value addition foster both green investment and energy investment in China. Finally, energy and green investment do not support the inhibition of CO 2 emissions in China. However, green technology helps curb CO 2 emissions, which is valid when the EKC hypothesis holds. Overall, this study unravels the presence of the greenwashing hypothesis in China, urging policymakers and regulatory authorities to impose stringent environmental regulations so that enterprises abide by green policies. Our findings have implications for scrapping greenwashing and supporting the attainment of SDGs in China. The findings of this study have important implications in the context of sustainable development in China.
Who Benefits From Green Tech? How Eco-Innovation and Process Eco-Innovation Shape Emissions Inequality Across G7 Economies Brahim Bergougui, Buhari Doğan, Emmanuel Yamoah Cobbold, Hayet Soltani, Hamid Ghazi H Sulimany, et al. Sustainable Development, 2026 This study examines the asymmetric effects of eco‐innovation on income‐based carbon emissions inequality within G7 economies over the period 1990–2023. Theoretically grounded in innovation diffusion theory and political economy frameworks, we argue that green technological advancements exert non‐linear, directional effects on emissions inequality due to differential adoption patterns across income groups, elite capture mechanisms, and path‐dependent lock‐in effects. Unlike prior research that conflates eco‐innovation types or focuses solely on aggregate emissions, we distinguish between comprehensive eco‐innovation ( ECON ) and process‐oriented eco‐innovation ( ECOP ), examining their separate positive and negative shocks on emissions inequality—measured as per capita CO 2 emissions of the wealthiest 10% of the population. Employing the method of moments quantile regression (MMQR) with asymmetric specifications, we provide novel evidence that increases and decreases in eco‐innovation produce differential distributional impacts across the emissions inequality spectrum. Our findings reveal that while eco‐innovation expansion reduces emissions inequality in low‐inequality contexts, its benefits are asymmetrically concentrated among affluent groups in high‐inequality settings, with process eco‐innovation showing heterogeneous effects across quantiles and innovation directions. These results underscore the critical need for differentiated policy interventions that ensure green technological transitions promote both environmental sustainability and social equity, preventing the entrenchment of carbon privilege among wealthy populations.
Beyond the Haven Hypothesis: Steering Foreign Direct Investment Toward Sustainable Outcomes Through Environmental Governance Gonzalo Hernández Soto, Manuel A. Zambrano‐Monserrate, Buhari Doğan, Sunil Tiwari Sustainable Development, 2026 Foreign direct investment (FDI) plays a pivotal role in driving economic growth, yet its environmental consequences demand scrutiny as nations strive for sustainable development. This study investigates how environmental policies mediate the relationship between inward and outward FDI and natural resource availability, focusing on biocapacity in 41 high‐income countries over a 22‐year period. Using a mediation effects methodology, supported by Sobel–Goodman–Aroian and bootstrap resampling tests, we find that environmental policies significantly reduce the negative impact of FDI on biocapacity. Specifically, burden policies, such as taxes and fees, are more effective than subsidies in mitigating FDI's detrimental effects, particularly in democratic contexts. However, both policy types contribute to curbing negative spillovers. A key policy recommendation is to implement strategic environmental assessments to evaluate FDI projects, ensuring alignment with sustainable practices without discouraging investment.
From Policy to Practice: How Eco-Innovation, Green Finance, and Environmental Taxes Drive Carbon Neutrality and Sustainable Development Feng Wu, Buhari Dogan, Sunil Tiwari, Sudeshna Ghosh, Muhammad Farhan Bashir, et al. Sustainable Development, 2026 Persistent concerns regarding ecological balance, economic progress, and long‐term sustainability pose significant challenges for global economies. Nations are confronting resource scarcity and the escalating effects of climate change, which have intensified the debate on the costs and benefits of eco‐innovation and green financial policies. This study investigates the impact of eco‐innovations, environmental taxes, green financial policies, natural resource exploitation, and renewable energy adoption on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, carbon emissions, and the ecological footprint in OECD economies. An advanced econometric approach, the Cross‐Sectional Augmented Autoregressive Distributed Lag (CS‐ARDL) model, is employed to examine these relationships in both the short and long run. The findings indicate that environmental technologies, represented by eco‐innovation and process eco‐innovation, exhibit a statistically significant negative association with the ecological footprint, carbon emissions, and GHG emissions. Furthermore, environmental taxes and renewable energy consumption are found to mitigate ecological degradation. Conversely, economic growth and natural resource dependence exacerbate environmental challenges. Finally, a causality analysis reveals a bidirectional causal relationship between GDP and natural resources, while a unidirectional causality runs from GDP to eco‐innovation, renewable energy, and environmental taxation. Based on these results, the study concludes with policy implications aimed at achieving net‐zero emissions and promoting sustainable development.
Navigating the Future: AI, Global Supply Chains, and ESG for Sustainable Development Sunil Tiwari, Panayiotis Tzeremes, Emad Kazemzadeh, Hayet Soltani, Buhari Doğan Sustainable Development, 2026 This study examines the impact of global supply chain pressures (GSCP), artificial intelligence (AI), economic complexity (EC), and sustainability uncertainty (SUI) on the productive capacities index (PCI) in the United States from 2018 to 2024. Employing advanced econometric techniques—including quantile‐on‐quantile regression (QQR), cross‐quantilogram (CQ), and wavelet‐quantile correlation (WQC)—the analysis assesses variable effects, directional predictability, causal relationships, and multiscale correlations. The findings indicate that AI significantly enhances productive capacity through technological innovation, automation, and efficiency gains. In contrast, GSCP and ESG‐related uncertainties (captured by EC and SUI) hinder productive capacities by exacerbating operational disruptions and investment risks across US industries. These results underscore the necessity for strategic policy interventions that leverage AI's potential to mitigate supply chain vulnerabilities and sustainability challenges. To bolster productive capacities, we recommend that US policymakers prioritize fostering a dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystem, promoting technological innovation, strengthening infrastructure resilience, and investing in human capital development. This study provides critical insights for policymakers, industry leaders, and researchers navigating the interplay of technological advancement, global supply chain volatility, and sustainability in shaping economic productivity.
Economic Growth and Sustainable Development: The Role of Financial Inclusion, FinTech, Eco-Innovation, and Economic Complexity Xing Zhao, Sara Muhammadullah, Emad Kazemzadeh, Ioannis Kostakis, Sudeshna Ghosh, et al. Sustainable Development, 2026 The study examines the nonlinear relationships between sustainable and financial development metrics, including eco‐innovation, process eco‐innovation, financial development, financial inclusion, FinTech, economic complexity, and economic growth, across eight developing countries from 2000 to 2023. Empirically, it employs quantile‐on‐quantile regression and wavelet‐quantile analysis to demonstrate that economic complexity enhances economic outcomes at elevated quantiles while diminishing equity at lower levels. While financial development can lead to green investment, it also presents potential environmental hazards if not properly regulated and can impact economic growth. Financial inclusion and FinTech are driven by sustainability but rely on economic conditions and infrastructure. Eco‐innovation and process eco‐innovation are crucial for long‐term economic growth; however, their financing poses a significant challenge. Proposed policy measures highlight the importance of enhancing economic complexity, embedding green finance, scaling FinTech, and strengthening international collaboration.
Effects of Green Entrepreneurial Innovation, Energy Diversification and Sustainable Development on Income Inequality: Evidence From Emerging Asian Countries Buhari Doğan, Emad Kazemzadeh, Sudeshna Ghosh, Ioannis Kostakis, Gonzalo Soto, et al. Sustainable Development, 2026 This study investigates the impact of green entrepreneurial innovations, energy diversification, economic complexity, economic growth, energy intensity, and government spending on income inequality in seven emerging Asian economies from 1998 to 2022. Using advanced methods such as the quantile‐on‐quantile, cross quantilogram, and wavelet‐quantile regression, we reveal that eco‐innovation and energy diversification play crucial roles in reducing inequality. Results show that process eco‐innovations and climate change mitigation patents significantly reduce inequality, particularly at higher Gini quantiles. Likewise, GDP growth lowers inequality in high‐inequality contexts, with negative coefficients reaching −0.24. Energy diversification is found to decrease inequality at low and medium quantiles. Policy implications suggest integrating diverse energy sources, expanding access to affordable energy, and subsidizing renewable adoption for low‐income households and businesses to mitigate inequality and promote inclusive, sustainable growth.
Asymmetric spillover effects in energy markets Aviral Kumar Tiwari, Emmanuel Joel Aikins Abakah, Buhari Doğan, Oluwasegun B. Adekoya, Mark Wohar International Review of Economics and Finance, 2024
The energy consumption and economic growth in the E7 countries: Cointegration in panel data with structural breaks Romanian Journal of Economic Forecasting, 2018
The relationship between research & development investment expenditure, foreign direct investment and economic growth: Panel causality and cointegration analysis for G-7 countries Journal of Applied Economic Sciences, 2017
How globalization and economic growth affect energy consumption: Panel data analysis in the sample of Brazil, Russia, India, China countries International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, 2016
RECENT SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
The impact of ESG uncertainty on sustainable productivity capacity: Evidence from OECD countries S Tiwari, B Doğan, E Kazemzadeh, S Ghosh, Q Ghulam Mustafa Qureshi Energy Sources, Part B: Economics, Planning, and Policy 21 (1), 2662570 , 2026 2026
Dynamic spillover effect among carbon finance, bitcoin, and green energy markets: a novel decomposed connectedness and portfolio analysis J Cifuentes-Faura, H Alofaysan, M Radulescu, B Doğan Financial Innovation 12 (1), 109 , 2026 2026
Sustainable Development and ESG Risks: Evidence on Green Growth and Ecological Footprint in OECD Countries Y Peng, S Islam, E Kazemzadeh, MM Roshid, S Tiwari, B Doğan Sustainable Development , 2026 2026
Do financial technology and clean bonds reshape risk spillovers in sectoral equity markets? A quantile-based assessment using the US case MR Hossain, B Doğan, AK Tiwari, MA Naeem Energy Economics, 109222 , 2026 2026 Citations: 4
Navigating Chinese green deals through green investment, green technology, and green energy development: a race for sustainability or greenwashing? B Doğan, MR Hossain, R Khalfaoui, AA Nassani, S Ghosh Financial Innovation 12 (1), 67 , 2026 2026 Citations: 6
When does High-Tech research investment enable green energy Transition? B Bergougui, S Ghosh, B Doğan, A Samour, R Nepal Energy Conversion and Management: X, 101598 , 2026 2026 Citations: 10
How does smart cities and digital economy facilitate energy security and energy transition? Empirical evidence from of China Y Xu, S Tiwari, E Kazemzadeh, S Ghosh, B Doğan Energy and Buildings, 116639 , 2026 2026 Citations: 14
Barriers to Breakthroughs: Navigating Renewable Energy Innovation, Uncertainty, and Economic Growth for Sustainable Development C Li, S Tiwari, E Kazemzadeh, A Samour, S Ghosh, B Doğan Sustainable Development , 2026 2026 Citations: 8
Who Benefits From Green Tech? How Eco‐Innovation and Process Eco‐Innovation Shape Emissions Inequality Across G7 Economies B Bergougui, B Doğan, EY Cobbold, H Soltani, HGH Sulimany, ... Sustainable Development , 2025 2025 Citations: 5
Beyond the Haven Hypothesis: Steering Foreign Direct Investment Toward Sustainable Outcomes Through Environmental Governance GH Soto, MA Zambrano‐Monserrate, B Doğan, S Tiwari Sustainable Development , 2025 2025 Citations: 10
From Policy to Practice: How Eco‐Innovation, Green Finance, and Environmental Taxes Drive Carbon Neutrality and Sustainable Development F Wu, B Dogan, S Tiwari, S Ghosh, MF Bashir, D Balsalobre‐Lorente Sustainable Development , 2025 2025 Citations: 15
Economic Growth and Sustainable Development: The Role of Financial Inclusion, FinTech, Eco‐Innovation, and Economic Complexity X Zhao, S Muhammadullah, E Kazemzadeh, I Kostakis, S Ghosh, ... Sustainable Development , 2025 2025 Citations: 12
Effects of Green Entrepreneurial Innovation, Energy Diversification and Sustainable Development on Income Inequality: Evidence From Emerging Asian Countries B Doğan, E Kazemzadeh, S Ghosh, I Kostakis, G Soto, J Chovancová Sustainable Development , 2025 2025 Citations: 7
Navigating the Future: AI, Global Supply Chains, and ESG for Sustainable Development S Tiwari, P Tzeremes, E Kazemzadeh, H Soltani, B Doğan Sustainable Development , 2025 2025 Citations: 9
Green Growth and Gender Equality: The Role of Political Empowerment and Renewable Energy in Sustainable Development H Fu, S Tiwari, E Kazemzadeh, EY Cobbold, S Ghosh, B Doğan Sustainable Development , 2025 2025 Citations: 19
The impact of financial development and economic complexity on energy and carbon intensity: evidence of the top 10 complex countries D Ferraz, I Shahzadi, HF Moralles, B Doğan Energy Sources, Part B: Economics, Planning, and Policy 20 (1), 2516447 , 2025 2025 Citations: 8
Does import product diversification enhance energy demand in developed and developing economies? A policy-based analysis in the context of trade sustainability S Ghosh, B Doğan, R Khalfaoui, I Shahzadi Energy Sources, Part B: Economics, Planning, and Policy 20 (1), 2437677 , 2025 2025 Citations: 5
Green innovation and fiscal spending: decoding the path to sustainable development B Doğan, S Tiwari, B Bergougui, S Ghosh, D Balsalobre‐Lorente Sustainable Development 33 (4), 6307-6327 , 2025 2025 Citations: 59
Spillovers across the crude oil and major currencies exchange rates using dynamic-quantile-frequency analysis B Doğan, M Radulescu, AA Nassani, KSI Mohammed, N Benlagha, ... International Review of Economics & Finance 99, 104065 , 2025 2025 Citations: 6
Unveiling the impact of the digital economy on the interplay of energy transition, environmental transformation, and renewable energy adoption B Doğan, R Khalfaoui, B Bergougui, S Ghosh Research in International Business and Finance 76, 102837 , 2025 2025 Citations: 49
MOST CITED SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
The mitigating effects of economic complexity and renewable energy on carbon emissions in developed countries B Doğan, OM Driha, D Balsalobre Lorente, U Shahzad Sustainable Development , 2020 2020 Citations: 625
The role of environmental technology for energy demand and energy efficiency: Evidence from OECD countries SR Paramati, U Shahzad, B Doğan Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 153, 111735 , 2022 2022 Citations: 597
How environmental taxes and carbon emissions are related in the G7 economies? B Doğan, LK Chu, S Ghosh, HHD Truong, D Balsalobre-Lorente Renewable Energy 187, 645-656 , 2022 2022 Citations: 498
European commitment to COP21 and the role of energy consumption, FDI, trade and economic complexity in sustaining economic growth B Doğan, DB Lorente, MA Nasir Journal of environmental Management 273, 111146 , 2020 2020 Citations: 430
Does economic complexity matter for environmental degradation? An empirical analysis for different stages of development B Doğan, B Saboori, M Can Environmental Science and Pollution Research 26 (31), 31900-31912 , 2019 2019 Citations: 319
Investigating the role of globalization, and energy consumption for environmental externalities: Empirical evidence from developed and developing economies W Xia, N Apergis, MF Bashir, S Ghosh, B Doğan, U Shahzad Renewable Energy 183, 219-228 , 2022 2022 Citations: 278
Export product diversification and CO2 emissions: Contextual evidences from developing and developed economies U Shahzad, D Ferraz, B Doğan, DA do Nascimento Rebelatto Journal of Cleaner Production 276, 124146 , 2020 2020 Citations: 248
Exploring the nexuses between nuclear energy, renewable energy, and carbon dioxide emissions: the role of economic complexity in the G7 countries M Murshed, B Saboori, M Madaleno, H Wang, B Doğan Renewable Energy 190, 664-674 , 2022 2022 Citations: 242
Export product diversification and energy efficiency: Empirical evidence from OECD countries MA Bashir, B Sheng, B Doğan, S Sarwar, U Shahzad Structural Change and Economic Dynamics 55, 232-243 , 2020 2020 Citations: 226
Does Export product diversification help to reduce energy demand: Exploring the contextual evidences from the newly industrialized countries U Shahzad, B Doğan, A Sinha, Z Fareed Energy 214, 118881 , 2021 2021 Citations: 206
Energy security as new determinant of renewable energy: The role of economic complexity in top energy users LK Chu, S Ghosh, B Doğan, NH Nguyen, M Shahbaz Energy, 125799 , 2023 2023 Citations: 195
The spillover effects and connectedness among green commodities, Bitcoins, and US stock markets: Evidence from the quantile VAR network R Khalfaoui, SB Jabeur, B Dogan Journal of environmental management 306, 114493 , 2022 2022 Citations: 195
Does export product quality and renewable energy induce carbon dioxide emissions: evidence from leading complex and renewable energy economies Z Wang, MB Jebli, M Madaleno, B Doğan, U Shahzad Renewable Energy 171, 360-370 , 2021 2021 Citations: 195
Are economic complexity and eco-innovation mutually exclusive to control energy demand and environmental quality in E7 and G7 countries? B Doğan, S Ghosh, DP Hoang, LK Chu Technology in Society 68, 101867 , 2022 2022 Citations: 167
Formulating energy security strategies for a sustainable environment: evidence from the newly industrialized economies B Doğan, M Shahbaz, MF Bashir, S Abbas, S Ghosh Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 184, 113551 , 2023 2023 Citations: 158
The effect of economic complexity and energy security on measures of energy efficiency: Evidence from panel quantile analysis JE Payne, HHD Truong, LK Chu, B Doğan, S Ghosh Energy Policy 177, 113547 , 2023 2023 Citations: 155
Dynamic effect of Bitcoin, fintech and artificial intelligence stocks on eco-friendly assets, Islamic stocks and conventional financial markets: Another look using quantile … EJA Abakah, AK Tiwari, S Ghosh, B Doğan Technological Forecasting and Social Change 192, 122566 , 2023 2023 Citations: 148
The causal relationship between inflation and interest rates: the case of Turkey B Doğan, Ö Eroğlu, O Değer Çankırı Karatekin Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi Dergisi … , 2016 2016 Citations: 147
Impacts of export quality on environmental degradation: does income matter? B Dogan, M Madaleno, AK Tiwari, S Hammoudeh Environmental Science and Pollution Research 27 (12), 13735-13772 , 2020 2020 Citations: 137
Impact of economic policy uncertainty, geopolitical risk, and economic complexity on carbon emissions and ecological footprint: an investigation of the E7 countries LK Chu, B Doğan, EJA Abakah, S Ghosh, M Albeni Environmental Science and Pollution Research 30 (12), 34406-34427 , 2023 2023 Citations: 132
