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Carbon Economy for Sustainable Development: Theoretical and Applied Research
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Carbon Economy for Sustainable Development: Theoretical and Applied Research

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Economic and Business Aspects of Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 8 May 2026 | Viewed by 5161

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Wei Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Economics and Management, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
Interests: sustainable economic development and financial innovation
Dr. Xuemeng Liu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Business School, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
Interests: sustainable economic development and financial innovation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue, Carbon Economy for Sustainable Development: Theoretical and Applied Research, seeks to advance interdisciplinary research on the systemic integration of carbon management strategies into economic frameworks to accelerate global sustainability transitions. By focusing on the carbon economy, this Issue will explore how economic systems can be restructured to align with climate goals through innovative policies, market mechanisms, and sector-specific decarbonization pathways. Contributions may address theoretical advancements, empirical evaluations, and practical applications across industrial, energy, and socio-economic contexts, with an emphasis on overcoming barriers in hard-to-abate sectors such as heavy industry.

The Special Issue aims to bridge gaps between economic theory and sustainability practice by examining carbon pricing mechanisms, industrial decarbonization strategies, and the socio-economic impacts of low-carbon transitions. It will emphasize interdisciplinary approaches—spanning economics, environmental science, and policy analysis—to evaluate the efficacy of carbon economy models in reducing emissions while maintaining economic resilience. Additionally, the Issue encourages studies on equity, risk mitigation, and lifecycle assessments to inform scalable solutions for achieving net-zero targets. By integrating empirical case studies and policy evaluations, this collection will provide actionable insights for policymakers, researchers, and practitioners to drive a just and sustainable transformation of the global economy.

You can find more information on the aims and scope of our journal at the following link: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability/about.

Prof. Dr. Wei Zhang
Dr. Xuemeng Liu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • carbon economy
  • sustainable development
  • industrial decarbonization
  • carbon pricing
  • renewable energy
  • policy analysis
  • sustainable transitions
  • carbon capture and storage
  • climate mitigation
  • socio-economic systems

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

32 pages, 3403 KB  
Article
Aligning Finance with Forests in the Carbon Economy: Measuring the Impact of Green Finance on High-Quality Forestry Development in China, 2010~2023
by Xuemeng Liu, Jiahao Hu and Wei Zhang
Sustainability 2025, 17(24), 10979; https://doi.org/10.3390/su172410979 - 8 Dec 2025
Abstract
Forests are crucial for achieving carbon neutrality and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This study contributes to SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 15 (Life on Land) by constructing a comprehensive evaluation system for high-quality forestry development (HQDF), integrating economic efficiency, ecological functions, [...] Read more.
Forests are crucial for achieving carbon neutrality and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This study contributes to SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 15 (Life on Land) by constructing a comprehensive evaluation system for high-quality forestry development (HQDF), integrating economic efficiency, ecological functions, and social benefits. Using provincial panel data for China from 2010 to 2023 and applying two-way fixed effects, panel quantile regression, and instrumental-variable methods, we examine the catalytic role of green finance. The results show that green finance significantly promotes HQDF and displays an inverted U-shaped effect over the development cycle. Regional heterogeneity is marked: the strongest effects appear in western and southern China, moderate effects in central regions, and negative effects in some eastern and northern provinces. Among specific instruments, green investment and green bonds exert the largest positive impacts, followed by green insurance and fiscal funds, while green credit plays an important role at particular stages. These findings provide evidence from a major emerging economy and offer practical guidance for optimizing forestry-related green finance strategies worldwide. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Economy for Sustainable Development: Theoretical and Applied Research)
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30 pages, 1213 KB  
Article
The Impact of Digital Economy on the Cost of Carbon Emission Reduction—A Theoretical and Empirical Study Based on a Carbon Market Framework
by Yuguo Ji, Xinsheng Pang and Yu Yang
Sustainability 2025, 17(21), 9771; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17219771 - 2 Nov 2025
Viewed by 781
Abstract
A central sustainability question is how the digital economy helps societies decarbonize at lower cost. We develop a carbon-market-consistent framework to show how digitalization can strengthen market governance, reduce regional carbon-abatement costs, and accelerate green transformation. Using data for 30 Chinese provinces from [...] Read more.
A central sustainability question is how the digital economy helps societies decarbonize at lower cost. We develop a carbon-market-consistent framework to show how digitalization can strengthen market governance, reduce regional carbon-abatement costs, and accelerate green transformation. Using data for 30 Chinese provinces from 2011–2022, we estimate panel fixed-effects models and conduct numerical simulations to test the digital economy’s dynamic, inverted-U-shaped effect on abatement costs, accounting for internal and external drivers. The digital development shifts the abatement–cost curve downward and leftward by speeding the transition from internal mitigation costs to external trading costs, enabling regions to reach the cost-reduction stage earlier and at lower overall cost. Mechanism evidence indicates two channels: externally, digitalization enhances carbon-market sophistication (liquidity, price discovery, and compliance efficiency); internally, it promotes technological progress and energy-efficiency improvements that raise emission-reduction productivity. In the short run, emissions trading provides external incentives that buffer production-cost pressures from digital-capital investment; in the long run, digital growth accelerates the energy transition and structurally increases abatement efficiency. Heterogeneity analysis shows a more pronounced inverted-U in central and western provinces, while eastern provinces have largely entered a sustained cost-decline phase. By lowering the social cost of achieving emissions targets, the digital economy directly supports sustainable development and China’s green, low-carbon transition. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Economy for Sustainable Development: Theoretical and Applied Research)
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31 pages, 7966 KB  
Article
Drivers of Green Transition Performance Differences in China’s Resource-Based Cities: A Carbon Reduction–Pollution Control–Greening–Growth Framework
by Tao Huang, Xiaoling Yuan and Rang Liu
Sustainability 2025, 17(20), 9262; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17209262 - 18 Oct 2025
Viewed by 554
Abstract
Understanding the multidimensional sources and key drivers of differences in green transition performance (GTP) among resource-based cities is vital for accomplishing national sustainable development objectives and facilitating regional coordination. This study proposes a “Carbon Reduction–Pollution Control–Greening–Growth” evaluation framework and utilizes the entropy method [...] Read more.
Understanding the multidimensional sources and key drivers of differences in green transition performance (GTP) among resource-based cities is vital for accomplishing national sustainable development objectives and facilitating regional coordination. This study proposes a “Carbon Reduction–Pollution Control–Greening–Growth” evaluation framework and utilizes the entropy method to assess the GTP of China’s resource-based cities from 2013 to 2022. The Dagum Gini coefficient and variance decomposition methods are employed to investigate the GTP differences, and the Optimal Parameters-Based Geographical Detector and the Geographically and Temporally Weighted Regression model are applied to identify the driving factors. The results indicate the following trends: (1) GTP exhibits a fluctuating upward trend, accompanied by pronounced regional imbalances. A pattern of “club convergence” is observed, with cities showing a tendency to shift positively toward adjacent types. (2) Spatial differences in GTP have widened over time, with transvariation density emerging as the dominant contributor. (3) Greening differences represent the primary structural source, with an average annual contribution exceeding 60%. (4) The impact of digital economy, the level of financial development, the degree of openness, industrial structure, and urbanization level on GTP differences declines sequentially. These factors exhibit notable spatiotemporal heterogeneity, and their interactions display nonlinear enhancement effects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Economy for Sustainable Development: Theoretical and Applied Research)
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33 pages, 652 KB  
Article
How Does Carbon Constraint Policy Uncertainty Affect the Corporate Green Governance? Evidence from Chinese Industrial Enterprises
by Qifeng Wei and Zihao Wang
Sustainability 2025, 17(17), 7938; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17177938 - 3 Sep 2025
Viewed by 1090
Abstract
Macro policy regulation centered on carbon emissions profoundly influences the path for enterprises to achieve low-carbon transformation. Using panel data from Chinese A-share listed companies over the period from 2014 to 2023, this study adopts the methods of panel regression, moderating effect and [...] Read more.
Macro policy regulation centered on carbon emissions profoundly influences the path for enterprises to achieve low-carbon transformation. Using panel data from Chinese A-share listed companies over the period from 2014 to 2023, this study adopts the methods of panel regression, moderating effect and mediating effect. The empirical research finds that: (1) Policy uncertainty from carbon emission constraints significantly incentivizes industrial enterprises to adopt greener governance strategies. (2) The mechanism analysis indicates that the uncertainty posed by carbon emission constraints influences corporate green governance by enhancing regional green finance development, intensifying corporate financing constraints, and improving the quality of corporate green innovation. (3) Enterprises with substantial environmental protection investments and stronger reputations are less susceptible to changes in their green governance strategies triggered by carbon emission constraint policies. (4) The effects of carbon constraint policy uncertainty on green governance strategies of industrial enterprises exhibit heterogeneity. Specifically, these effects are relatively weaker for non-heavy-polluting enterprises located in carbon emission trading pilot cities, enterprises with higher information disclosure quality, and enterprises whose senior executives have backgrounds in environmental protection. Ultimately, to promote the sustainable development of industrial enterprises, this study provides three recommendations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Economy for Sustainable Development: Theoretical and Applied Research)
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32 pages, 1832 KB  
Article
The Impact of Green Technological Innovation on Industrial Structural Optimization Under Dual-Carbon Targets: The Role of the Moderating Effect of Carbon Emission Efficiency
by Xinyu Wang, Hongyu Su and Xiao Liu
Sustainability 2025, 17(14), 6313; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17146313 - 9 Jul 2025
Cited by 45 | Viewed by 1576
Abstract
According to the “dual-carbon” goal, the solution to achieving balanced regional development and industrial structural optimization while promoting sustainable development goals lies in the synergistic evolution mechanism of carbon emission efficiency and green technological innovation. Using provincial panel data from China from 2000 [...] Read more.
According to the “dual-carbon” goal, the solution to achieving balanced regional development and industrial structural optimization while promoting sustainable development goals lies in the synergistic evolution mechanism of carbon emission efficiency and green technological innovation. Using provincial panel data from China from 2000 to 2022, this study calculates industrial structural optimization coefficients for the “advanced,” “rationalization,” and “ecology” dimensions. The impact of green technological innovation on industrial structural optimization is experimentally explored using panel regression, threshold effect, and mediating effect methodologies, based on the constraint perspective of carbon emission efficiency. The findings show that (1) the optimization of the regional industrial structure is successfully driven by both carbon emission efficiency and green technological innovation; (2) the impact of green technological innovation on industrial structural optimization is positively regulated by carbon emission efficiency, which also helps to achieve sustainable economic transformation; and (3) this moderating effect exhibits significant regional heterogeneity and U-shaped nonlinear characteristics, in the order of “central > west > east”. This study reveals how green technological innovation affects industrial structural optimization under the constraint of carbon emission efficiency. It offers reference recommendations for the creation of sustainable development policies in the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Economy for Sustainable Development: Theoretical and Applied Research)
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