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A Green Economy as a Way for Sustainable Development

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: closed (30 April 2022) | Viewed by 16700

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Marketing, Trade and the World Foresty, Technical University in Zvolen, 96001 Zvolen, Slovakia
Interests: bioeconomy; green economy; wood flow modelling; forest products trade; the field of packaging innovations; certification in forestry; forest service analysis; forest industry competitiveness; product substitution on the wood market and wood products
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Guest Editor
Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: marketing and trade in wood industry; business innovation; circular economy; costs and calculations
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Department of Marketing, Trade and the World Foresty, Technical University in Zvolen, 96001 Zvolen, Slovakia
Interests: examination and modeling of forest products market and trade; the role of forest certification for ensuring sustainable forest management; competitiveness of forest-based sectors; innovations in forestry and wood processing industry; bioeconomy and green marketing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Faculty of Forestry, University of Belgrade, 11030 Beograd, Serbia
Interests: market research and forecasting of market trends in the forest sector; techno-economic analyzing of production processes in wood-based industries; woody biomass; wood energy and forest products
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Growing demand puts enormous pressure on natural resources. The world focuses on environmental sustainability and the competitiveness of different sectors in an effort to increase the consumption of natural renewable resource. The development towards a green economy is generally understood by academics and policy makers as one of the elementary approaches to decrease dependency on nonrenewable resources. Because the green economy covers a lot of different concepts its links with sustainability can be discussed on many different levels. The Sustainable Development Goals encourage us to consider the implementation of green economy policies in the context of sustainable development, in a manner that endeavours to drive sustained, inclusive and equitable economic growth and job creation. Simultaneously, its concepts can be discussed with respect to their influence on sustainability development in the particular conditions. This Special Issue of Sustainability involves topics focused on innovative approaches of the green growth and the bioeconomy and circular economy in different sectors on the national and international levels. Studies should focus on specific approaches aimed at promoting sustainable development, the introduction of eco-innovation and recycling from different perspectives. The aim of the Special Issue is to bring about academic, experiential and conceptual improvements in the scientific knowledge focused on fostering economic growth, while guaranteeing that natural resources endure to provide the resources and environmental services on which our well-being relies.

Dr. Jan Parobek
Dr. Andreja Pirc Barčić
Dr. Hubert Paluš
Prof. Branko Glavonjic
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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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

  • green growth
  • green economy
  • bioeconomy
  • sustainable development
  • innovation

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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22 pages, 522 KiB  
Article
Public-Private Partnership Transportation Investment and Low-Carbon Economic Development: An Empirical Study Based on Spatial Spillover and Project Characteristics in China
by Xuemeng Guo, Bingyao Chen and Yuting Feng
Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9574; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159574 - 4 Aug 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2511
Abstract
As the most widely used investment mode of transportation infrastructure in China, PPP has been regarded as an effective institutional tool by the Chinese government for the construction of efficient and sustainable transportation infrastructure, promoting high-quality economic development. In order to evaluate the [...] Read more.
As the most widely used investment mode of transportation infrastructure in China, PPP has been regarded as an effective institutional tool by the Chinese government for the construction of efficient and sustainable transportation infrastructure, promoting high-quality economic development. In order to evaluate the economic sustainability of PPP, this paper innovatively takes the low-carbon economy as the research perspective and uses 276 cities of China from 2006 to 2018 as samples to comprehensively investigate the impact of transportation PPP investment on the low-carbon economy from the diversified dimensions of the overall effect, spatial effect, mediating effect, heterogeneous effect, lagged effect, and PPP project-level characteristics. The results show that: (1) transportation PPP investment markedly promotes low-carbon economic development in China, which is manifested as the dual improvement effects of benefits and efficiency; (2) transportation PPP investment has a positive spatial spillover effect that can promote the low-carbon economic development of neighboring cities; (3) transportation PPP investment can promote low-carbon economic development by promoting the upgrading of industrial structures, and furthermore has a spatial transmission mechanism; (4) impacts of transportation PPP investment in different subsectors are significantly heterogeneous; (5) transportation PPP investment has a continuous and stable impact on promoting the low-carbon economy in China; (6) the participation of state-owned enterprises and listed companies in PPP projects has a significant positive impact, and state-owned capital is more effective in projects with relatively large scale. All these provide reliable evidence for the far-reaching significance and practical value of transportation PPP investment on sustainable low-carbon economic development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue A Green Economy as a Way for Sustainable Development)
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16 pages, 2394 KiB  
Article
Understanding the Green Total Factor Productivity of Manufacturing Industry in China: Analysis Based on the Super-SBM Model with Undesirable Outputs
by Xi Zhang, Rui Li and Jinglei Zhang
Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9310; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159310 - 29 Jul 2022
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2953
Abstract
Total factor productivity (TFP) is considered a source of economic growth, and as the constraints of climate change and energy security gradually increase, green total factor productivity (GTFP) is also included in the meaning of the topic. In this study, we combine the [...] Read more.
Total factor productivity (TFP) is considered a source of economic growth, and as the constraints of climate change and energy security gradually increase, green total factor productivity (GTFP) is also included in the meaning of the topic. In this study, we combine the super-SBM model with the GML index and include undesirable outputs to measure the GTFP of 26 manufacturing sub-sectors in China from 2004 to 2017. The results show that in the sample period, the GTFP growth rate of China’s manufacturing continues to accelerate, and the driving force is mainly from green technological progress change (GTC), while the green technical efficiency change (GEC) generally declines. After entering the 13th Five-Year Plan period, GEC also began to show a growth trend. The acceleration of green technological progress and the improvement of green technical efficiency jointly drove the GTFP of China’s manufacturing industry to enter a rapid upward trajectory during the 13th Five-Year Plan period, with an average annual growth rate of 5.16%. In addition, different categories of China’s manufacturing industry have begun to develop in a different manner in recent years, which is mainly caused by the difference in the growth rate of green technological progress in the manufacturing industry. Specifically, the GTFP growth rate of equipment and high-tech manufacturing is the highest, followed by consumer goods manufacturing and energy-intensive manufacturing. Accordingly, this paper suggests that the manufacturing industry should further increase investment in R&D, optimize resource allocation, and formulate differentiated policies for different industries, so as to improve the GTFP of the manufacturing industry and promote the green and low-carbon transformation of China’s manufacturing industry. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue A Green Economy as a Way for Sustainable Development)
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13 pages, 841 KiB  
Article
Sustainable Development—A Path to a Better Future
by Carmen Elena Stoenoiu
Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9192; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159192 - 27 Jul 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2280
Abstract
The need for sustainable development is a common concern for many countries, and the level reached by each country validates the efforts made and the effects of their associated well-being. In this study, an analysis of the indicators included in SDG-9 was performed, [...] Read more.
The need for sustainable development is a common concern for many countries, and the level reached by each country validates the efforts made and the effects of their associated well-being. In this study, an analysis of the indicators included in SDG-9 was performed, indicators that aim to achieve sustainable industrialization, increase research and innovation, and create a resilient infrastructure. The analysis used nine indicators that measure the situation of eight Eastern European countries during 2013–2019 to signal improvements or deteriorations in situations. The study used three working hypotheses that were verified and presented the evolution of countries in the aforementioned years. The results obtained led to the ranking of the countries by evaluating their economies from the perspective of the effects obtained by the method of sustainable development, thus categorizing the countries into ones with real, moderate, and low progress. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue A Green Economy as a Way for Sustainable Development)
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22 pages, 1737 KiB  
Article
The Impact of CSR on the Performance of a Dual-Channel Closed-Loop Supply Chain under Two Carbon Regulatory Policies
by Fuan Zhang and Na Li
Sustainability 2022, 14(5), 3021; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14053021 - 4 Mar 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2423
Abstract
Under different carbon regulatory policies, corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities will have different impacts on the environmental benefits of the supply chain and corporate carbon emission reduction decisions. In this study, we examine a dual-channel closed-loop supply chain consisting of a single manufacturer [...] Read more.
Under different carbon regulatory policies, corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities will have different impacts on the environmental benefits of the supply chain and corporate carbon emission reduction decisions. In this study, we examine a dual-channel closed-loop supply chain consisting of a single manufacturer selling re-products generated from waste products and a single retailer selling new products and consider two settings: enforcing a carbon tax policy or enforcing a subsidy policy. Under each setting, we put CSR into account, construct two models for the retailer to implement or not implement CSR activities, and analyze the decisions obtained under optimal solutions. Through numerical simulation and comparative research, we observe that the carbon tax policy applies to the supply chain where CSR activities are implemented, while the subsidy policy applies to the supply chain where CSR activities are not implemented. Reasonable selection of CSR implementation methods with low-cost coefficients by the retailer is conducive to eliminating profit conflicts among supply chain members. The government should fully consider the decision-making thresholds of supply chain members to ensure the maximum effectiveness of the policy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue A Green Economy as a Way for Sustainable Development)
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Review

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13 pages, 914 KiB  
Review
Progress in the Research of Environmental Macroeconomics
by Muchuan Niu, Sheng Zhang, Nannan Zhang, Zuhui Wen, Meng Xu and Yifu Yang
Sustainability 2022, 14(3), 1190; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031190 - 21 Jan 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4203
Abstract
This review systematically introduces the current main research directions of environmental macroeconomics. Environmental macroeconomics research aims to study the relationship between economic development and the ecological environment and ultimately achieve green outcomes. At the same time, maintaining a moderate economic scale within the [...] Read more.
This review systematically introduces the current main research directions of environmental macroeconomics. Environmental macroeconomics research aims to study the relationship between economic development and the ecological environment and ultimately achieve green outcomes. At the same time, maintaining a moderate economic scale within the environmental setting is vital to get rid of excessive dependence on economic growth. This review draws on the traditional macroeconomics framework, focusing on economic growth, the economics of climate, economic policy, work, consumption, technological progress, industrial structure, and other topics. Although most studies have highlighted the importance of environmental issues, few empirical analyses combine environmental policy with economic policy, production, consumption, climate change, etc., and theories such as ecological, technological progress, business cycle, and environmental policy lack the necessary practical support. It is, therefore, difficult to put forward appropriate and measurable policy recommendations. Environmental macroeconomics is still a relatively new field of research, the theoretical system has flaws, and innovations in models still need to be improved. We suggest that environmental policy formulation be placed in a dynamic general equilibrium framework. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue A Green Economy as a Way for Sustainable Development)
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