Submit to Sustainability Review for Sustainability Propose a Special Issue

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser

Technological Innovation and the Effect of Employment on Green Growth

Print Special Issue Flyer
Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Published Papers

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2020) | Viewed by 24888

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Luigi Aldieri

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Economic and Statistical Sciences, University of Salerno, I-84084 Fisciano, SA, Italy
Interests: innovation economics; environmental economics; labor economics; econometrics; public policy; economics of innovation; patents; knowledge diffusion process; employment; green economy; applied microeconometrics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We have identified an increasing number of studies in the recent literature concerning the more efficient use of resources for economic sustainability and growth by companies and firms. In this perspective, the role of the knowledge diffusion process for the employment effects of technological innovation is very important, but so far, the relative empirical evidence is weak. For this reason, the Special Issue will pay attention to both the extent to which the investments in cleaner production can stimulate a job-creation process, and the role of knowledge spillover as a relevant channel supporting employment in a more sustainable context.

The impact of innovation on employment is a complex economic topic. Indeed, new technologies destroy employment (displacement effect), but can also create employment (compensation effect). Moreover, new technologies could favour higher-skilled employees over the lower-skilled ones, by producing a skill-based technological change effect. Finally, the technological innovation could produce a job-polarization effect—new technologies substitute routine tasks, regardless of whether tasks are relative to cognitive or manual profile. This last effect leads to a reduction in the labour demand for middle-skilled people, while the labour demand for both high-skilled and low-skilled people increases.

Theoretical and empirical contributions from the economics of innovation and patenting on innovation, employment, green economy, and relative public policies are welcome in this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Luigi Aldieri
Guest Editor

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

Technological innovation
Patents
Knowledge Spillovers
Employment
Green economy
Public policies

Published Papers (5 papers)

Download All Papers

Research

Jump to: Review

21 pages, 2217 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Gross Employment Effects in the Renewable Energy Industry in Germany—An Input–Output Analysis from 2000 to 2018

by Marlene O’Sullivan and Dietmar Edler

Sustainability 2020, 12(15), 6163; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12156163 - 31 Jul 2020

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 5323

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to provide detailed insights into an approach to measure gross employment of the renewable energy (RES) industry in Germany in order to improve transparency and comparability. The method applied for the assessment of gross employment figures follows the input–output (IO) modeling approach and covers direct as well as indirect employment effects. All-in-all, four different approaches of applying the IO-methodology are described. The analysis includes 11 different RES technologies. It provides information on employment in manufacturing and installation, operation and maintenance (O&M), as well as the provision of biogenic fuels. The results show the relevance of the manufacturing and installation sector as well as the influence of foreign trade on this sector. On the other hand, it reveals the growing importance of O&M as well as the provision of biogenic fuels and their role in providing a more stable development of employment in the RES industry. Our main methodological conclusions are as follows: (1) data availability is a major challenge in assessing employment effects of specific technologies; (2) there are many different ways to apply the IO-modeling approach to specific technologies and services; (3) the transfer of results to other countries is limited. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technological Innovation and the Effect of Employment on Green Growth)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 436 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Organizational Capabilities, Export Growth and Job Creation: An Investigation of Korean SMEs

by Feng Liu, Kwangtae Park and Unjung Whang

Sustainability 2019, 11(14), 3986; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11143986 - 23 Jul 2019

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3546

Abstract

In the new global economy, export promotion and job creation have become two central issues for economic sustainability. This study aims to raise awareness of the importance of organizational capabilities in job creation through exports. By emphasizing the role of exports in shaping a linkage between organizational capabilities and job creation, this research focuses on how to improve exports that benefit employment creation in the context of Korean small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Using survey data of 414 SMEs collected by jointly working with the Korea Federation of SMEs and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, this study employs a structural equation model to investigate a mediation model that links organizational capabilities to job creation through export growth. The main findings of this study are that both technological and manufacturing capability positively influence export growth; export growth has a positive effect on job creation, fully mediates a positive linkage between technological capability and job creation and also plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between manufacturing capability and job creation. Finally, the present study contributes to the literature on exports and job creation and also provides useful information for SME operators and policymakers. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technological Innovation and the Effect of Employment on Green Growth)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 717 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Are Green Energies Employment Friendly? Empirical Evidence for Some OECD Countries over the 1985–2013 Period

by Cristian Barra and Nazzareno Ruggiero

Sustainability 2019, 11(14), 3963; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11143963 - 22 Jul 2019

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3038

Abstract

Using data for a set of 19 OECD economies over the 1985–2013 period, we analyzed the effects of green energies on employment through the application of a fixed effects model. After controlling for a set of labor market institutions, innovation, financial development, and three dimensions of globalization, we found evidence of a positive and significant relationship between green energies and employment. Specifically, a 10% increase in the amount of green energies was found to determine a 0.3% increase in employment. Our results are robust to alternative specifications and to possible external shocks. The findings presented in this paper suggest that governments should incentivize firms in investing in green energies via tax cuts or subsidies to improve environmental quality, further stimulating the creation of new jobs and new employment opportunities. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technological Innovation and the Effect of Employment on Green Growth)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

23 pages, 787 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Role of Environmental Regulation and Technological Innovation in the Employment of Manufacturing Enterprises: Evidence from China

by Die Li and Jinsheng Zhu

Sustainability 2019, 11(10), 2982; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11102982 - 25 May 2019

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4009

Abstract

With the increasingly severe emission reduction pressures, it is an inevitable choice for China to improve the intensity of environmental regulation. At the same time, the impact of technological innovation on enterprise employment may lead to some new changes under the environmental regulation constraints. However, existing studies have not included environmental regulation into the theoretical framework of technological innovation and enterprise employment, nor has the influencing mechanism of environmental regulation and technological innovation in the employment of manufacturing enterprises been explored. This paper uses the panel data of listed manufacturing companies in the A-share market of Shanghai and Shenzhen from 2011 to 2017 to examine the impact of environmental regulation and technological innovation on the employment of manufacturing enterprises, and explore their influence mechanisms in a theoretical framework based the moderating effect model. The findings demonstrate the following: First, the technological innovation has a positive creative effect on enterprise employment. Second, the impact of environmental regulation on enterprise employment is significantly positive. Third, environmental regulation has a negative moderating effect on the impact of technological innovation on enterprise employment. Finally, the impacts of both environmental regulation and technological innovation on the employment of manufacturing enterprises are heterogeneous across enterprises due to differences in ownership structure, the degree of pollution, and technical density. Therefore, faced with the objective reality that environmental carrying capacity has reached or approached the upper limit, China needs to formulate a differentiated and diversified technological innovation system and environmental protection policy, improve the environmental innovation level of manufacturing enterprises, and form a green development model, which is of great significance for achieving high-quality development and stable employment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technological Innovation and the Effect of Employment on Green Growth)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

23 pages, 983 KiB

Open AccessReview

Wind Power and Job Creation

by Luigi Aldieri, Jonas Grafström, Kristoffer Sundström and Concetto Paolo Vinci

Sustainability 2020, 12(1), 45; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12010045 - 19 Dec 2019

Cited by 41 | Viewed by 7876

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to provide a global overview of job effects per MW of wind power installations, which will enable improved decision-making and modeling of future wind-power projects. We found indications that job creation connected to wind-power installations is rather limited. In total, 17 peer-reviewed articles and 10 reports/non-peer-reviewed papers between 2001 and 2019 were assessed. Our three major policy conclusions are as follows: (a) job creation seems to be limited; (b) each new project should consider a unique assessment, since all projects have been undertaken within different institutional frameworks, labor markets, and during separate years, meaning that the technology is not comparable; and (c) the number of jobs depends on the labor intensity of the country. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technological Innovation and the Effect of Employment on Green Growth)

► Show Figures