Jesús Peiró-Palomino, Lisa Gianmoena, Andrés J. Picazo-Tadeo, Vicente Rios
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
The green transition is a topic of great interest for European policymakers. It is broadly acknowledged that socio-cultural elements embedded in societies, such as social capital, have a major influence on environmental performance. European regions differ widely in terms of both social capital and environmental behavior. However, there are very few related studies at the sub-national level. Using data on 230 regions of the European Union in 2021, this paper examines the impact of social capital on air quality, which is a key indicator of environmental performance. The results show a positive effect, which is robust to several model specifications and to endogeneity. Some potential transmission mechanisms are also explored, revealing that the positive effects of social capital are channeled through the quality of government and more stringent environmental policy. These insights suggest that regional social capital endowments can be a determinant of a green transition that occurs evenly across European regions.
期刊介绍：
Ecological Economics is concerned with extending and integrating the understanding of the interfaces and interplay between "nature''s household" (ecosystems) and "humanity''s household" (the economy). Ecological economics is an interdisciplinary field defined by a set of concrete problems or challenges related to governing economic activity in a way that promotes human well-being, sustainability, and justice. The journal thus emphasizes critical work that draws on and integrates elements of ecological science, economics, and the analysis of values, behaviors, cultural practices, institutional structures, and societal dynamics. The journal is transdisciplinary in spirit and methodologically open, drawing on the insights offered by a variety of intellectual traditions, and appealing to a diverse readership.
Specific research areas covered include: valuation of natural resources, sustainable agriculture and development, ecologically integrated technology, integrated ecologic-economic modelling at scales from local to regional to global, implications of thermodynamics for economics and ecology, renewable resource management and conservation, critical assessments of the basic assumptions underlying current economic and ecological paradigms and the implications of alternative assumptions, economic and ecological consequences of genetically engineered organisms, and gene pool inventory and management, alternative principles for valuing natural wealth, integrating natural resources and environmental services into national income and wealth accounts, methods of implementing efficient environmental policies, case studies of economic-ecologic conflict or harmony, etc. New issues in this area are rapidly emerging and will find a ready forum in Ecological Economics.
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