Politická ekonomie 2024, Volume 72(2), Special Issue: 331-356 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1437

Examining the Effects of Energy Efficiency R&D and Renewable Energy on Environmental Sustainability Amidst Political Risk in France

Oktay Özkan ORCID..., Babatunde Sunday Eweade ORCID..., Tomiwa Sunday Adebayo ORCID...
Oktay Özkan: Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences Tokat Gaziosmanpasa University, Tokat, Turkey
Babatunde Sunday Eweade: Department of Economics, Faculty of Business and Economics, Eastern Mediterranean University, Northern Cyprus, Mersin, Turkey
Tomiwa Sunday Adebayo: Department of Business Administration, Cyprus International University, Nicosia, via Mersin-10, Turkey, University of Tashkent for Applied Sciences, Str. Gavhar 1, Tashkent 100149, Uzbekistan; Adnan Kassar School of Business, Lebanese American University, Beirut, Lebanon

The urgent need to address climate change and the depletion of natural resources has led governments worldwide to allocate significant resources towards research and development in clean energy technologies and energy efficiency. This study evaluates the effectiveness of renewable energy and energy efficiency initiatives in reducing CO2 emissions, taking into account the influences of natural resource availability and political risk. Using data from France spanning from 1985 to 2021, we employ the kernel-based regularized least squares (KRLS) methodology, complemented by quantile regression (QR), to analyse these relationships. Our findings indicate that policies promoting energy efficiency and green energy have a positive impact on reducing CO2 emissions. However, the availability of natural resources and political risk exacerbate environmental challenges by increasing CO2 emissions. Thus, our study underscores the importance of continued support from policymakers for renewable energy development and energy efficiency research to effectively pursue Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Additionally, as the world prepares for COP28, our findings emphasize the urgency of these initiatives in meeting global climate targets.

Keywords: France, energy efficiency R&D, renewable energy, political risks, natural resources, environmental sustainability
JEL classification: C14, C53, Q42, Q55, Q58

Received: November 29, 2023; Revised: February 8, 2024; Accepted: February 16, 2024; Prepublished online: March 14, 2024; Published: May 1, 2024  Show citation

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Özkan, O., Sunday Eweade, B., & Sunday Adebayo, T. (2024). Examining the Effects of Energy Efficiency R&D and Renewable Energy on Environmental Sustainability Amidst Political Risk in France. Politická ekonomie, 72(Spec.issue), 331-356. doi: 10.18267/j.polek.1437
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