The achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) related to the environment requires identifying new sources of environmental degradation. In this research, we examine the impact of the underground economy on polluting gas emissions. This relationship was estimated, including the role of globalization, trade, and market size. Using annual data from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, we found that, in the short term, the underground economy had a negative effect on global environmental pollution and a long-term negative impact. In the long term, the cointegration results indicate a long-term relationship between the series included in the investigation. The existence of a long-term relationship between the variables implies that as the underground economy increases, the emissions of polluting gases also change. In the long term, policymakers can use the black economy as an instrument to influence environmental pollution. Likewise, we found a threshold effect in the index of globalization, trade, and market size. The existence of a threshold effect implies that from a threshold, the impact of globalization, trade, and the size of the market on polluting emissions is more significant. Therefore, the environmental policy must consider these aspects to achieve greater effectiveness of regulation in favor of the environment. The results were stable, including the dependence of the cross-sections and the heterogeneity in the slope of the panel. Actions to mitigate polluting gas emissions should regulate informal and clandestine activities and take advantage of globalization and trade to improve the practices of companies and individuals.

The purpose of this article is to analyze the relationship between economic growth (measured by economic, social, and financial variables) and the agricultural productive structure, as well as its possibilities for diversification, in Ecuador's 23 provinces in the year 2014. First, we constructed the Shannon-Weaver index. We then used the graphic cartograms method to select relationships between variables. Next, we calculated the Pearson coefficient and the covariance, which revealed the linear association among the study's variables. This methodology led us to conclude that several variables (the gross added value of only agriculture, the average total household income, and the economically active population) have a positive influence on agricultural diversification; each province's overall gross added value, while the level of education, the unemployment rate, and the volume of credit had a negative influence.

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In the present investigation, an analysis of the impact of economic growth on the environment during the period 1971-2015 in Ecuador was made. The hypothesis of the environmental Kuznets curve was used as a study tool. We estimated this relationship in a country with strong dependence on revenues from the exploitation of natural resources and a low level of industry participation in gross domestic product (GDP). To generate empirical evidence, the methodology of the third degree Almon polynomial was applied with three lags in time. The variables were examined by informal econometric tests such as graphs of time series, stationarity, and seasonality as well as formal differences such as Dickey Fuller to check the effectiveness of their contribution in the research. Finally, the results reveal a direct, positive relationship in the short term between economic growth and CO 2 emissions. The confirmation of the hypothesis opens the door to the discussion of optimal conditions of production while minimizing pollution, which is a dilemma that states face since they require a way to produce while maintaining a healthy and balanced environment.

In this study we aim to test the effects of foreign direct investment (FDI) on carbon emissions (CO2) in 20 Latin American countries during the period of 1990–2018. Based on the atlas method of the World Bank, we divided the countries into three groups according to their real gross national income per capita: high-income, upper-middle-income and lower-middle-income countries. We used cointegration techniques and causality tests to evaluate the relationship between the variables. To assess the strength of the cointegration vector, we applied the dynamic ordinary least squares (DOLSs) model for individual countries and the dynamic panel ordinary least squares (PDOLSs) model for groups of countries. The results suggest that the entry of FDI into Latin American (LA) countries increases CO2 emissions, affecting the environmental quality. These findings disagree with the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis but, in contrast, they are in line with the pollution haven hypothesis (PHH). Moreover, we show evidence in long-term equilibrium relationship between FDI input and CO2 emissions, which is not the case for the short-term equilibrium. Some additional results suggest that FDI flows do not cause the CO2 emissions in LA countries. The empirical findings suggest policymakers to design policies to “the second-best theory”, targeting FDI flows to their economies to solve economic problems in the short term, but thereafter they may guarantee the reduction in environmental pollution, based on environmentally responsible FDI and stronger regulations. In other words, the transition from a pollution haven to the applicability of the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC). This study contributes with scarce empirical evidence for LA countries in this issue.