The relationship between human capital and environmental destruction: the case of European countries

Abstract

Purpose. This study aims to examine the relationship between human capital and environmental destruction.
 Methodology / approach. The analysis includes 56 years between 1961 and 2017 for 14 selected European countries. In the model established for the variables, the ecological footprint is used as the dependent variable, human capital and real national income per capita are used as independent variables. To select the appropriate test method in the analysis, we used the CADF panel unit root test, which considers the cross-sectional dependence. The Pooled Mean Group was used for model estimation. 
 Results. In the study, it is emphasized that human capital has an important contribution to reducing the ecological footprint as an indicator of environmental pollution. According to the results of the PMG co-integration analysis, the increase in human capital reduces the ecological footprint in European countries. Since the European countries are developed ones, the availability of a good educational infrastructure is an important factor. It increases human capital. In addition, the high level of education and welfare in European countries is effective in increasing the number of environmentally sensitive individuals. This increases the environmental quality and therefore is an important factor in reducing the ecological footprint.
 Originality / scientific novelty. There are no studies in the literature examining the relationship between human capital and the ecological footprint of European countries. Therefore, this study closes a gap in the literature and takes its originality from the relationship between human capital and ecological footprint in European countries.
 Practical value / implications. The practical value of the results is that human capital reduces the ecological footprint by protecting natural resources, exhibiting a more environmentally friendly behavior, and realizing production that will minimize the damage to the environment.

Towards environmental sustainability: nexus of ecological footprint, human capital, economic growth and energy consumption in India

“…(2020), Al-Mulali and Ozturk (2015), who claimed that using non-renewable energy increases the LEP. In this pursuit, the percentage of non-renewable energy solutions in the energy mix must be reduced over time, whilst the percentage of renewable energy solutions must be increased (Yildiz et al ., 2022; Yang et al ., 2022). The results for LHC show a long-run negative association between LHC and LEP, which is significant at 1%, suggesting that a one percent increase in LHC results in a 3.84% decrease in LEP.…”

“…For this investigation, five potential variables have been considered: “Ecological footprint”, “human capital” (Yang et al ., 2022; Ahmad and Wang, 2019; Zafar et al ., 2019), “GDP per capita” (Rafique et al ., 2022; Udemba, 2020), “energy consumption” (Ivanovski and Hailemariam, 2022; Udemba, 2020) and “trade openness” (Rafique et al ., 2022; Ilkay et al ., 2021). A thorough review of existing literature has meticulously guided the selection of variables (Rafique et al ., 2022; Ruza and Caro-Carretero, 2022; Yildiz et al ., 2022; Ilkay et al ., 2021; Ozturk and Salah Uddin, 2012) and aligned with the paramount requirements specific to India. The rationale behind selecting “human capital” as an explanatory variable in this study is underpinned by the imperative context of developing nations.…”

“…Hence, those countries import inexpensive, environmentally harmful technology to increase output, thereby degrading environmental worth (Ruza and Caro-Carretero, 2022; Radmehr et al ., 2022; Mishra and Dash, 2022). It is well known that India and other developing nations are driven by a desire for economic growth, exacerbating environmental damage (Yildiz et al ., 2022). Therefore, it has become challenging to accomplish economic expansion without causing EFs to increase.…”

“…Firstly, HC is crucial to promoting economic development and lessening environmental difficulties (Udemba, 2020). So, the HC and EF may have a significant inverse relationship implying that countries should invest in HC to abate EF and environmental deterioration (Yang et al ., 2022; Yildiz et al ., 2022; Ahmed and Wang, 2019). Secondly, renewable energy functions as a remedy for promoting sustainable development amidst the path of economic growth, as it exhibits an inverse correlation with carbon dioxide emissions (Bekun, 2022); the balance between renewable energy, sustainable financial development and energy efficiency is essential for sustainable development, it is also observed that the utilisation of renewable energies fosters energy efficiency in neighbouring economies, along with a return impact.…”

Political Orientations of Governments and Renewable Energy

“…Due to the increase in the world population and therefore energy is a resource that can be used in every field, the continuous increase in energy demand has further increased the importance of renewable energy sources. At the same time, continuous fluctuations in oil prices, the environmental damage caused by fossil energy sources, climate change caused by global warming and environmental degradation have also led to an increase in the demand for renewable energy (Yildiz, Arslan, & Sağlam Çeliköz, 2022). To create a sustainable environment, policy recommendations to limit and phase out polluting fossil fuel-based industries have become more important, as well as reliable and sustainable decarbonization efforts, and policy measures to support the developing low-carbon sectors and technologies (Ćetković & Hagemann, 2020).…”