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• Urban green spaces have direct and indirect effects on improving residents' health. • The health benefits of urban green spaces exhibit regional heterogeneity. • Economic development weakens the health benefits of urban green spaces. • Environmental regulations can enhance the health benefits of urban green spaces. Urban green spaces have long been cherished as the "lungs of the city", it can not only improve air quality and enhance residents' health. The impact of urban green spaces on air pollution and residents' health has attracted great attention. In this paper, we select 31 provinces in China as research samples and use ArcGIS software to draw spatial distribution maps of urban green spaces, air pollution, and residents' health in China, characterizing their spatiotemporal changes in order to explore whether there is a correlation among the three. On this basis, this paper utilizes panel data of Chinese provincial-level from 2010 to 2020 and conducts empirical tests through a two-way fixed effect model and a threshold regression model. The research findings are as follows: (1) Urban green spaces not only bring environmental benefits, but also health benefits, and the health benefits are greater than the environmental benefits. (2) There is a health risk of air pollution in northern China, and the health benefits of urban green spaces are not significant. Conversely, there is no health risk of air pollution in southern China, and the health benefits of urban green spaces are significant. (3) Although environmental regulations can enhance the health benefits of urban green spaces, the role of environmental regulations in enhancing the health benefits of urban green spaces may be further weakened as the economy develops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy plays a vital part in stimulating economic progress, and the shift towards a cleaner energy system is highly significant for ensuring the sustainable development of the economy. China's energy structure urgently needs to be transitioned. The fast advancement and implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) has provided a new and important tool for promoting the transition of energy structure. So, what is the relationship between the application of artificial intelligence and the transition of the energy structure? This research introduces artificial intelligence into the energy sector, focusing on the relationship between artificial intelligence and energy transition. Since nonlinear models are better able to study the complex effects and phase differences of artificial intelligence. Using China's provincial panel data spanning from 2006 to 2019, this study employs nonlinear modeling to explore the stage differences in the process of AI in facilitating energy structure transformation. This paper derives the following findings based on empirical research. First, there is a U-shaped relationship between artificial intelligence and the transition of energy structure. Specifically, before the inflection point, the initial application of artificial intelligence, artificial intelligence may adversely impact energy transition. When the inflection point is passed, AI will help facilitate the energy transition. Second, the U-shaped relationship between AI and energy transition is more pronounced in coastal and non-resource-based regions. Third, energy intensity, government investment in science and technology, and informatization will moderate the U-shaped relationship between artificial intelligence and energy transition, changing the steepness of the original U-shaped relationship and even reversing it. Hence, it is imperative to effectively utilize the technological benefits of artificial intelligence through the development patterns and distinctive features of different regions, thereby facilitating the smooth transition of the energy structure. [Display omitted] • The role of artificial intelligence in the energy transition process is studied. • Stage differences in the role of AI are analyzed. • The nonlinear relationship between AI and energy transition is investigated. • Provide insights into the factors affecting the relationship between AI and energy transition. • This research helps the government to advance the energy structure transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the background of high-quality development, the e-commerce industry needs to seek more comprehensive development, and the logistics industry should not only maintain higher efficiency, but also meet the requirements of green and low-carbon transportation. This study aims to investigate the link between the logistic density and the proportion of e-commerce transaction scale. There are few studies on how logistics density affects the development of e-commerce quantitatively. In order to solve this gap, this study establishes an impact model of high-quality growth of e-commerce, and based on Solow production model, constructs a calculation method of logistics density, and analyzes the impact mechanism of logistics density on the scale ratio of e-commerce transactions. Using the bidirectional fixed effect model, this paper makes an empirical analysis of the panel data of 31 provinces consisting of 248 observations and autonomous regions in China from 2014 to 2020. The results show that logistic density has a positive and significant impact on the growth of e-commerce, thus promoting the optimization of economic structure. The acceleration of logistics density decreases the expansion of the ecommerce. Finally, there are obvious regional differences between the development of e-commerce and logistics infrastructure in China. Finally, based on the empirical result, this paper puts forward recommendations for government and companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A composite index named GLCDES is developed to dynamically assess the level of Green Low-carbon Circular Development. • The combined-assignment VIKOR model based on game theory is developed to thoroughly estimate the construction level of GLCDES. • Southwest China's Green Low-carbon Circular Development Economic System construction level is examined from 2012 to 2021, showing how the long-side principle governs each region's value. • Selecting and strengthening the long side in combination with its reality is an effective way to improve the construction level of GLCDES. Emission peak and carbon neutrality are critical components of China's overall ecological civilization, and the establishment of a sound Green Low-carbon Circular Development Economic System (GLCDES) is a fundamental countermeasure for solving China's resource, environmental, and ecological problems. This paper used the new development concept as entry points to establish a comprehensive evaluation index system encompassing six subsystems: development dynamics, production and living systems, green benefits, low-carbon benefits, circularity benefits and socio-economic benefits. The combined-assignment VIKOR model, based on game theory, was used to thoroughly estimate the construction level of GLCDES by combining panel data from four southwestern provinces, including Chongqing, Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan, from 2012 to 2021. The study discovered that: the construction level of GLCDES in all four southwestern provinces increased over the past ten years, but the increase was not significant, the four development effectiveness indices, including green, low-carbon, circularity and socio-economic, were significantly improved, the development dynamics index was not significantly enhanced, and the index of production and living systems declined in fluctuation from year to year. The construction level of GLCDES between regions was very uneven and can be divided into two echelons, with the gap between Chongqing and Guizhou being particularly obvious. Regions can be categorized into three major categories based on the number of dominant subsystems. According to the above results, the total value of the dynamic comprehensive evaluation of each region is governed by the principle of the long side, which is an effective way to improve the construction level of GLCDES by selecting and strengthening the long side in combination with its reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The impact of economic growth pressure on energy efficiency improvement is discussed. • Economic growth pressure has hindered the improvement of energy efficiency. • Heterogeneity effects exist in individual dimension and temporal dimension. Economic growth target management has been a typical feature of Chinese governments at all levels for a long time in the past decades. Based on a panel data of 188 Chinese cities, this paper examines the impact of pressure brought by economic growth target on energy efficiency improvement. The results suggest that economic growth pressure has hindered the improvement of energy efficiency. For every unit of increase in economic growth pressure, the improvement indicator of energy efficiency will decrease by 3.3%. This finding is robust, after replacing explained variables and core explanatory variables, no substantial changes are found. Sub-sample regression confirms the existence of heterogeneity effects in individual dimension and temporal dimension. Finally, by summarizing existing studies, this paper finds that the investment imbalance effect, the hindrance effect on industrial structure upgrading, and the crowding-out effect on innovation are three important ways for economic growth pressure to restrain the improvement of energy efficiency. Our findings are helpful to understand the role of the government's economic growth target management in resource allocation and energy utilization and provide a certain practical reference for China to promote high-quality economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior studies have explored the relationship between public environmental concerns and air pollution, but the interaction effects and spatial factors under a systematic framework have been ignored. This paper investigates the interaction effect between public environmental concern and air pollution, moreover, a spatial panel simultaneous equation approach is employed to reduce the endogenous interference and the potential impact of spatial factors. Based on the balanced panel data of 269 prefecture-level cities in China from 2011 to 2017, we find that a 1% increase in public environmental concern will lead to a 0.049% decrease in PM 2.5 concentration, while a 1% increase in PM 2.5 concentration will lead to a 1.398% increase in public environmental concern. Meanwhile, there is a significantly spatial spillover effect of both public environmental concern and air pollution to the surrounding areas. Furthermore, our findings suggest that public environmental concern reduces air pollution by promoting government environmental regulation, and air pollution promotes public environmental concern by threatening the health of the residents. In addition, the results of heterogeneity analysis show that the interaction effect of public environment on air pollution significantly differs across regions with different heating characteristics and economic development levels. Practicable policies to promote favorable feedback on public environmental concern and air pollution are suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Financial agglomeration is a key way to promote the green transformation of the global economy and environmental governance. The existing literature mainly analyzed the impact of financial agglomeration on economic development, but rarely examines its comprehensive impact on economic growth and environmental governance considering spatial spillover effects. Based on the perspective of spatial spillover effects, this paper uses panel data of 285 cities above the prefecture-level in China to examine the impact and mechanism of financial agglomeration on green development. The results show that: (1) During the study period, financial agglomeration and green development in China are significantly different in directions of spatial distribution and expansion, but the spatial correlation between the two is relatively high. (2) Financial agglomeration can exert significant spatial spillover effects on green development. (3) Financial agglomeration has more obvious positive spatial spillover effects on green development of cities in the servitization stage or with high administrative level. (4) Industrial structure upgrading effect, labor upgrading effect and technological innovation effect are the main paths that financial agglomeration affects green development. The research results can provide a new perspective and approach to promote the green transformation of economy and sustainable development of the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development stipulates 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The implementation of this agenda will mobilize countries worldwide to incorporate the SDGs into their national development strategies. The agenda does not specify how these goals are interconnected, thus limiting their implementation. In addition, air quality affects human life and plays a vital role in achieving these SDGs. Clarifying the interconnections between SDGs related to air pollution and other SDGs will accelerate the implementation of air protection and SDGs while simultaneously promoting policy coherence. In this paper, we use the latest calculation of the SDGs in China to construct national and provincial panel data to investigate the trade-offs and synergies among Chinese air pollution-related SDGs. The findings are as follows. First, most air pollution-related SDGs have synergetic relationships, except for SDG12, which has a trade-off relationship with other air pollution-related SDGs. Second, the synergies between air pollution-related SDGs and other SDGs far outweigh the trade-offs. Third, rapidly developing areas are more likely to experience a trade-off between economic development and air pollution problems. Fourth, geographic advantages in reducing air pollution, such as being adjacent to the sea, may weaken the synergies among air pollution-related SDGs and their synergies with other SDGs. These findings indicate that most air-pollution-related SDGs and interactions between air-pollution-related SDGs and other SDGs have substantial synergy; that is, measures aimed at one goal are conducive to the advancement of other goals. However, SDG12 reflects a trade-off relationship between economic development, environmental protection, and resource utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]