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We studied Malaysia's ability to achieve its climate goal amidst high rate of entrepreneurial activities and influx of people from rural to urban cities (urbanization) due to massive and prospective economic activities in the cities. For this, we investigate the impact of urbanization, entrepreneurial activities, and economic growth on its environmental performance. Renewable energy and financial development were also incorporated in the analyses to see if they have mitigating effect on the country's carbon emissions. Malaysian data of 1992Q1 to 2017Q4 were adopted for this study, and we also adopted both linear (dynamic ordinary least square-DOLS) and non-linear (nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag-NARDL) scientific and analytical approaches for better and clear insight from our study. Granger causality is equally applied as a robust check to the findings from DOLS and NARDL through direct inference from the selected variables. Findings from NARDL exposed significant impacts of the selected variables on the carbon emissions. Specifically, entrepreneurial activities, urbanization, financial development and renewables are mitigating carbon emissions, while economic growth is increasing emissions. Findings from DOLS and granger causality support the findings from the NARDL with more light on the trend of impact from economic growth to the Malaysia environment through inverted U-Shape EKC hypothesis. From granger causality nexus is established among the variable of interest in this study. From the findings, policy to mitigate carbon emissions can be framed with renewables, urbanization, entrepreneurial activities and financial activities. Authorities can initiate subsidising policies that will enable both private and public players to invest in energy sector strictly for the purpose of expanding renewable energy source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon neutral is among the possible ways of solving the problem of climate change. Many scholars have utilized different single indicators such as CO2 and methane with different variables to mitigate the possible ways of solving the problem of global warming. The present study employs a specific country (UAE) approach to investigate the possible way of solving climate change. The author utilized 1980–2018 annual data of the UAE to investigate the possibility of carbon neutral in the UAE as to suggest ways of limiting climate change. Both linear and non-linear (squared) foreign direct investment (FDI) and GDP per capita were added to the study and considered as the variables of interest and other control variables (energy use and population). Among the findings of this study are inverted U-shaped relationship between economic growth (GDP per capita) and ecological footprint which confirms EKC for the UAE, positive relationship between energy use and ecological footprint, negative relationship between FDI and ecological footprint in all stages which established a flat pattern of relationship, and a positive relationship between the population and ecological footprint. Findings from causal analyses exposed a two-way direction or feedback (bidirectional) between economic growth (GDP) and urban population, and between energy use and urban population both in the short and long run. Also, a one-way transmission (unidirectional) is found transmitting from ecological footprint and FDI to population both in the short run and long run; from the ecological footprint, energy use, and FDI to economic growth; from the ecological footprint and FDI to energy use in the long run; and from ecological footprint to FDI and energy use in the short run. The policy focus should be towards the improvement on the urban population. FDI pattern suggests the pollution halo hypothesis which is a pointer towards its (FDI) crucial contribution to environmental performance. Hence, FDI should be encouraged through relaxing of some laws that are preventive in nature towards FDI so as to maintain this positive trend towards sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]