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The ongoing invasion of Russia of Ukraine and energy crises have sparked concern about economic and geopolitical stability all over the world. In Europe, the war has destabilized and endangered the energy cooperation and transition between European countries within and outside of the EU. This emergency has shown once more the importance of energy resilience policies to offset the vulnerability of energy systems and energy insecurity at the national and regional levels. Consilience has been reached on the necessity of enhancing EU energy security as an adaptation strategy. This work contributes to the existing scholarship on renewable energy transition and citizens' perception, focusing on European Union member states. Key characteristics of the renewable energy transition in the EU prior to the energy crisis and the war in Ukraine are examined. To this end, we analyze selected economic, environmental, social, policy and political variables on energy sorting from the Eurobarometer studying European citizens' perceptions. The exercise makes use of spatially-clustered regression to explore spatial heterogeneity and to elicit determinant information on specific regional groups. We learn that southern Europeans attribute less importance to energy infrastructure to facilitate the renewable energy transition and repute the EU solidity not a requirement for energy security access. Conversely, northern European citizens tend not to associate the responsibility of the EU in guiding competitiveness and policy toward green energy sources transformation. Robustness tests confirm our hypothesis. Regardless of regional differences, the EU energy and ecological transition will thrive with industrial and political cohesion. This process will pass through increased trust in institutions and dedicated energy policy action which will smooth the risks and disruptions coming from current and future shocks., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Stakeholders and communities' involvement is vital for shaping novel intergenerational resource governance frameworks. This is crucial for modelling upcoming energy transitions towards cleaner and more sustainable production systems. New models envisage energy mixes in which renewable resources are prominent and offer sustainable development advantages. Examining electricity production figures is, hence, necessary to understand trends and formulate policies and actions. This paper aims at drafting the state-of-the-art of electricity production in the Nordic-Baltic Sea area, moving an exploratory regional appraisal. Aggregated and disaggregated data on electricity production sources are explored and compared for all the eleven selected countries-at domestic, sub-regional, and regional levels. The region shows great national diversity, which implies diversified energy policies. Thus, the role of local initiatives-such as power grid implementation-in local communities empowerment is revealed. From this outcome, possible strategies are prescribed locally to assist the regional sustainable energy appraisal and furnish indications for the European energy and ecological transition., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

ABSTRACT This study evaluates the factors contributing to carbon emissions in China between 2002 and 2021, considering the impact of GDP growth, shocks in oil prices, trade liberalization and energy use. Using the dynamic simulated ARDL (SARDL) model, we indicate a long‐term link between trade liberalization, oil prices (WTI) shocks, GDP growth, energy use and CO2. The novel SARDL revealed a direct relationship between trade liberalization and CO2 in China in the long term. However, the results show a negative impact of WTI shocks on CO2 emissions. The study suggests that renewable energy (RE) significantly and negatively affects China's CO2 emissions. In addition, the findings conclude that, in the case of China, GDP has an insignificant long‐run relationship with CO2 emissions. The outcomes provide valuable insights for policymakers, researchers and industry stakeholders to enhance RE and promote sustainable energy practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy microfinance is a promising asset for ensuring access to finance and electricity for the poor and women living in rural areas. Targeting vulnerable categories, renewable energy microfinance tools aim to promote sustainability and resilience policies to foster sustainable energy and ecological transitions. This research note explores the role of energy microfinance policies in facilitating virtuous loops for empowering the vulnerable, enhancing entrepreneurship, fighting poverty, and promoting social inclusion and environmental protection - as prescribed by the sustainable development mandate. Examining the microfinance-renewable energy-vulnerable nexus, the paper proposes a conceptual contribution and fungible development policy recommendations, sketching the main drivers of this linkage. To this end, a critical review of existing publications and successful world experiences is proposed. The analysis finds out a relevant potential for energy microfinance, whereby renewable energy expansion can be a strong player in shaping fresh microfinance strategies and prospects, providing ecological, social, economic and governance benefits and new research, policy, and practical agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper reviews the green hydrogen uptake policies in the United States and the European Union. While the EU has a rather broad public support strategy that envisages the entire hydrogen value chain, the U.S. policies are more focused on hydrogen research hubs and subsidies having electric vehicle applications. From the experience of the solar and wind power rollout of the past three decades, we know that the subsidization schemes of the end product play an important role in the transition to renewables. These kinds of subsidization schemes are still lacking for clean hydrogen both in the EU and the U.S. This paper provides a brief overview of selected subsidization schemes from other renewables markets, which are then applied to define an exemplary subsidization path to empower large-scale growth in a market for green hydrogen. Here is proposed a long-term subsidization scheme – deemed as an adequate strategy for the expansion of clean hydrogen in an electricity mix. The suggested exemplary subsidization path recommends shifting from feed-in tariffs to direct marketing with market premiums once a certain threshold is reached, while both can be flanked by the issuance of a Guarantee of Origin for green hydrogen so that there is one market for hydrogen and another market for the certificates. • -A long-term subsidization scheme for the rollout of green hydrogen in the electricity mixes is proposed. • -An exemplary subsidization path to empower large-scale growth in a market for green hydrogen is drafted. • -U.S. and EU are used as case studies to capture lessons for subsidization of green hydrogen economy uptake. • -The U.S. has more centralized green hydrogen rollout policies, whereas the EU has a wider policy toolkit. • -Shifting from FIT to direct marketing with market premiums is key once a certain pre-defined threshold is reached. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China is often referred to as a global benchmark for the energy transition. Regarding energy sustainability, China's strategies and policies might be viewed as either highly innovative or detrimental. Considering the Chinese economy, population, consumption, and pollution rates, the country's energy transition decisions are deemed major determinants for the present and future global energy sustainability, resilience and related conditions. This paper aims to provide a measure and definition of these phenomena to characterize selected aspects, highlighting China's global and regional status. To this end, an interval-based composite indicator assessment is reviewed, indicating that China holds a mid-tier status in terms of energy sustainability relative to global standards. Therefore, energy security standards serve as the foundation for China's transition path to ensuring a clean, renewable and sustainable energy supply and resilience in the future conditional to universal and democratic energy justice achievement. • China's energy transition, resilience and sustainable development are analyzed. • An interval-data composite indicator is constructed. • The global and regional status of China in energy change is measured. • Energy security standards serve as the foundation for China's transition path. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigates the nexus between electrification of the mountainous rural areas and selected indicators of socioeconomic development, such as household income, learning hours, and fuel choices in cooking behavior. The empirical investigation is based on the field survey in the recently electrified Yapshor and non-electrified Deh villages of the Rushan district of the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region of Tajikistan. The study reveals a strong positive impact of electrification of these villages on the level of household income and daily learning hours of school-age children. Getting electricity access leads to a 34–48% increase in household income and to 71–95 min of additional daily learning hours for school-age children. Furthermore, electricity access also strongly contributes to the substitution of firewood, coal, or animal manure with clean electricity for cooking. Due to individual taste preferences there is, however, still a substantial percentage of village dwellers who have not shifted to clean electricity for cooking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circular economy proposes paradigm shifts from linear production patterns. Entrepreneurs can highly benefit from fresh models driven by industrial symbiosis. In this setting, renewable energy is a prime asset for fostering circular economy and sustainable development. Equity crowdfunding can assist this transition, proposing an array of possibilities for supporting green entrepreneurship. The inquiry at hand is the first exercise linking circular economy, renewable energy and equity crowdfunding. This work tests whether the deal value of an equity-based crowdfunding campaign is higher in countries with renewable energy orientation. It is made use of probit model estimations. One may observe that being a firm from a country consuming large proportions of renewable energy is positively associated with higher crowdfunding performance. Conversely, when a company is located in a country which has large shares/ratios of renewable electricity production, it usually gets modest results when compared to its international competitors. Lower deal values are also attributed to firms situated in countries relying on biomass use. The solidity of the analyses is ensured by robustness tests. The outcomes may elicit policy and research formulation on environmental sustainability and business success at micro/macro levels – of primary importance to illuminate energy, circular economy and ecological transitions. Renewable energy-Equity crowdfunding-Circular economy interplay. [Display omitted] • Circular economy, renewable energy and equity crowdfunding are analysed for the first time. • The deal value of an equity-based crowdfunding campaign is higher in countries with renewable energy orientation. • Countries consuming large proportions of renewable energy are positively associated with a higher crowdfunding performance. • Companies from a country which has large shares of renewable electricity production, get modest results. • Lower deal values are attributed to firms situated in countries relying on biomass use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resilience is a hot topic within the international development agenda and Sustainable Development Goals. Nowadays, resilience plays a crucial role in improving the quality of life of vulnerable categories and is designed as a major strategy to face the diverse dimensions and dynamics of vulnerability. Energy results among the most relevant fields of applications of resilience policies, especially when it comes to electricity. As a multidimensional concept, energy resilience policies must relate to the dimensions of sustainability – here considered as the interplay between the economic, social, environmental and governance dimensions. Due to the complexity of the phenomenon, energy resilience can be effectively outlined making use of composite indicators techniques. This paper presents the following new results: i) energy resilience is defined and ranked, strengthening a composite indicator for both OECD and non-OECD countries; the determinants of energy resilience are investigated; ii) an innovation on the construction of the World Bank's Regulatory Indicators on Sustainable Energy is operated. Our exercise makes use of an approach based on interval data to assess the sensitivity of the measure from different specifications. For the same scope, the robustness of the ranks obtained is analyzed through an uncertainty analysis. These choices aim to enhance the soundness and the validity of the composite indicator. The methodology provides a more reliable baseline to validate the results and the conceptual assumptions undertaken. It is found that, according to the diverse theoretical frameworks and methodologies applied, some countries vary considerably both in the pillars that aggregate the variables and within the minima, the centers, and the maxima of the intervals. • Energy and resilience are compelling development policy, regulatory, and scientific quests. • Energy resilience is measured by an interval data composite indicator. • Interval data is a robust method for measuring energy resilience. • GDP is related to energy resilience. • Results vary with respect to linear methods in that they allow to better represent uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]