Search Results (201)

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of environmental disclosure and corporate governance on the financial performance of Islamic banks in Saudi Arabia. This study highlights that sustainable practices are transparent with financial objectives using the religious framework of Islamic finance. This research is based on Worldwide Vision 2030, which covers sustainable development and promotes environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles, as well as corporate governance factors, such as board composition and Shariah Supervisory Boards (SSBs). We use a hybrid approach for our findings, with a dataset spanning 2011–2023 for the quantitative analysis and 20 semi-structured analyses conducted for a qualitative approach that aligns with objectives. We found that environmental disclosure boosts profits and stakeholder trust. Corporate governance structures, such as environmental boards and sustainability committees, improve the environmental disclosure of financial performance in Islamic banks. In this positive interaction, specialized governance drives Sharia-compliant sustainability initiatives. SSBs help Islamic banks integrate sustainability and meet religious and ESG environmental standards. Board diversity and dedication in the sustainability committee both play important roles in enhancing environmental disclosure practices; in return, these improved financial performances. The interaction of environmental disclosure and board environmental expertise has a positive impact on the overall performance, which indicates that governance structure supports sustainability-related decision-making, aligning with transparency. This study suggests that Islamic banks standardize ESG frameworks, improve board environmental expertise, and invest in real-time sustainability reporting digital solutions. Saudi Islamic banks can lead regional and global sustainable banking by adopting these strategies to align with global sustainability trends, improve financial performance, and meet ethical finance expectations. Full article

This study examines whether firm managers strategically use tax avoidance to address climate risks, with a specific focus on strategies employed to reduce corporate income tax liabilities, and this study incorporates the moderating role of ESG performance and is ground in stakeholder theory to highlight the balance between sustainability and corporate profit expectations. Using the secondary data from Chinese A-listed companies during 2017–2023, the findings reveal that firms increasingly adopt tax avoidance practices in response to rising climate risks. More specifically, strong ESG performance positively moderates this relationship, underscoring its role in shaping socially and ethically responsible strategies to tackle sustainability challenges. By employing panel data analysis and addressing endogeneity through instrumental variable tests, Propensity Score Matching, and the Heckman test, this study provides robust results. These findings contribute to the literature on tax avoidance and provide practical insights for actionable ESG initiatives. For firms, these include improving transparency in tax reporting and integrating sustainability metrics into corporate ESG framework for firms. For tax authority, they involve upgrading the tax-related big data supervision system and fostering alignment between corporate practices and government policies. Full article

As sustainability becomes more critical to corporate strategy and performance, firms, investors, and researchers must continue to refine methods for measuring and addressing the gap between rhetoric and reality. Closing this gap is crucial to ensuring that externally oriented ESG claims are supported by genuine internal actions that benefit both the firm and society at large. To address this issue, this study introduces a theoretically driven framework to assess the alignment (or lack thereof) between firms’ ESG policies and their actual implementation. By proposing a more granular and objective measure, we address a gap in the existing literature. Additionally, we empirically validate this framework using data from ASSET4, providing insights into the extent and persistence of this phenomenon using a sample of S&P 1500 firms from 2016 to 2022. Our results reveal that misalignment between internal actions and external endorsements in managing environmental and social issues is both significant and persistent across the years analyzed. Over 80% of the sample firms exhibit this misalignment, underscoring its prevalence within the sample. In more recent years, however, firms have shown a clear tendency to prioritize internal actions over initiatives aimed at externally endorsing their efforts. Building on the framework we propose to measure ESG policy–practice decoupling, along with the empirical analysis we conducted, we discuss its broader implications and outline several opportunities for future research. Full article

The rapid development and widespread application of artificial intelligence (AI) and robots have profoundly impacted the economy, society, and the environment. This article focuses on the relationship between industrial robots and green sustainable transformation in high-energy-consuming industries. Through the Poisson distribution fixed effect, the negative binomial fixed-effect model, and the two-way fixed-effect model, we found that the penetration of industrial robots in high-energy-consuming enterprises (HEEs) has a significant and positive effect on green innovation. In particular, we verified that total factor productivity and ESG, included in the zero-inflation model, have a breakthrough-accelerating role in the application of industrial robots to promote green sustainable transformation. Further analysis indicated that the adoption of industrial robots is also positively correlated with the improvement of corporate green sustainable transformation in non-state-owned enterprises, but state-owned enterprises are not sensitive. In the classification of segmented industries, only the metallurgical industry demonstrates the empowering role of green sustainable transformation. This article provides a new avenue for reshaping the low-carbon green sustainable transformation strategy of HEEs, as well as useful insights, supporting the achievement of carbon peak and carbon neutrality by promoting the application of industrial robots and further improving total factor productivity and ESG performance. Full article

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) aspects have a growing relevance in the corporate world where the objective for sustainability becomes an essential point. The supply chain (SC) is a buyer’s responsibility and accounts for a large part of their ESG footprint. Since ESG performance extends to SC, poor ESG practices in the SC can negatively affect the sustainability of the Anchor Company (AC). Therefore, AC, the buyer, needs to go through a complex, expensive, and time-consuming process to assess their SC. The objective of this work is to develop an ESG assessment model for companies to receive a quantitative score of their footprint by considering both their operations and the SC. The model is verified by considering different scenarios that are designed by testing two different cases with different interactions between two ACs and two SCs with different ESG maturity levels. Results show that the SC has a significant impact on the final ESG score of the AC, highlighting the need for considering the SC to evolve in ESG aspects. In all tested cases, the SC accounted for more than 50% of the final consolidated ESG score. Despite differing ESG maturity levels, two ACs received the same consolidated score due to the influence of their SC scores. Results emphasize that achieving a strong consolidated ESG score is important, and advanced corporate sustainability is not possible without integrating the SC into the strategy. The novel methodology proposed contributes to sustainability, expanding the scope of ESG assessments to include SC and developing a standardized and adaptable model with practical applications. Full article

BRICS countries, which cause 43.2 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, are crucial in the world’s effort toward environmental sustainability. BRICS countries are among the world’s largest maritime traders and account for a good share of carbon emissions through shipping and the degradation of marine ecosystems. This research provides a novel contribution by examining the combined effect of energy intensity, innovation, blue economy activities and renewable energy on environmental sustainability for the period between 1990 and 2022 for BRICS nations under the shadow of ESG—economic, social and governance readiness. The key variables are energy intensity, renewable energy usage, innovation, blue economy and ESG readiness, with a critical focus on the environmental consequences. By applying Driscoll and Kraay’s robust adopting-type approach and panel quantile estimation, the findings indicate that adopting renewable energy and increased innovation significantly lowers GHG emissions across BRICS economies. The study further establishes that international ocean trade and fishing activities contribute to the deterioration of the environment through the overexploitation of resources and emissions resulting from shipping activities, with the consideration of these as the backbone of the blue economy. However, social and positive influences on sustainable practice in the BRICS region, as reflected through policy frameworks, economic development, and technical cooperation among members, positively influence the adoption of sustainable practices, thereby driving progress toward environmental goals. This study underlines the importance of continued technical cooperation among BRICS countries, with a commitment to sustainable innovation and a transition to renewable energy as essential strategies to reduce environmental degradation and enhance long-term sustainability. Full article

This study examines the impact of ESG strategies on sustainable performance in multinational enterprises (MNEs), with a particular focus on the mediating role of internal market-oriented culture (IMOC) and the moderating effect of job crafting. To validate these key mechanisms, the study employs a stratified random sampling method to collect data from 614 employees across manufacturing, service, and technology-intensive industries. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the hypothesized relationships. The empirical results demonstrate that ESG strategies significantly enhance sustainable organizational performance, with IMOC serving as a critical mediator linking ESG strategies to improved outcomes. Furthermore, job crafting strengthens the positive relationship between IMOC and sustainable performance, indicating that when employees proactively reshape their tasks and roles to align with ESG objectives, organizational sustainability is further enhanced. The influence of cultural context plays a crucial role in this process. The findings reveal that the effects of IMOC and job crafting are more pronounced in collectivist cultures (e.g., China and Japan), while in individualist cultures (e.g., the United States and Germany), performance improvements rely more heavily on individual incentives and feedback mechanisms. These insights provide practical guidance for MNE managers on how to tailor ESG strategies, IMOC, and job crafting approaches to specific regional and cultural settings. This study contributes to the literature by demonstrating how ESG strategies interact with internal cultural and behavioral mechanisms to drive sustainable performance in MNEs. It highlights the role of IMOC and job crafting as internal drivers that bridge ESG initiatives with tangible organizational outcomes. From a practical perspective, the findings offer actionable guidance for MNEs on how to design adaptive ESG strategies and employee engagement practices tailored to culturally diverse environments. These insights provide managers with a clear pathway to enhance employee-driven change and improve sustainable performance across global operations. Full article

The purpose of this study is to analyze the mission statements of 49 companies listed on the Palestine Exchange (PEX), focusing on their structure and alignment with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles. The primary objective of this research was to evaluate the extent to which Palestinian companies embed sustainability issues into their mission statements. This was done with a qualitative research design and a descriptive content analysis method, letting mission statements from different fields be looked at in excellent detail. This analysis offers valuable insights into how Palestinian companies articulate their strategic goals and communicate their commitment to ESG factors. The findings reveal that Palestinian companies demonstrate a clear understanding of sustainability and its relevance to their operations. A lot of companies are also working hard to include sustainability principles in their mission statements. This shows that people are becoming more aware of how important ESG factors are for shaping business strategy and creating long-term value. Full article

Methane is a strong green gas that has higher GWP. Methane emissions, therefore, form one of the critical focuses within climate change mitigation policy. Indeed, the present study represents a very novel analysis of methane emission within the ESG framework by using the data across 193 countries within the period of 2011–2020. Methane reduction on account of ESG delivers prompt climate benefits and thereby preserves the core environment, social, and governance objectives. In spite of its importance, the role of methane remains thinly explored within ESG metrics. This study analyzes how factors like renewable energy use, effective governance, and socioeconomic settings influence the emission rate of the study subject, as many previous ESG studies are deficient in considering methane. By using econometric modeling, this research identifies that increasing methane emissions remain unabated with the improvement of ESG performances around the world, particularly within key agricultural and fossil fuel-based industrial sectors. Renewable energy cuts emissions, but energy importation simply transfers the burdens to exporting nations. It therefore involves effective governance and targeted internationational cooperation, as socioeconomic elements act differently in different developed and developing countries to drive various emission sources. These findings strongly call for balanced, targeted strategies to integrate actions of mitigation into ESG goals related to methane abatement. Full article

Work safety governance is a critical component of corporate ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) performance, particularly in high-risk industries. Effective safety supervision systems not only protect workers’ wellbeing, a key social metric in ESG frameworks, but also enhance corporate governance through improved risk management and regulatory compliance. The supervisory system represents a major institutional innovation in China’s approach to addressing increasingly complex work safety governance challenges. This study constructs an evolutionary game model involving the central government, local government, and high-risk enterprises to analyze the evolutionary characteristics of stakeholder behaviors. Through system simulation, we examine how key parameter changes affect the stability of system equilibrium points. Our findings reveal that (1) the current supervisory system effectively incentivizes both local governments to conduct safety supervision and high-risk enterprises to comply with safety investment requirements. (2) While government penalty levels do not affect strategy combinations, both insufficient and excessive penalties slow the system’s evolution toward optimal states. (3) Local governments tend to choose non-regulatory strategies when transfer payments and enterprise subsidies are inadequate. (4) Insufficient supervision intensity from the central government leads to local government non-regulation, and although this can be addressed by increasing supervision intensity, excessive supervision reduces the system’s evolution speed toward ideal states. Based on these findings, we propose policy recommendations for rational supervision intensity control, scientific reward–punishment mechanisms, and enhanced safety information transparency. This framework provides insights into the relationship between governance mechanisms and corporate long-term sustainability, which has been shown to improve ESG standards. Full article

Fintech prioritizes the progression of issues related to environmental conservation and the consequences of climate change. This study is among the first investigations exploring the relationship between fintech and sustainable energy. It presents potential financial models that might be developed to assist companies in remaining operational via the use of renewable and clean energy sources. We employ a bibliometric analysis as the statistical methodology to address the study topic. We extract bibliometric data from the Scopus database employing the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach, thereafter analyzing the data with the R statistical programming language and the bibliometric applications Biblioshiny and VOSviewer. The results of the research indicate that fintech companies are committed to achieving carbon neutrality and investing in strategies such as environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) which may help them reduce their carbon footprint and enhance their eco-efficiency. In contrast to the United Kingdom, which is frequently regarded as the world’s preeminent financial center, Chinese fintech enterprises appear to demonstrate a more fervent dedication to the improvement of their ecological transition. However, the results, ultimately, emphasize the transition of fintech to an alternative paradigm, namely greentech. Greentech is a new fintech-dependent paradigm which will help cryptocurrencies and fintech reduce their environmental impact and promote carbon-neutral financial institutions via investment. Greentech aims to decarbonize the financial industry by investing in renewable resources and clean energy, therefore enhancing the sector’s environmental sustainability. Full article

This study examines the impact of ESG rating disclosures on the stock performance of highly rated semiconductor companies in Taiwan from 2017 to 2023. The findings reveal significant abnormal returns surrounding ESG rating releases, with positive returns before the event reflecting investor optimism and negative returns afterward indicating market reassessment. The analysis highlights varied effects of ESG dimensions: environmental performance benefits lower-performing firms, social initiatives show negative impacts on high-performing firms, and governance practices demonstrate both short-term costs and long-term benefits. Policy continuity emerges as a critical factor in moderating the financial impacts of ESG performance. Stable and supportive policies enhance the positive effects of ESG initiatives, while inconsistent frameworks exacerbate inefficiencies. These results emphasize the importance of aligning ESG strategies with consistent policy environments to maximize shareholder wealth, offering valuable insights for investors, corporate managers, and policymakers. Full article

In the era of artificial intelligence (AI), economic efficiency has an obvious role to play, but “non-economic benefits” have gradually become the focus of corporate attention; thus, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) has become a mainstream investment strategy. This paper empirically examines the impact of corporate application of AI technology on corporate ESG performance using a sample of 4858 listed companies in China from 2007 to 2022. The study finds that: (1) corporate application of AI technology can significantly enhance corporate ESG performance, and this conclusion still holds after a series of endogeneity treatments and robustness tests; (2) mechanism analysis shows that the degree of corporate digitalization has a positive moderating effect in the process of AI technology affecting corporate ESG performance. The channel analysis shows that the application of AI technology can enhance environmental (E) performance by strengthening corporate green technology innovation, social (S) performance by improving corporate philanthropic responsibility, and overall ESG performance with the above two sub-items as the main aspects. However, AI technology also weakens the effectiveness of corporate internal control, which leads to a decline in corporate governance (G) performance; (3) Heterogeneity analysis shows that AI technology promotes ESG more significantly in more competitive industries and tech-nology-intensive firms, and more significantly in the eastern and central regions than in the western and northeastern regions, and that large- and medium-sized firms are similarly superior to small-sized firms, while medium-sized firms have more room for upward mobility than large-sized firms, which embody a higher promotion effect than large enterprises. This paper provides theoretical evidence that enterprises apply AI technology to improve ESG performance and empirical support around investing in ESG practices and promoting ESG development. Full article

As investors increasingly incorporate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into their decision-making, sustainable Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) have gained prominence in both investment portfolios and financial research. This study aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the Sustainable ETF research landscape by utilizing scientometric and bibliometric methods with tools such as VOSviewer, Bibliometrix, and CiteSpace. Drawing from the Web of Science and Scopus databases, the study identifies key thematic areas, influential authors, and emerging trends. The findings highlight the conceptual evolution of Green ETFs, from early definitions focused on ESG-aligned investments to more complex instruments incorporating diversified screening criteria and advanced technologies like machine learning and artificial intelligence. Practical challenges such as regulatory inconsistencies, high implementation costs, and limited investor education are underscored as critical barriers to broader adoption. Future trends reveal the growing role of blockchain technology for ESG verification, crisis-specific ETF models, and the development of more inclusive screening strategies. Strategically, Green ETFs demonstrate resilience during market volatility and support sustainability-driven investment frameworks. The study provides valuable insights for investors, policymakers, and researchers, emphasizing Green ETFs’ role in driving sustainable finance and offering actionable guidance for optimizing ESG investment strategies. Full article

In the current economic landscape, businesses are challenged by the dual imperatives of digital transformation and sustainability goals. While digital transformation is often heralded as a catalyst for innovation, its potential negative effects on green innovation remain underexplored. This study fills in this gap by analyzing 1443 listed companies on the Shanghai Stock Exchange main board between 2013 and 2022, focusing on the mechanisms by which digital transformation impacts green innovation and on the moderated role of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance. Our findings reveal that digital transformation hinders green innovation by increasing financing constraints. However, good ESG performance mitigates these negative impacts by alleviating financing constraints, thereby fostering green innovation. Our findings hold up against endogeneity tests by applying instrumental variable methods. Notably, the effect of digital transformation and ESG differs significantly between state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and non-state-owned enterprises (non-SOEs). While non-SOEs experience more pronounced challenges, ESG also demonstrates a stronger moderating role, unlike in SOEs, where institutional advantages offset some of these constraints. These findings enhance the understanding of dual transformation challenges, offering practical implications for aligning digital and green strategies in diverse organizational contexts. Full article