The race to net-zero emissions: Can green technological innovation and environmental regulation be the potential pathway to net-zero emissions?

The ongoing global climate crisis has led several countries to adopt carbon neutrality goals to address and reduce carbon emissions and other types of greenhouse gases. These objectives can be effectively achieved through the implementation of green technical innovation and environmental regulation. This study examines the potential of green technological innovation and environmental regulations to serve as catalysts in pursuing net-zero emissions across G20 countries. The data used for this study was obtained from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the World Bank, covering the time frame from 2000 to 2020. Using the entropy weight method, we constructed the Green Technological Innovation (GTI) index and the Environmental Regulation (ERI) index. The GTI index measured green technological innovation across six dimensions, while the ERI index measured environmental regulation across three dimensions. The empirical results revealed that green technological innovation and environmental regulation are the most effective pathways toward achieving the net-zero emissions goal. Furthermore, the findings indicate that GTI and ERI mediate the relationship between the expansion of fossil fuel energy, GDP per capita, and renewable energy consumption. Our research illuminates potential pathways that policymakers in G20 and other countries may pursue to achieve their net-zero emission goal.