The Power of Knowledge: How Can Educational Competitiveness Improve Urban Energy Efficiency?

Yan Huang, Yang Feng, Da Gao, Jiawen Wei and Kai Wu ()
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Yan Huang: School of Management, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan 430079, China
Yang Feng: School of Marxism, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan 430079, China
Da Gao: School of Law and Business, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan 430079, China
Jiawen Wei: School of Marxism, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan 430079, China
Kai Wu: School of Law and Business, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan 430079, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 14, 1-20

Abstract: With an economic model characterized by high energy consumption and low efficiency, China is facing serious energy shortages and environmental problems. However, education, as the cornerstone of social progress, has been overlooked in its role in improving energy efficiency. This study aims to enhance our understanding of the impact of educational competitiveness on urban green total factor energy efficiency (GTFEE), helping policymakers to achieve sustainable urban development. This study utilizes panel data from 20 major Chinese cities spanning from 2012 to 2022 and applies a two-way fixed effects model to investigate the relationship and pathways of educational competitiveness (Ec) on GTFEE. Our results show that the Ec index can enhance the major urban GTFEE. Among them, educational resource competitiveness, input competitiveness, efficiency competitiveness, and sustainable competitiveness can all enhance urban GTFEE, but the coefficient of the educational scale is not significant. In addition, Ec can effectively improve GTFEE by promoting green technological innovation, alleviating human resource mismatch, and driving industrial structure upgrading. Furthermore, the impact of Ec on GTFEE shows significant regional heterogeneity, with its effect weakening from the eastern coastal areas to the western inland regions.

Keywords: educational competitiveness; GTFEE; impact channel; heterogeneity analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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