Rethinking Growth‐Environment Dynamics: A Review of Environmental Policy in Emerging Economies

Sheikh Junaid Yaqoob, Vaseem Akram and Jabir Ali

Review of Development Economics, 2026, vol. 30, issue 2, 1345-1365

Abstract: The debate surrounding the impact of environmental policy stringency (EPS) on growth‐environment dynamics remains unsettled, generating more heat than light. Given this backdrop, this study investigates the impact of EPS on the growth‐environment nexus through the lens of the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) framework for BRICS nations from 1990 to 2021. By incorporating EPS into a growth‐environment relationship, the study explores the impact of EPS on the shape, turning points, and phase length of the aggregate ecological footprint (EF)‐based EKC, as well as its effects on each disaggregated EF. Based on the panel cointegration and PMG‐ARDL, the study reveals that EPS not only reshapes the inverted N‐shaped aggregate EF‐based EKC by changing its turning points and narrowing the degradation phase but also significantly reduces each disaggregated EF. Additionally, the outcomes identify the presence of inverted‐N and N‐shaped EKC for cropland and grazing land footprints, respectively, underscoring EKC's heterogeneous and footprint‐specific nature. Moreover, the study emphasizes the pivotal role of EPS in regulating environmental degradation and promoting environmental sustainability by implementing footprint‐specific policies in these nations.

Date: 2026
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