The dynamic nexus between economic factors, socioeconomic factors, green growth factors, and ecological footprint: evidence from GCC economies

Industrialization, financial activities, and intensive human activities have reduced continuous habitats to smaller patches, threatening the safety of the ecosystem. However, as technological innovation and digitization increase, this negative impact will be somewhat neutralized. To address this issue, the current study examined the role of economic, socioeconomic, and green indicators on the ecological footprint in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). By using data from 1990–2019, we have applied multiple panel tests to determine the long-run and short-run relationships among the variables. The findings show that economic growth increases the long-term ecological footprint in the GCC. The human development index and financial inclusion coefficients are also positively and significantly linked with the ecological footprint. The socioeconomic index, however, reveals a negative relationship between ecological footprint and GCC. Similarly, digitalization and environmental technologies have a negative and major impact on the ecological footprint. It indicates that green growth factors contribute to long-term improvements in environmental quality. So, GCC nations should emphasize investing in green growth factors and enact strict environmental regulations to safeguard their country from environmental problems.