Renewable Energy Consumption, Internet Adoption and Inclusive Growth in East Asia: A Linear and Nonlinear Investigation

Abstract

Technological transformations are profoundly impacting every aspect of human life. Like every sector of the economy, technological advancements are reshaping industrial zones and altering the climatic conditions for a few decades. Therefore, this study scrutinizes the effects of renewable energy consumption, Internet adoption and financial development on inclusive growth in East Asia from 1995 to 2019. The current study utilizes novel approaches of panel ARDL and NARDL to explore the individual and joint effects of renewable energy and Internet adoption for inclusive growth and to compare their results. Moreover, the study contributes to the existing literature by using the newest multidimensional inclusiveness index to measure inclusive growth. The findings reveal that cleaner energy use, Internet access and financial development are significant determinants of inclusive growth. The increase and decrease in the combination of renewable energy and Internet adoption significantly enhance and reduce inclusive growth. The study confirms the nonlinear association between the cleaner energy-internet-growth nexus. The study recommends huge investments and microfinancing in the cleaner energy and digital sectors to reduce exclusions in poverty, inequality, and digital divide and attain inclusive growth.