Resourceful futures: Integrating responsible mining and green education for sustainable development in developing and emerging economies

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of coal mining efficiency, metal ore mining efficiency, and education spending on the sustainable development of ten Asian emerging and developing economies from 1995 to 2020. Results from CS-ARDL (Cross-sectional Augmented Autoregressive Distributed Lag) and ARDL models reveal that public education spending has no significant impact, while both coal mining efficiency and metal ore mining efficiency promote sustainability, with coal mining efficiency being the more influential factor due to its crucial role in manufacturing and power generation. Additionally, the challenges of larger populations and the variable alignment of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) with sustainability practices are noted. Key policy implications include the need to foster a digital green finance market, liberalize trade flows, develop a circular economy in the mining industry, and encourage green FDI in sustainable mining projects.