Strategic Region Research Articles

Enhancing Maritime Security: Challenges and Strategies in Indonesia's Natuna Sea

The Natuna Sea, a strategic region within Indonesia's exclusive economic zone, faces multifaceted maritime security challenges that threaten national sovereignty, economic interests, and regional stability. This abstract explores the key issues and strategic responses to enhance maritime security in this vital area. Indonesia's maritime security challenges in the Natuna Sea are driven by illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, territorial disputes, and transnational crimes such as smuggling and human trafficking. The encroachment of foreign fishing vessels, particularly from neighboring countries, exacerbates the IUU fishing problem, undermining local economies and depleting fish stocks. Additionally, overlapping territorial claims, particularly with China, complicate Indonesia's efforts to assert its sovereignty and maintain peace in the region. To address these challenges, Indonesia has developed a comprehensive maritime security strategy that includes diplomatic, legal, and operational measures. Diplomatic efforts focus on strengthening regional cooperation through ASEAN and other multilateral forums to foster dialogue and build consensus on maritime security issues. Legal measures involve the enforcement of national and international laws, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to uphold Indonesia's territorial rights and combat IUU fishing. Operationally, Indonesia has enhanced its maritime patrols, surveillance capabilities, and naval presence in the Natuna Sea. The establishment of the Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla) and the deployment of advanced technology, such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and satellite monitoring, have improved the detection and interdiction of illegal activities. Despite these efforts, challenges persist due to resource constraints, coordination issues among agencies, and the complex geopolitical landscape. This abstract underscores the importance of a holistic and adaptive approach to maritime security, integrating diplomatic, legal, and operational strategies.

Spatial–Temporal Development Trends and Influencing Factors of Government Environmental Information Disclosure: Empirical Evidence Based on China’s Provincial Panel Data

Government environmental information disclosure (GEID) plays an important role in promoting the digital transformation of environmental governance, leading the concept of sustainable development, enhancing public oversight capacity, and promoting democratic decision-making governance. Using provincial panel data from China spanning from 2009 to 2021, we conducted spatial data exploratory analysis and used the dynamic spatial panel model to investigate the spatial–temporal development trends and influencing factors of GEID. The results show that (1) GEID in China exhibits significant spatial agglomeration characteristics, with an “H-H” (High-High aggregation type) agglomeration characteristic observed in three national strategic development regions: Yangtze River Delta, southeast coastal areas, and Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region. (2) The spillover effect from the southeast coastal provinces gradually radiates to the northwest, resulting in an overall westward movement of GEID. (3) GEID exhibits a significant path-dependency feature in the temporal dimension and a “peer effect” in the spatial dimension. (4) Population size has the greatest impact on GEID. Population size, public participation, and the industrial and transportation sectors positively influence GEID improvement at the local level. However, they generate negative spillover effects to neighbouring provinces. Environmental status and the size of the Real Estate sector have no significant effect. Therefore, China should strengthen regional cooperation, narrow regional disparities, cultivate new quality productive forces, establish a government-led proactive disclosure mechanism under public supervision, and improve the level of GEID at the national level.

Legal Cooperation and Conflict Resolution Mechanism in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) is an important strategic region for China's economic development. The coordination and integration of its legal system plays a key role in realizing the economic, social and cultural integration in the region. However, as Hong Kong, Macao and Guangdong belong to different legal systems and social systems respectively, the differences between the legal systems lead to frequent conflicts of laws and hinder the coordinated development in the region. Based on the constitutional and legal foundations, historical and cultural backgrounds of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao, as well as the practical experience of Guangdong, this paper analyzes in detail the main challenges facing the current legal collaboration and conflict resolution mechanism in the GBA. These challenges are mainly reflected in the imperfect legislative design, the inadequacy of legal protection, and the unclear legal remedies. Through in-depth discussion of these issues, this paper proposes specific ways to establish a legislative coordination mechanism, formulate a unified substantive law, develop diversified relief channels, and ensure the equal application of law by residents of the three places, with a view to optimizing the legal cooperation and conflict resolution mechanism of the GBA, so as to provide a solid legal guarantee for regional stability and prosperity. The research in this paper not only provides a new perspective for understanding the complexity of legal integration in the GBA, but also puts forward feasible suggestions for deepening regional legal cooperation in the future.

Application and Development of Smart City in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao Greater Bay Area

With the acceleration of the global urbanization process, all countries and regions pay more and more attention to the sustainable development of cities. As of October 2021, 132 countries and regions have upgraded the goal of "carbon peak and carbon neutral" to a national strategy, and have proposed a vision of a zero-carbon future. The construction of a smart city has become an important factor in sustainable urban development. The special geographical location of Guangdong Hong Kong and Macao Greater Bay Area (hereinafter referred to as GBA) determines its development flexibility, and this region is bound to become one of the important development strategic regions in China. This paper selects the three core cities of GBA, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, as the research objectives, and to integrate, compare, and analyze the achievements of these cities in terms of smart cities. The research results can provide a reference for the construction direction of smart cities in other cities.

Recovering sustainability in the Brazilian Amazon: an analysis of engineering courses from the perspective of innovation and sustainability

Purpose This study aims, from the perspective of the recovery of sustainability, to develop a framework on sustainability and innovation in the formation of engineers in the courses of Engineering in the Brazilian Amazon. Design/methodology/approach For this work, a quantitative approach was adopted in the research process. A survey instrument was developed from the main evidence in the literature, the electronic instrument in Google Forms, was sent in the period from November 2022 to February 2023 to engineering students from public institutions in the Brazilian eastern Amazon, who had 80% of the course completed and graduates. Findings Of the students and graduates who responded to the survey, 58% are male and 42% female, with an average age of 24 years, 72% who have the 8th semester, 28% graduates. As for the practices, they stand out with the highest average degree of agreement in the innovation aspect formation of partnerships and fostering creativity and innovation; in the sustainability aspect the study of sustainability helps to understand the environmental, social and economic challenges and importance of training for sustainability and innovation; in the sustainable recovery aspect, the interaction between university and local community and new research can contribute to the recovery of sustainability and in the SDGs 6 and 8. Originality/value This paper presents the perceptions of engineering students and graduates from the Brazilian Amazon, which is considered one of the most strategic regions for the country and internationally in terms of environmental challenges. The main evidence shows that there is a need to adapt academic curricula, seeking to focus on projects that promote participation and the creation of trends aimed at social problems and the current demands of the society in which they are inserted.

Central Asian studies in the People’s Republic of China: a structural topic model

ABSTRACT China has a rich Central Asia studies literature and in recent years, it has seen an expansion in the number of research institutions with a regional focus. We apply a Structural Topic Model, a quantitative method that estimates thematic prevalence through machine learning, to analyse publications on Central Asia in Chinese academic and specialist journals to show how the field has evolved over time. Aside from the methodological contribution we offer an original dataset of 10,563 publications scraped from China’s CNKI database. We test our strategy on two assumptions in Western literature on Chinese academics’ understanding of Central Asia: (1) China’s research institutes are primarily concerned with economics and (2) China’s thinking on strategic regions is lacking in local context, unique cultural concepts and insights. We argue that while China's scholarship on the region is often Sinocentric, some research shows diversity and nuance, with more analytical depth that has been traditionally understood.

TURKEY AS A NEW SECURITY ACTOR IN THE HORN OF AFRICA

Due to having unique geographical location, the Horn of Africa is one of the most important strategic regions in the world. Thanks to the geo-political and the geo-economic importance of the region, global and regional actors have continuously maintained their strategic relations with this region throughout history. Despite the existence of structural political, economic, and security crises in the region, significant political and economic transformation has emerged throughout the region after the 2000s. This study argues whether Turkey’s increasing security cooperation with the Horn of Africa has contributed to the political, economic and military transformation of the countries in the region. Since 2011, Turkey has implemented a multi-faceted and proactive foreign policy to strengthen its strategic relations with the Horn of Africa. This article found that that Turkey’s lack of a history of exploitation and active humanitarian aid policy of Turkey in Africa have paved the way for the emergence of the establishment of strong and long-term strategic partnerships with the countries in the Horn of Africa.

Diastereoselective Synthesis of the HIV Protease Inhibitor Darunavir and Related Derivatives via a Titanium Tetrachloride-Mediated Asymmetric Glycolate Aldol Addition Reaction.

Darunavir is a potent HIV protease inhibitor that has been established as an effective tool in the fight against the progression of HIV/AIDS in the global community. The successful application of this drug has spurred the development of derivatives wherein strategic regions (e.g., P1, P1', P2, and P2') of the darunavir framework have been structurally modified. An alternate route for the synthesis of darunavir and three related P1 and P1' derivatives has been developed. This synthetic pathway involves the use of a Crimmins titanium tetrachloride-mediated oxazolidine-2-thione-guided asymmetric glycolate aldol addition reaction. The resultant aldol adduct introduces the P1 fragment of darunavir via an aldehyde. Transamidation with a selected amine (isobutylamine or 2-ethyl-1-butylamine) to cleave the auxiliary yields an amide wherein the P1' component is introduced. From this stage, the amide is reduced to the corresponding β-amino alcohol and the substrate is then bis-nosylated to introduce the requisite p-nitrobenzenesulfonamide component and activate the secondary alcohol for nucleophilic substitution. Treatment with sodium azide yielded the desired azides, and the deprotection of the p-methoxyphenoxy group is achieved with the use of ceric ammonium nitrate. Finally, hydrogenation to reduce both the aniline and azide functionalities with concurrent acylation yields darunavir and its derivatives.

Coastal Hazards in the Sunda Strait: Mitigation Strategy and Coastal Management

Abstract Sunda strait is one of the strategic waters in Indonesia situated at the Indonesian archipelagic sea lane passage. The water is also known as one of the national strategic regions as governed in the Presidential Decree of 32/2019 about marine spatial planning. The coasts of the region have been developed as industrial areas, marine tourism and associated facilities, fisheries, agriculture, mining, etc. Despite the huge economic potency, Sunda Strait has high coastal hazards due to volcanic and tectonic activities. The Krakatau volcanic eruption in 1883 generated a tsunami run-up to ∼35 m high causing catastrophic damage along the coasts of Banten and Lampung and more than 36.000 people were reported killed. More recently, the eruption and flank collapse of the Anak Krakatau volcano generated a tsunami in the Sunda Strait causing severe damage, extensive inundation, and more than 430 deaths. Likewise, the Sunda Strait has a high potency of tsunami impacts generated by the earthquake sourced from the subduction zone known as megathrust. These conditions must become a valued lesson learned to all of us to raise awareness and preparedness through mitigation-based disaster management. Thus, we can reduce the impacts of the disaster and the high investment for post-disaster rehabilitation and reconstruction.

Strategic Regionalism of the Pacific Alliance: An Outlook throughout the Investment

The Pacific Alliance (PA) is considered a strategic regionalism in Latin America due to the pragmatic policy trade of the members. One of these pragmatic elements is investment. This article analyzes intra-regional investment flows in the PA in the period 2010–2021 as evidence of strategic regionalism. This article examines the characteristics of the strategic regionalism and the theoretical approaches to foreign direct investment (FDI) from the perspective of capital localization and the internationalization processes of companies. Based on official statistics from the countries, annual FDI and intra-regional investment flows are studied, along with a qualitative analysis of the Pacific Alliance Investment Facilitation Initiative. It concludes that the PA's intra-regional investment is explained by the internationalization and economic importance of multilatina companies, and that it should consider alliances with Chinese enterprises.

APPLICATION OF CAUSAL FORECASTING METHOD TO FORECAST SHALLOT PRODUCTION IN NORTH SUMATRA PROVINCE

Shallot are one of the superior horticultural commodities that has a great influence on the economic value and daily needs of society. The province of North Sumatra is a strategic region for producing shallot, making the province the eighth largest producer of shallot in Indonesia. The need and consumer demand for shallot along with the increasing population is a problem, as by 2021 the amount of shallot production in the household sector will only be met by 11% in the North Sumatra province. The authors are therefore interested in studying the factors that influence shallot production and predicting the amount of shallot production in the future North Sumatra province. The source of data the research was carried out by the Agricultural Department of the Province of North Sumatra. The study was conducted using Causal Forecasting and ARIMA methods. The causal forecasting method used is the econometric method. The econometric method is a method for analyzing and predicting future conditions by finding and measuring several important independent variables and their influence on the variables. Dependents are observed. The ARIMA method is used to predict exogenous variables from the results of the analysis performed. Based on the analysis, it is obtained that the factors affecting the amount of shallot production are the quantity of productivity and the extent of the onion harvest. The greater the amount of productivity and the size of the harvest, the more shallot production will increase. The result of the production forecast obtained is the lowest amount of shallot production occurred in April 2022 at 5212,763 tons and the highest amount produced on the onion occurs in March 2023 at 6502,112 tonnes and the average monthly amount of production is 5856,886 tons.

Quantifying land impacts of wind energy: a regional-scale assessment in Finland

AbstractLarge-scale deployment of wind energy raises ecological concerns about land use changes. Here, we conducted a quantitative assessment of land impacts of 42 wind farms (513 turbines) from Ostrobothnia, Finland. Located on the Baltic Sea coast, Ostrobothnia is a strategic region for national wind energy targets. Our main objectives were (1) to calculate landscape metrics (e.g., habitat composition, loss and fragmentation) within wind farm project areas, (2) compare the amount of building-related deforestation between project areas and simulation-based control areas and (3) compute the overlap between project areas and regional land use plans. According to CORINE Land Cover datasets, the predominant habitats within project areas were forests (371.7 km2; 81%) and transitional forests (52.7 km2; 11%). The remaining 8% were agricultural areas (17.6 km2; 4%), waters (12.5 km2; 3%) and artificial surfaces (2.9 km2; 1%). Wind farm infrastructure corresponded to 1.4-6.0% of project areas and caused similar degrees of habitat fragmentation. Deforestation levels in project areas were higher (~ 6 times on average) than in control areas, and the micro-siting of turbines did not avoid mature forests by favouring e.g., transitional forests (which are ecologically less valuable). We found some spatial incongruence between project areas and regional land use plans, with 78 turbines falling outside the established boundaries. Our results highlight the need for careful ecological considerations in wind energy spatial planning in Finland (and countries with similar landscapes and land uses) to limit forest loss and its detrimental impacts on forest-dependent species, but also on carbon storage and sequestration.

Marine Renewable-Driven Green Hydrogen Production toward a Sustainable Solution and a Low-Carbon Future in Morocco

Oceanic energy sources, notably offshore wind and wave power, present a significant opportunity to generate green hydrogen through water electrolysis. This approach allows for offshore hydrogen production, which can be efficiently transported through existing pipelines and stored in various forms, offering a versatile solution to tackle the intermittency of renewable energy sources and potentially revolutionize the entire electrical grid infrastructure. This research focusses on assessing the technical and economic feasibility of this method in six strategic coastal regions in Morocco: Laayoune, Agadir, Essaouira, Eljadida, Casablanca and Larache. Our proposed system integrates offshore wind turbines, oscillating water column wave energy converters, and PEM electrolyzers, to meet energy demands while aligning with global sustainability objectives. Significant electricity production estimates are observed across these regions, ranging from 14 MW to 20 MW. Additionally, encouraging annual estimates of hydrogen production, varying between 20 and 40 tonnes for specific locations, showcase the potential of this approach. The system’s performance demonstrates promising efficiency rates, ranging from 13% to 18%, while maintaining competitive production costs. These findings underscore the ability of oceanic energy-driven green hydrogen to diversify Morocco’s energy portfolio, bolster water resilience, and foster sustainable development. Ultimately, this research lays the groundwork for comprehensive energy policies and substantial infrastructure investments, positioning Morocco on a trajectory towards a decarbonized future powered by innovative and clean technologies.

Measuring Levels of Infrastructure Development and its Impact on Regional Growth - Insights from Indonesia

Infrastructure development is a linchpin for regional growth, especially in emerging economies like Indonesia. There have been many debates over the necessity of infrastructure investment over direct economic stimuli. This study delves into the critical role of infrastructure in shaping regional dynamics in Indonesia. We employ the Infrastructure Development Index (IDI), a composite metric amalgamating various infrastructure clusters into a singular value. A sample of strategic region in Indonesia are observed in this research, classified into urban and non-urban areas to highlight the different levels of impact the infrastructure development brings. Several regional development indicators such as: (a) economic growth; (b) poverty rate; (c) gini index; (d) human development index; and (e) unemployment rate is used to explore its relationship with infrastructure development. This research shows a nuanced pattern where mainly urban areas exhibiting higher IDI value and higher impact on its regional growth and development. While non-urban areas still experiencing lower impact due to the difficulties in infrastructure access and the disparity of access between the areas. It indicates the prevailing urban bias in infrastructure development, needing an improved urban-rural linkage on overall economic input-output processes. In sum, this study provides further insights into the pivotal role of infrastructure in regional development in Indonesia, offering a roadmap for informed decision-making in the pursuit of comprehensive and sustainable regional progress.

A critical cartography: mapping chapters, networks, and relationships through regional organization

ABSTRACT The Association for Critical Heritage Studies (ACHS) was created, in part, to address underrepresentation in the study and management of heritage. However, achieving genuinely inclusive representation within global heritage conversations remains elusive, exacerbated by entrenched power dynamics and the dominance of Western epistemologies. Here, we discuss ACHS’s efforts to foster a more democratic, inclusive discourse through its organizational structure and international collaborations. As we argue here, although significant strides towards diversifying heritage discourse are evidenced by the creation of chapters and networks aimed at amplifying underrepresented voices, challenges persist in ensuring equitable participation. We discuss the importance of strategic regionalization and language inclusivity in advancing a platform that reflects the diversity of global heritage perspectives.

The coordinated evolution of ecological environment, public service, and tourism economy along the Silk Road Economic Belt, using the Dual-Carbon Targets

Carbon peak and carbon neutrality (dual-carbon) are important targets for the international response to climate change. The Silk Road Economic Belt is a strategic resource region and is important for future ecological environment and tourism development. Based on the “dual-carbon” targets, the Single index quantification, Multiple index synthesis, and Poly-criteria integration evaluation model were used in this study to measure the coordinated development index of the ecological environment, public service, and tourism economy along the Silk Road Economic Belt and to analyze its spatial and temporal evolution. Further, it explores the dynamic evolution and development trend of the three systems using the Kernel Density and Grey Markov Prediction Model. The results show that the coordinated development index along this region needs to be improved during the study period. Furthermore, the coordinated development index of the Southwest region is relatively higher than that of the Northwest region. From the development trend of the three systems, all of them develop in a stable manner; however, the tourism economy system is easily affected by external disturbances. The coordinated development index of the three systems changes dynamically and tends to be in a good state of coordination. There is a certain spatial and temporal heterogeneity. The gravity center of the coordinated development index has been in the Southwest region. During the forecast period, the coordinated development index along this region will improve significantly, while insufficient and unbalanced development will continue.

Regional disparities, dynamic evolution, and spatial spillover effects of urban-rural carbon emission inequality in China

ObjectiveThis study recalculates the carbon emissions of urban and rural residents in China, analyzing the dynamic evolution trends of urban and rural carbon emissions. It explores the spatial spillover effects centered around the inequality in carbon emissions between urban and rural areas.MethodsThe study calculates the carbon emissions of urban and rural residents in each province based on the IPCC method. Non-parametric kernel density estimation is employed to depict the dynamic evolution characteristics of national, urban, and rural carbon emissions. The Theil Index is used to measure the disparities in urban and rural carbon emissions in major strategic regions, further applying the Theil Index to evaluate the inequality of urban and rural carbon emissions across provinces. This helps identify the driving factors affecting the inequality of urban and rural carbon emissions and their spatio-temporal effects.FindingCarbon emissions from urban and rural residents in China present a divergent development pattern. Urban emissions have increased, with inter-provincial disparities widening; rural emissions tend to stabilize, with slight growth in inter-provincial gaps. The overall inequality of carbon emissions in various regions of China experiences a three-phase journey of rise, decline, and stabilization. Urban inequality first increases then decreases, while rural inequality gradually lessens, showing clear regional and urban-rural differences. Market and government factors significantly impact the inequality of urban and rural carbon emissions. The development of the digital economy aids in reducing inequality and generates significant spatial spillover effects. The relationship between economic development level and carbon emission inequality is U-shaped. Industrial structure optimization can reduce urban-rural inequality, but its spatial spillover effect is not significant. Government intervention has limited effects, while environmental regulations may increase inequality. Opening up to the outside world helps reduce inequality, and the impact of population density is complex.

Exacerbating water shortage induced by continuous expansion of surface artificial water bodies in the Yellow River Basin

Aggravated water shortage limits high-quality and sustainable development in the Yellow River Basin (YRB), an important strategic region with a dense population in China. Surface water area (SWA) and terrestrial water storage (TWS) are two crucial indicators of the overall status of water resources in the region, so monitoring their dynamics and drivers is extremely important for sustainable water management under a changing climate and anthropogenic disturbances. Here, we examined the interannual variabilities and trends of SWA and TWS in the YRB during 1990–2021 utilizing all Landsat-5/7/8 surface reflectance observations, Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment mascon data, a robust water mapping algorithm based on spectral indices and thresholds, and the Google Earth Engine (GEE) cloud computing platform. We found that SWA continuously and substantially expanded (49.67 ± 9.73 km2/yr) in the YRB. The most rapid expansion of SWA occurred in Shandong Province (20.24 ± 1.00 km2/yr), next in the provinces of Henan (15.09 ± 1.16 km2/yr), Shanxi (13.21 ± 1.11 km2/yr), and Shaanxi (4.11 ± 1.07 km2/yr). Quantitative attribution analysis showed that anthropogenic factors, including constructing and extending artificial reservoirs/lakes (42.4 %) and aquaculture ponds (26.5 %), were the major contributors to increased SWA. However, TWS had a significant downward trend (-6.82 ± 0.99 mm/yr) across the entire YRB. Using water evaporation data, we found that evaporation consistently increased (0.07 ± 0.01 km3/yr or 0.16 ± 0.02 mm/yr), which was mainly caused by SWA expansion in Shandong, Henan, Shanxi, Shannxi, Inner Mongolia. We also identified the hotspots with the most rapid increases in evaporative loss, which were in the provinces of Shandong (0.026 ± 0.002 km3/yr) and Henan (0.018 ± 0.001 km3/yr). These losses resulted in a decline of TWS by 1.37 ± 0.11 mm/yr and 0.5 ± 0.05 mm/yr, respectively. Our findings warn that the expanding surface water bodies were not only an illusion of increased freshwater resources in the YRB but also exacerbated the water crisis by accelerating TWS loss through evaporation.

Life cycle assessment as a prospective tool for sustainable agriculture and food planning at a local level

Owing to the far-reaching environmental consequences of agriculture and food systems, such as their contribution to climate change, there is an urgent need to reduce their impact. International and national governments set sustainability targets and implement corresponding measures. Nevertheless, critics of the globalized system claim that a territorial administrative scale is better suited to address sustainability issues. Yet, at the sub-national level, local authorities rarely apply a systemic environmental assessment to enhance their action plans. This paper employs a territorial life cycle assessment methodology to improve local environmental agri-food planning. The objective is to identify significant direct and indirect environmental hotspots, their origins, and formulate effective mitigation strategies. The methodology is applied to the administrative department of Finistere, a strategic agricultural region in North-Western France. Multiple environmental criteria including climate change, fossil resource scarcity, toxicity, and land use are modeled. The findings reveal that the primary environmental hotspots of the studied local food system arise from indirect sources, such as livestock feed or diesel consumption. Livestock reduction and organic farming conversion emerge as the most environmentally efficient strategies, resulting in a 25% decrease in the climate change indicator. However, the overall modeled impact reduction is insufficient following national objectives and remains limited for the land use indicator. These results highlight the innovative application of life cycle assessment led at a local level, offering insights for the further advancement of systematic and prospective local agri-food assessment. Additionally, they provide guidance for local authorities to enhance the sustainability of planning strategies.

A pathway to coordinated regional development: Energy utilization efficiency and green development - Evidence from China's major national strategic zones

According to the new economic geography hypothesis, this study establishes an analytical framework to assess the efficiency of energy use and the progress of green development. The framework is based on panel data collected from 254 cities at the prefecture level in China. The spatial Durbin model is employed to examine the influence and spatial spillover effect of energy utilization efficiency on green development in major national strategic zones. The results show that: improving energy utilization efficiency promotes green development in major national strategic regions, with a stronger intra-regional transfer effect than inter-regional. This is confirmed by robustness and endogeneity analyses. The spillover intensity of energy utilization efficiency on green development varies across regions. It shows an inverted U-shape curve in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, a U-shape curve in the Yellow River Basin and Yangtze River Delta region, a diminishing margin in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, and a growing margin in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. There is significant spatial heterogeneity within these regions. Different mediating mechanisms affect green development in different regions. The knowledge spillover effect mediates energy utilization efficiency's impact on green development in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the industry linkage effect in the Yangtze River Economic Belt and Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the environmental improvement effect in the Yellow River Basin, and the market linkage effect in the Yangtze River Delta region. To promote regional coordinated development with energy utilization efficiency, the country should not only consider differences between national strategic areas but also focus on the effects of different paths to realize the complementarity between energy utilization efficiency and green development.