The drivers of sustainable development goals in G-7 countries: Navigating the role of climate technology and renewable energy transition

The Sustainable Development Goals aim to enhance global conditions by addressing social, economic, and environmental dimensions. Understanding the impact of climate technologies and the energy transition on social, economic, and environmental goals is crucial. This study aims to examine the effects of financial innovation (FI), climate technology (CT), and renewable energy (RE) on the environmental, social, and economic objectives of G-7 economies from 2000 to 2022. The study applies first and second-generation econometric approaches to demonstrate the effectiveness of CT and RE on social, economic, and environmental aspects. The findings confirm that financial innovation (FI), climate technologies (CT), and renewable energy (RE) all have significant and positive impacts on social development, as assessed by the Human Development Index (HDI), and economic growth, as indicated by GDP. Furthermore, CT and RE play a crucial role in advancing environmental sustainability by significantly decreasing the ecological footprint (EP) in the G-7 economies. The results were similar and of comparable sizes at the country level, across analysis types (asymmetric analysis), and across different estimators, thereby confirming the robustness of the findings with roots in theoretical frameworks. Conversely, the research suggests a concerning increase in ecological damages associated with financial innovation over the study period. These findings highlight the critical roles of RE and CT in pursuing ecological, social, and economic goals.