Educational attainment and environmental Kuznets curve in China: an aggregate and disaggregate analysis

The primary focus of this study is to evaluate the impact of various levels of education on CO2 emissions in China. Moreover, the study also tested the EKC hypothesis for different levels of education and economic development. The analysis employed disaggregate and aggregate data for education that included enrollment at primary, secondary, and tertiary levels and the average year of schooling. For empirical analysis, we employed an error correction model and bounds testing approach to cointegration. The results of the study provided some useful information both in the short and long run. All the proxies of education positively impact CO2 emissions at the initial level both in the short and long run; however, when we take the square of these variables, the effects of education on CO2 emissions become negative. Similarly, the impact of economic growth on CO2 emissions is positive in the short and long run, and the square of economic growth on CO2 emissions is negative, supporting the EKC hypothesis. China should increase investment in human capital that promotes green growth and environmental quality.