CLIMATE CHANGE PERFORMANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS / İKLİM DEĞİŞKLİĞİ PERFORMANSI VE EKONOMİK KALKINMA: KARŞILAŞTIRMALI BİR ANALİZ
Abstract
This study comprehensively examines the complex and contradictory relationship between economic development and environmental sustainability through the Human Development Index (HDI) and the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI). The analysis reveals that countries with high levels of human development generally pursue a development model that is not environmentally sustainable, due to high carbon emissions and intensive natural resource consumption. In contrast, some economically less developed countries show more positive results in terms of environmental indicators; however, they also face fundamental structural challenges in terms of social and economic welfare. This situation emphasizes that the relationship between economic and social development and environmental sustainability is not linear and one-directional; on the contrary, it varies depending on structural and regional factors. In this differentiation, the nature of economic growth plays a critical role: while growth supported by renewable energy sources and sustainable production models positively affects environmental performance, growth models based on unsustainable resources such as fossil fuels seriously threaten environmental sustainability. In this context, attention is drawn to the inconsistency between current global climate targets and the policies being implemented, and the ongoing significant shortcomings in countries emission reduction and renewable energy transition policies are highlighted. It is especially emphasized that developed countries, with their high carbon footprints and excessive resource consumption, are pushing the planet's ecological boundaries. Therefore, it is stated that for sustainable development to be achieved, countries must not remain limited to policy discourse but must transform these into effective and concrete practices.
JEL: Q01, Q48, Q58, O15, O44
Bu çalışma, ekonomik kalkınma ile çevresel sürdürülebilirlik arasındaki karmaşık ve çelişkili ilişkiyi, İnsani Gelişme Endeksi (İGE) ve İklim Değişikliği Performans Endeksi (İDPE) üzerinden kapsamlı bir şekilde incelemektedir. Analiz sonuçları, yüksek insani gelişmişlik düzeyine sahip ülkelerin genellikle yüksek karbon salımı ve yoğun doğal kaynak tüketimi nedeniyle çevresel açıdan sürdürülebilir olmayan bir kalkınma modeli izlediklerini ortaya koymaktadır. Buna karşın, ekonomik açıdan daha az gelişmiş bazı ülkeler çevresel göstergeler bakımından daha olumlu sonuçlar sergilemekle birlikte, sosyal ve ekonomik refah açısından yapısal sorunlarla karşı karşıyadır. Bu durum, ekonomik ve sosyal kalkınma ile çevresel sürdürülebilirlik arasındaki ilişkinin doğrusal ve tek yönlü olmadığını, aksine yapısal ve bölgesel faktörlere bağlı olarak değiştiğini göstermektedir. Bu farklılaşmada ekonomik büyümenin niteliği belirleyici bir rol oynamaktadır: yenilenebilir enerji kaynakları ve sürdürülebilir üretim modelleriyle desteklenen büyüme çevresel performansı olumlu yönde etkilerken, fosil yakıtlar gibi sürdürülemez kaynaklara dayalı büyüme modelleri çevresel sürdürülebilirliği ciddi şekilde tehdit etmektedir. Bu bağlamda, mevcut küresel iklim hedefleri ile uygulanan politikalar arasındaki tutarsızlığa dikkat çekilmekte ve ülkelerin emisyon azaltımı ve yenilenebilir enerjiye geçiş politikalarındaki önemli eksiklikleri vurgulanmaktadır. Özellikle gelişmiş ülkelerin yüksek karbon ayak izi ve aşırı kaynak tüketimiyle gezegenin ekolojik sınırlarını zorladığı ifade edilmektedir. Dolayısıyla, sürdürülebilir kalkınmanın sağlanabilmesi için ülkelerin politika söylemleriyle sınırlı kalmayıp bu söylemleri etkili ve somut uygulamalara dönüştürmeleri gerektiği belirtilmektedir.
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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejefr.v9i1.1941
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