This study aims to investigate the nature and intensity of changes in corporate sustainable development as a result of certain relationships between stakeholder-centered corporate governance (CG) and corporate social responsibility CSR practices in the leading firms with respect to their market capitalization (MC) in the Shanghai stock exchange (SSE) of China. This study selected the top 100 companies from the manufacturing sector at the Shanghai Stock Exchange by (MC) for a period of 10 years (2012–2021). For this quantitative study, financial and CSR performance data were collected from the China Securities Market and Accounting Database (CSMAR), a reliable database for examining research on Chinese listed companies. For the data analysis, we applied different statistical tools that include descriptive statistics; a correlation matrix, fixed effect regression analysis, and moderation analysis of the effect of government subsidies on the relationship between explanatory variables and the dependent variable (firm performance) were applied. The result of the adjusted R-square values suggests that there has been a considerable change in the value of explained variable Firm Performance (FP), represented by ROA, TbQ, and Grow caused by the explanatory variables of the study, including Government-centered responsibility (GCR), community-centered responsibility (COMCR), firm age (FA), firm size (FS), and leverage (LV). Supplier-centered responsibility (SCR), customer-centered responsibility (CCR), creditor-centered responsibility (CRCR), and total risk (TR) were, respectively, at a 1% and 5% level of significance. The values extracted from the moderation effect show that Sub is a key factor in motivating the well-established large firms to focus on stakeholders-centered CSR practices, which ultimately improves the FP in the short and long run.

China is currently experiencing a phase of high-quality development, and fostering the resilience of the urban economy is key to promoting this development. The growth of the digital economy is seen as critical to achieving this goal. Therefore, it is necessary to study the mechanism by which the digital economy affects urban economic resilience and the impact of carbon emissions. To this end, this paper empirically analyzes the mechanisms and impacts of the digital economy on urban economic resilience using panel data from 258 prefecture-level cities in China between 2004 and 2017. The study employs a two-way fixed effect model and a moderated mediation model. The results show that: (1) The development of the digital economy can significantly improve the resilience of the urban economy in different periods and different city sizes; (2) The development of the digital economy promotes the economic resilience of developed cities and eastern cities more significantly; (3) In the context of carbon emissions, the digital economy positively contributes to urban economic resilience through population quality and industrial structure but negatively contributes to urban economic resilience through above-scale enterprises; (4) Carbon emissions have a positive moderation effect on the historical path of the industrial structure, above-scale enterprises, and the front path of population quality in the mechanism of the role of the digital economy on the economic resilience of cities, and a negative moderation effect on the front path of above-scale enterprises. Based on these findings this paper proposes several suggestions, such as revolutionizing the digital development of cities, optimizing regional industrial collaboration, accelerating the training of digital talents, and preventing the disorderly expansion of capital.

The environmentally responsible behavior of urban forest visitors is a key determinant for the conservation of urban forests. Identifying the determinants of individuals’ behavioral intentions and actual behavior in engaging in environmentally responsible actions is a crucial step in promoting such behavior. This research investigates the determinants of environmentally responsible behavior of urban forest visitors in Tehran using Social Cognitive Theory. Data for the study were collected using 456 questionnaires distributed to visitors of urban forests. The data were analyzed using structural equation modelling, which described a 62.9% variance in behavioral intention and 56.6% in environmental behavior of visitors. The socio-structural factors and the observation of others’ behaviors were the most significant predictors of behavioral intentions. Outcome expectations and self-efficacy significantly influence both behavioral intentions and actual behavior. This study demonstrates that while behavioral intention is a key factor, other determinants such as outcome expectations and self-efficacy play a crucial role in shaping actual environmentally responsible actions. These results underscore the importance of increasing awareness and enhancing the skills of urban forest visitors regarding environmental behaviors. Furthermore, this study highlights the need to remove barriers and provide the necessary facilities to promote sustained environmentally responsible behavior among visitors.

The Global Value Chain (GVC) is an essential aspect of sustainable economic growth and environmental quality in countries that participate in it. Therefore, comprehending the relationship between GVC and economic growth and carbon emissions is critical to achieving global climate neutrality targets. However, there is a paucity of knowledge regarding the impacts of disaggregated levels of GVC on economic growth and carbon emissions in countries with different income levels. In this study, we utilized the SYS-GMM model to explore the relationships between backward and forward GVCs and the economic growth and carbon emissions of 42 lower-middle, 36 middle-upper, and 48 high-income countries using data from 1995 to 2018. Our key findings suggest that forward GVC significantly increases economic growth and reduces CO₂ emissions. Conversely, backward GVC reduces the economic growth and CO₂ emissions of high-income countries. We also found that upper-middle-income economies can enhance their economic growth and reduce CO₂ emissions by increasing their backward GVC. In contrast, lower-middle-income economies can increase their economic growth by participating in both forward and backward GVCs. However, higher levels of participation in both GVC components result in increased CO₂ emissions. Our findings emphasize the importance of considering income levels when analysing the impact of GVC participation on economic growth and environmental sustainability. Overall, the relationship between economic growth and CO₂ emissions with backward and forward GVCs varies significantly across country categories.

Introduction: Universities serve as vital platforms for shaping sustainability-oriented mindsets, particularly in rapidly transforming societies such as China. This study investigates the determinants of students’ pro-environmental behavior (PEB) within campus environments by employing an extended theory of planned behavior (ETPB) that integrates Connectedness to Nature (CN), Biospheric Values (BV), and Environmental Knowledge (EK) into the traditional framework. Methods: Using survey data from 431 students at a Chinese university, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was applied to examine the relationships among psychological, moral, and social predictors of PEB. Results: The extended model explained 63.8% of the variance in attitude and 78.6% of the variance in PEB, demonstrating strong explanatory power. Among traditional constructs, subjective norms exerted the strongest effect on PEB, followed by attitude and perceived behavioral control. CN, BV, and EK significantly influenced attitude but affected PEB indirectly, highlighting the mediating role of attitude in translating affective, cognitive, and moral antecedents into behavior. Discussion: The results underscore the social–moral nature of environmental engagement in collectivist contexts and emphasize the importance of integrating emotional, cognitive, and ethical education into sustainability initiatives. This study contributes theoretically to refining TPB for non-Western contexts and provides practical insights for advancing campus sustainability programs.

The China-Europe Railway Express (CRexpress) has established a new land transportation route between Asia and Europe as part of China’s westward expansion. The resulting trade promotion effect has the potential to improve industrial development and factor flows, ultimately leading to a reduction in the income disparity between urban and rural areas in cities that use the CRexpress. The impact of the CRexpress on income disparities between urban and rural areas in cities that use the service is of particular interest, as the empirical evidence on the relationship between international trade and these disparities is inconsistent. Using a difference-in-differences model and macro panel data, this study found that the CRexpress significantly narrowed the urban-rural income gap in cities where it was operational, and that this effect had a spillover effect on nearby cities. However, the magnitude of this effect decreased with distance. The mechanism analysis indicated that the CRexpress narrowed the income gap by promoting secondary industry development, but this effect varied significantly by region, with pronounced effects in eastern coastal cities and less pronounced effects in inland cities in the central and western region. The study suggests that local governments in these regions should focus on improving the institutional environment and providing industrial support to promote industrial transfer in order to narrow the urban-rural income gap and promote overall economic development.