With the continuous advancement of global scientific and technological capabilities, the issue of global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions has received widespread attention from countries worldwide. Promoting carbon reduction and curbing the trend of global warming have become urgent and significant challenges for China and the world. Therefore, it is of great practical significance to explore the impact and mechanism of the digital economy on carbon reduction. This paper empirically analyzes the impact and means of the digital economy on carbon emissions using panel regression models and mediation effect models. The research indicates that the digital economy significantly impacts carbon emissions, and the following main conclusions are drawn: (1) The influence of the digital economy on carbon intensity exhibits an inverted U-shaped curve, starting with promotion and then inhibition. (2) The digital economy can affect carbon emissions through industrial structural upgrading and technological innovation. (3) Regions with a relatively high level of digital economy development also tend to have higher energy utilization efficiency, leading to a more pronounced impact of the digital economy on carbon emissions levels.

Financial technology transforms humans and businesses as globalization and the digital economy accelerate. This affects bank performance. Thus, studying whether financial technology affects bank performance is crucial to enhancing living standards and business development. This article examines the development and interaction between financial technology and bank performance from 2012 to 2021 using standard deviation ellipses, kernel density estimation, Moran's index, and spatial econometric models. The research found that (1) financial technology development improves regional bank performance. In contrast, control variables like economic development, urbanization, tax burden, capital adequacy ratio, net interest margin, and loan-to-deposit ratio also affect bank performance. (2) From 2012 to 2021, Chinese bank performance initially grew, then declined, while financial technology declined slowly and improved rapidly. Financial technology and bank performance development were highest in the eastern coastal regions and lowest in the northwest and northeast. (3) China's financial technology and bank performance had high-high or low-low spatial agglomeration. (4) Financial technology and control variables have a spatial spillover effect on bank performance, so their development in one region can affect neighboring regions. This article provides recommendations for governments and banks based on these findings.

Economic complexity and environmental policies have significant impacts on environmental sustainability. Furthermore, high-quality institutions may be a necessary tool for ensuring environmental sustainability. This study investigates the impact of economic complexity and institutional quality on environmental degradation. It analyzes annual data from 116 countries from 2008-2021 using fixedeffects models and the method of moment quantile regression. The results indicate that increased economic complexity leads to higher carbon emissions. Conversely, high-quality institutions reduce carbon emissions. Moreover, institutional quality can effectively mitigate the environmental pressures arising from increasing economic complexity. Additionally, foreign direct investment is found to lower carbon emissions. It was recommended that the quality of institutions should be upgraded, that differentiated environmental policies be developed, that the sustainability of urban planning be emphasized, and that foreign direct investment and technology transfer be promoted to foster sustainable development.

China’s “dual carbon” agenda shows its proactive approach to global carbon reduction. This study uses a spatial panel model to examine financial development and carbon emissions in China. It also examines how financial development thresholds affect carbon emissions, using research and development intensity and technical market development level as key variables. The results show that: (1) Finance in China is concentrated in the Circum-Bohai Sea and eastern coastal regions, with lower levels in the central and western regions. China’s high-carbon zones are mostly in the northwest and northeast. However, low-emission areas are mainly in the south. (2) Financial development increases local carbon emissions and decreases neighboring carbon emissions. However, it still hinders carbon emissions in the region. (3) Financial development promotes more carbon emissions in the northwest than in other regions, possibly due to additional variables. (4) Financial development initially increases regional carbon emissions when R&D intensity is the threshold variable, but this effect fades. When technological market development is the threshold variable, financial development’s impact on carbon emissions has gone from insignificant to major to insignificant promotion.