Abstract:
Throughout recent years there has been a greater focus on green growth in supporting a stable sustainable development in the economy. This study aims to determine the degree to which environmental, economic and institutional quality macroeconomic factors contribute to changes in the green growth score of Western Balkans region countries. The research considers a period of 12 years from 2012-2023. The panel data were analyzed using a random effects model. Previous theoretical frameworks such as environmental Kuznets curve, Solow green model, three pillars of sustainable development and STIRPAT model alongside empirical studies on the topic are used as a basis in developing the hypotheses of the thesis. The random effects model results showed that the model is significant indicating its ability to explain the variations in green growth dependent variable. Environmental and economic factors taken were evidenced to have a significant impact on green growth. On the other hand, institutional quality was found to not have an impact. The results of the study align with the Three Pillars of sustainable development theory demonstrating the close relation between environmental and economic factors with sustainable development. The conclusions derived from this study can serve countries aiming to implement eco-friendly measures in their operations as well as regulatory forces develop more environmentally directed policies.
