Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.1080/1331677X.2023.2181841
Why and how tourism affects green development: evidence for China
Yan Zhang
Jiekuan Zhang
Abstract
Green development, considering economic and environmental performance,
has received increased attention globally. Moreover, the
significant economic and environmental impacts of tourism are
widely accepted by scholars. However, the nexus of tourism and
green development is still unclear. To fill this gap, this study examines
the effects of tourism on green development performance
measured as green total factor productivity and the influence
mechanisms. China’s 308 cities’ panel data between 2005 and 2019
provide empirical evidence. The results demonstrate an inverted Ushaped
relationship between tourism and green total factor productivity,
which is substantiated via various rigorous robustness
tests. The key drivers of green total factor productivity change in
cities include tourism-induced technological innovation, industrial
structure optimisation, and environmental enhancement. Besides,
the nexus of tourism and GTFP varies significantly across different
socio-economic development regions. The positive relationship
exists in relatively developed areas, while less-developed western
China still keeps inverted U-shaped links between tourism and
GTFP. The U-shaped relationship exists in central and northeastern
China. The article is the first to systematically explore the impact of
tourism on green development while revealing several potential
mechanisms, thus significantly contributing to the literature on
green development and sustainable tourism.
Keywords
tourism specialisation; tourism revenue; green development; green total factor productivity; influence mechanism; heterogeneity
Hrčak ID:
306545
URI
Publication date:
31.3.2023.
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