Nuclear and Renewable Energy Transitions for Global Sustainability: Exploring the Interactions of Tourism Development and Economic Drivers

ABSTRACT

In light of exacerbating climate change issues, recent environmental policy reforms have attempted to balance economic growth and environmental conservation to foster a sustainable development transition. To further debate the scope of decarbonization policies, this study investigates the long‐run effects of tourism, nuclear energy, financial markets, economic growth, renewable energy transition, and urbanization on ecological footprint and load capacity factor in nuclear‐energy‐dependent countries. This research relies on extended econometric analysis to reveal that tourism, nuclear power, financial markets, renewable energy transition, and urbanization considerably lower economic growth but exacerbate ecological footprints. We also reveal that tourism, nuclear energy, financial markets, and renewable energy transition have a detrimental impact on the load capacity factor, whereas the opposite is true for economic growth and urbanization. The empirical findings allow us to determine that an integrated policy framework involving renewable energy, a sustainable economic and tourism agenda, and smart urban planning is essential for long‐term environmental sustainability.