Asymmetric role of non-renewable energy consumption, ICT, and financial development on ecological footprints: evidence from QARDL approach

This study examines long-term connection and short-term dynamics concerning ecological footprint and six independentvariables, named fossil fuel consumption, energy consumption, financial depth, trade, GDP, and ICT for Pakistan’s duration from 1960 to 2019. The “QARDL-quantile autoregressive distributed lag” technique is used for time series and panelestimation. The QARDL model exhibits the connection between variables over the quantiles range, reflecting varying stagesof Pakistan’s ecological footprint. The results exhibit noticeable quantile-varying co-integration connections among ecological footprint and six independent variables. The results accentuate the significant influence of energy consumption, strongfinancial position, economic growth, and ICT technologies on ecological well-being, which assists in understanding shortand long-term impact on the environment in Pakistan.