Unveiling the three-dimensional ecological footprint dynamics in the era of technological revolution

This study integrates technological innovation and economic growth into the environmental degradation function for India. Unlike prior studies, it uses the three-dimensional ecological footprint as a measure of environmental quality for the period span from 1980 to 2022. Empirically, the study employs the Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model alongside various cointegration regression methods. The results indicate that technological innovation has a positive and significant impact in the long run; however, it exhibits a negative and significant effect in the short run. This finding suggests that, though technological innovation may contribute to environmental degradation over time by increasing the three-dimensional ecological footprint, it can enhance environmental quality in the short term by reducing it. Additionally, the study confirms the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis concerning the three-dimensional ecological footprint in the long run, while it does not find support for this relationship in the short run. Finally, the study recommends comprehensive technology and economy-related policies to foster the path to sustainable development.