Relationship Between Green Finance and Sustainable Development

By channeling investments toward projects with significant environmental benefits, such as renewable energies and the circular economy, green finance functions as an essential mechanism to promote sustainable development while reducing socioenvironmental risk. This research systematically analyzes the relationship between green finance and sustainable development through a review of global strategies and practices implemented between 2020 and 2024. The PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) methodology was applied to select and analyze fifty-eight scientific articles from databases such as Scopus and Web of Science, and the PICO (population, intervention, comparison, and outcomes) strategy was used to structure the search and evaluation. The results show that the implementation of green finance involves four main types of barriers: regulatory (lack of clear regulatory frameworks), financial (perception of high risk), technical (absence of standardized metrics), and sociopolitical (resistance from traditional sectors). However, when implemented effectively, green finance generates multidimensional positive impacts, such as reduction in carbon emissions, promotion of renewable energy, and strengthening of corporate social responsibility. The research identifies differentiated regional patterns—from European regulatory leadership to tailored approaches in emerging economies—that require contextualized strategies. The convergence between green finance and the circular economy has emerged as a particularly promising area for maximizing synergies between financial flows and sustainable production models. Strengthening incentives, harmonizing regulatory frameworks, and promoting multi-sectoral cooperation are recommended to overcome the identified barriers and enhance the transformative role of green finance in global sustainable development.