Does emigration affect greenhouse gas emissions? A case study of the moderating role of digital connectivity form a social remittances perspective

The increase in global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has intensified academic discussions regarding human-induced climate change. Although literature examining the causes of emissions attributes economic growth, industrialization, and energy consumption as major influences, the study of population dynamics has been underexplored despite its fundamental influence on manufacturing and consumption patterns. Therefore, this study examines the relationship between emigration, digital connectivity, and GHG emissions from a social remittance perspective using annual time series data covering Pakistan from 1972 to 2023. The long-run results indicate that a 1% increase in emigration leads to an increase in GHG emissions by approximately 46.9%. However, the moderating effect of social globalization diminishes this positive effect because of the increase in transnational social digital connectivity. The study also supports the U-shaped income-emissions effect under the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis. This study highlights the important environmental implications of emigration, which is sensitive not only to the number of people going out but also to the transnational social linkages that come into the country.