Does international cooperation affect CO₂ emissions? Evidence from OECD countries

This paper analyzes the role of international cooperation on CO₂ emissions growth in 36 OECD economies over the period 1970–2016. The indices of political globalization are the benchmark measure of international cooperation since a higher value of the index of political globalization is an indicator of collaboration in the world. The paper finds that political globalization decreases CO₂ emissions growth. The findings remain robust when we consider the sub-indices of political globalization and include various controls. Also, the findings of the panel quantile regressions with the fixed-effects via the method of moments indicate that the effects of per capita income and the initial level of CO₂ emissions are higher in more pollutant countries. However, the impact of political globalization on CO₂ emissions is stable at different quantiles. The paper also discusses the potential implications for the role of international cooperation on climate change.