AI as an Innovator for Green Growth and Climate Governance Reform

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Introduction

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming how societies pursue green growth and respond to climate change, creating unprecedented opportunities for innovation while raising important governance challenges. This Special Issue explores how AI is reshaping green growth and climate governance reform by examining its environmental, economic, and societal implications. Specifically, it investigates how AI can accelerate green innovation, improve resource and energy efficiency, strengthen environmental governance, and support evidence-based business and public policy decisions. It also encourages research on responsible AI governance, including ethical considerations, transparency, accountability, and regulatory frameworks that ensure AI contributes to sustainable and inclusive development. To advance these objectives, the Special Issue welcomes theoretical, empirical, methodological, and review contributions from management, economics, environmental science, information systems, public policy, and related disciplines, employing diverse qualitative and quantitative research approaches.

The originality of this Special Issue lies in its integrated perspective on AI, green growth, and climate governance reform, three areas that have often been examined separately. While previous studies have largely focused on individual AI applications or isolated environmental outcomes, this Special Issue bridges technological, managerial, environmental, and policy perspectives to develop a more comprehensive understanding of AI-driven sustainability. It addresses an important research gap by examining the technological, organizational, and institutional mechanisms through which AI promotes green transformation and supports climate governance reform. Beyond technological innovation, the Special Issue places particular emphasis on responsible AI governance, ethical principles, regulatory frameworks, and policy coordination, offering fresh insights into how AI can be deployed responsibly to achieve sustainable development. Its interdisciplinary scope provides valuable knowledge for scholars, practitioners, policymakers, and other stakeholders seeking to accelerate green growth and climate action.

The topicality of this Special Issue is driven by the rapid advancement of AI, particularly generative AI, and its growing influence on climate action and sustainable development. Recent studies highlight AI's potential to accelerate green innovation, strengthen environmental governance, and support evidence-based decision-making, while also drawing attention to its increasing energy consumption, environmental footprint, and governance challenges (Crawford, 2024; Fraisl et al., 2025). Meanwhile, global climate commitments and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) reinforce the need to harness AI responsibly to support sustainable transitions. These developments underscore both the academic significance and societal urgency of understanding how AI can foster green growth while enabling effective climate governance reform. This Special Issue therefore provides a timely platform for interdisciplinary dialogue and evidence-based research that advances both theory and practice in AI-enabled sustainability.

List of Topic Areas

The Special Issue welcomes theoretical, empirical, and review papers on topics including, but not limited to:

• Artificial intelligence for green innovation
• AI-enabled digital transformation for sustainability
• AI and sustainable business model innovation
• AI applications for ESG performance and disclosure
• AI for environmental management and governance
• AI for climate change mitigation and adaptation
• AI-enabled carbon accounting and emissions monitoring
• AI for climate risk assessment and decision support
• AI for energy efficiency and low-carbon operations
• AI for smart manufacturing and industrial sustainability
• AI for renewable energy integration and smart energy systems
• AI and the energy transition
• AI for sustainable supply chain management
• AI for green logistics and transportation
• AI and the circular economy
• AI for natural resource management
• AI for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management
• Responsible AI governance for sustainability
• AI ethics, transparency, and accountability
• AI policy and regulatory frameworks for sustainable development
• AI and climate governance
• AI for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• Human–AI collaboration for sustainability
• Risks, challenges, and environmental footprint of AI
• Future perspectives on AI-enabled green growth and climate governance.

Guest Editors 

Yunfei An, Henan University, China, ayf1990@163.com 

Nophea Sasaki, Sasin School of Management, Thailand, Nophea.sasaki@sasin.edu 

Xueqi Zhai, Henan University of Economics and Law, China, zhaixueqi88@163.com 

Submissions Information

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Author guidelines must be strictly followed.

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Author Guidelines

Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”. Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.

Key Deadlines

Opening date for manuscripts submissions: 1st September 2026

Closing date for manuscripts submission: 31st March 2027