Mes e Ga cia, Ca olina; Sa in, I an; an den Be gh, Je oen C. J. M.
A icle
The nexus o COVID-19 and clima e change: A sys ema ic
li e a u e e iew
Jou nal o Economics and S a is ics
P o ided in Coope a ion wi h:
De G uy e B ill
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Mes e Ga cia, Ca olina; Sa in, I an; an den Be gh, Je oen C. J. M. (2024) : The
nexus o COVID-19 and clima e change: A sys ema ic li e a u e e iew, Jou nal o Economics and
S a is ics, ISSN 2366-049X, De G uy e Oldenbou g, Be lin, Vol. 244, Iss. 3, pp. 237-266,
h ps://doi.o g/10.1515/jbns -2023-0048
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Li e a u e Re iew
Ca olina Mes e Ga cia, I an Sa in* and Je oen an den Be gh
The Nexus o COVID-19 and Clima e Change:
A Sys ema ic Li e a u e Re iew
h ps://doi.o g/10.1515/jbns -2023-0048
Recei ed July 5, 2023; accep ed No embe 4, 2023
Abs ac : Since he onse o he COVID-19 pandemic, many s udies ha e appea ed
on how i will affec clima e change and policy, and ice e sa. In his s udy, we
sys ema ically e iew he li e a u e abou his ela ionship. We ob ained a sample o
204 a icles published in he pe iod om Feb ua y 2020 o Ma ch 2022. Using opic
modelling and quali a i e analysis, we iden i y se en main opics on he nexus o
COVID-19 and clima e change: (1) impac s o COVID-19 on clima e change and policy;
(2) sus ainable eco e y a e COVID-19; (3) public conce n abou clima e change and
COVID-19; (4) lessons om COVID-19 o clima e change ac ion; (5) effec s o COVID-19
and clima e change on he economy, ood secu i y and po e y; (6) collec i e
esponses o c ises and (7) simila i ies and diffe ences be ween COVID-19 and clima e
change. We discuss lessons de i ed om each o hese opics and iden i y key policies
and s a egies o a sus ainable eco e y om COVID-19. In es men s in low-ca bon
echnologies and ca bon axa ion a e he mos commonly sugges ed policy solu ions.
I clima e a ge s a e o be me , clima e ac ion needs o be he ocus o COVID-19
eco e y.
Keywo ds: co ona i us; pandemic; sus ainable eco e y; clima e policy; clima e
s a egies; c isis
JEL Classifica ion: I15; O13; O44; Q56
*Co esponding au ho : I an Sa in, Ins i u e o En i onmen al Science and Technology, Uni e si a
Au ònoma de Ba celona, Ba celona, Spain; ESCP Business School, Mad id Campus, Mad id, Spain; and
G adua e School o Economics and Managemen , U al Fede al Uni e si y, Yeka e inbu g, Russian
Fede a ion, E-mail: [email p o ec ed]
Ca olina Mes e Ga cia, Ins i u e o En i onmen al Science and Technology, Uni e si a Au ònoma de
Ba celona, Ba celona, Spain
Je oen an den Be gh, Ins i u e o En i onmen al Science and Technology, Uni e si a Au ònoma de
Ba celona, Ba celona, Spain; ICREA, Ba celona, Spain; and School o Business & Economics and Ins i u e
o En i onmen al S udies, V ije Uni e si ei Ams e dam, Ams e dam, The Ne he lands
Jou nal o Economics and S a is ics 2024; 244(3): 237–266
Open Access. © 2023 he au ho (s), published by De G uy e . This wo k is licensed unde he
C ea i e Commons A ibu ion 4.0 In e na ional License.
1 In oduc ion
In 2020, he en i e wo ld came o a hal due o he COVID-19 pandemic. As o July 2022,
mo e han 566 million cases and o e six million dea hs ha e been epo ed
(Wo ldome e 2020). In he S a e o he Union speech in Sep embe 2020, p esiden o
he Eu opean Commission U sula on de Leyen add essed he effec s o he
COVID-19 pandemic and s a ed ha he i us “laid ba e he s ains on ou heal h
sys ems and he limi s o a model ha alues weal h abo e well-being. I b ough in o
sha pe ocus he plane a y agili y ha we see e e y day h ough mel ing glacie s,
bu ning o es s and now h ough global pandemics”( on de Leyen 2020).
The i us o igina ed in Wuhan, China, and hen sp ead ac oss he wo ld o e he
cou se o wo yea s, p oducing diffe en a ian s and h ea ening indi iduals as
well as heal h sys ems (Ma ka d and Rosenbloom 2020). In esponse o he pandemic,
go e nmen s imposed s ic lockdown measu es ha educed human ac i i y,
simul aneously limi ing economic ac i i y oo. This, in u n, esul ed in a dec ease o
g eenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and ai pollu ion (Fo s e e al. 2020).
The mul iple changes ha e aised ques ions abou he ela ionship be ween
he wo global c ises o clima e change and COVID-19. Some ha e a gued ha he
des uc ion o na u al habi a s has mo ed humans close o animal loca ions, hus
inc easing he isks o pandemics caused by zoono ic diseases, such as COVID-19
(McNeeley 2021; Yan Yam 2020). In addi ion, some sugges ha he wo c ises equi e
coo dina ed esponses by policymake s, expe s and socie y as a whole (Ma ka d
and Rosenbloom 2020). Howe e , hey also ha e clea diffe ences: while COVID-19
showed an almos immedia e di ec impac on indi iduals and global heal h, clima e
change is slowe and mo e sub le in he way i affec s ecological and human sys ems
(ibid).
This pape a emp s o analyse he main ques ions posed by he ecen li e a u e
on he nexus o COVID-19 and clima e change. The high unce ain y and u gency
abou handling he pandemic encou aged many s udies in a a ie y o disciplines.
Some o hese examine he in e connec ion be ween clima e ac ion and policy on he
one hand, and COVID-19 expe iences and opinions on he o he . Fo ins ance, D ews
e al. (2022) in es iga e he way in which COVID-19 changed public pe cep ions o
clima e change, ac ion and policy. The au ho s find ha people who belie e ha
clima e change con ibu ed o he COVID-19 ou b eak ha e inc eased hei suppo
o clima e policies. Howe e , on a e age, clima e conce n dec eased du ing he
fi s wa e o he COVID-19 pandemic (ibid). In addi ion, people a e ound o be
a he pessimis ic ega ding u u e clima e ac ions by ci izens and he go e nmen .
Some end o be conce ned abou sca ce financial esou ces o clima e ac ion and
go e nmen mismanagemen o he COVID-19 pandemic (Sa in e al. 2022a).
238 C. Mes e Ga cia e al.
P io e iews o his ecen li e a u e a e no sys emic bu selec i e (Fuen es
e al. 2020) o mini- e iews (Amnuayloja oen and Pa asin 2021). Some o hese
e iews ocus on he simila i ies and diffe ences be ween COVID-19 and clima e
change (Amnuayloja oen and Pa asin 2021; Fuen es e al. 2020; Gup a, Rouse and
Sa angi 2021; Joshi e al. 2021). O he e iews examine he impac s o COVID-19 on
clima e change (Riede 2020; Tan e al. 2021). Due o he sho ime span be ween he
s a o he pandemic and hei publica ion, hese co e a limi ed li e a u e (be ween
a ew dozen and hund ed). Th ough he p esen sys ema ic e iew, we a e able o
syn hesise a la ge se o s udies and b oade ange o hemes on he nexus o
COVID-19 and clima e change. This co e s he pe iod Feb ua y 2020 un il Ma ch 2022.
We analyse he s udies bo h quali a i ely and quan i a i ely –employing s a is ics
and me hods om compu a ional linguis ics. The esea ch ques ions o his wo k
a e wha a e he main opics discussed on he ela ionship be ween COVID-19 and
clima e change? Wha a e he main policy implica ions o he s udies?
To sample ele an s udies, we ollowed an eligibili y p ocess acco ding o he
P e e ed Repo ing I ems o Sys ema ic Re iews and Me a-Analyses (PRISMA)
guidelines (Mohe e al. 2009). Sampled a icles we e ca ego ised in o opics, me hods
used, wo ld egion and specific applica ion (e.g. ocus on policy o he economy). We
gene a e desc ip i e s a is ics o publica ion ime, coun y ocus, me hods used and
jou nal publica ion a es. Nex , h ough a combina ion o quali a i e analysis and
compu a ional linguis ics, we de i e se en opics ha a e ecu ing in he li e a u e
conce ning clima e change and COVID-19. We use hese opics o assess insigh s o he
mos ci ed a icles and he jou nals wi h he highes publica ion a es. In addi ion, we
en e mo e deeply in o he opics and discuss he main conclusions o each opic
iden ified. Finally, we de i e main policy insigh s add essed in he li e a u e,
assessing mos ecommended policy ins umen s o clima e change mi iga ion and
a sus ainable economic eco e y om COVID-19. A final sec ion concludes.
2 Sea ch and Selec ion o S udies
The da a o his s udy we e ob ained om he pee - e iewed li e a u e, using
he Scopus da abase. On he 1s o Ap il 2022, we sea ched o a icles ha had he
wo ds ‘co id’o ‘co ona i us’and ‘clima e’in he i le. This gene a ed 452 a icles.
Addi ionally, a snowball sea ch s a egy was unde aken by checking jou nal special
issues and e e ences ci ed in e iew a icles, which esul ed in an addi ional 36
a icles, ha is, 488 a icles in o al.
These publica ions we e sc eened and assessed o eligibili y acco ding o
PRISMA. Figu e 1 summa ises he sampling p ocess. The fi s s ep – he sc eening
p ocess –was based on he s uc u e and basic in o ma ion o he s udies. He e,
The Nexus o COVID-19 239
a icles we e analysed exclusi ely based on i le, abs ac and keywo ds. A icles ha
had no abs ac (n= 99),
1
co ec ions (n= 6), duplica es (n= 5) and a icles o which a
ull pape was no accessible (n= 5) we e excluded. In o al, 115 a icles we e excluded
in his s ep. Nex , we assessed he emaining 373 a icles o eligibili y based on he
con en o he s udies –i.e. he issues in es iga ed. This in ol ed eading he abs ac
and, i insufficien ly clea , eading he a icle ex s as well. The exclusion c i e ia
we e as ollows:
1. Re iew (n= 12). As we ocus on p ima y s udies o any ype, whe he heo e ical,
empi ical, opiniona ed, e c. (C . Caps ick e al. 2015).
2
2. O he con ex (n= 131). These conce n publica ions in which he wo d ‘clima e’is
u ilised in ano he con ex , un ela ed o clima e change. Examples a e ai quali y
in he wo kplace, clima e condi ions affec ing c op g ow h and he po en ial
influence o clima e condi ions on he ou b eak o COVID-19.
3. Ve y supe ficial ea men o he ela ionship be ween clima e change and
COVID-19 (n= 18). This includes s udies ha ha e bo h keywo ds in he i le, bu
a leas one o he no ions is add essed only e y supe ficially so ha he
ela ionship be ween clima e and COVID-19 is no he ocus o he s udy
(e.g. “effec s o clima e and en i onmen al a iance on he pe o mance o a
no el pea land-based in eg a ed mul i- ophic aquacul u e (IMTA) sys em:
implica ions and oppo uni ies o ad ancing esea ch and dis up i e inno a-
ion pos COVID-19 e a”).
4. The link be ween clima e change and COVID-19 is no add essed a all (n= 8).
While bo h no ions a e s udied in he a icles, hey a e discussed independen ly.
This p ocedu e esul ed in he exclusion o 169 s udies, gi ing a final sample o 204
s udies.
3 Resul s
3.1 Gene al S udy Cha ac e is ics
Following he selec ion p ocess o he e iew, a combina ion o s a is ical and
quali a i e analyses was conduc ed o iden i y he main opics o esea ch on he
1O e 90 % o hese s udies a e edi o ials, no es, le e s, e a a, con e ence p oceedings and book
chap e s. As wi hou abs ac we canno la e do quan i a i e ( opic modelling) analysis o he
sample, we had o emo e hese pape s.
2This s ep is common o sys emic li e a u e e iews as i means ocusing on o iginal p ima y
s udies. This in ol es excluding commen s and commen a ies, which de o ed a majo pa o hei
ex on e iewing li e a u e. No e ha he in oduc ion sec ion men ions he e iews and summa-
ises hei main insigh s and findings.
240 C. Mes e Ga cia e al.
in e ace o COVID-19 and clima e change. To his end, he da a we e g ouped in o
diffe en ca ego ies (see he Supplemen a y In o ma ion o a able wi h a ull lis o
204 e iewed s udies and hei ca ego iza ion):
–Me hod,
–wo ld a ea ha he s udy applica ion ocuses on,
–main opic add essed,
–whe he he s udy ocused on policy o no and
–whe he i in ol es analysis o economic p ocesses o impac s.
O he 204 a icles selec ed, 62 we e published in 2020, 118 in 2021 and 24 in he fi s
h ee mon hs o 2022. I he a e o publica ions we e o be main ained o he en i e
yea , 96 a icles would be published by he end o 2022, lea ing he yea 2021 as
ha ing mos publica ions.
3
This migh be due o he u gency o new in o ma ion
and esea ch conce ning policy-making and economic eco e y immedia ely a -
e he pandemic. In ac , ou o he 14 a icles ha men ion he wo d ‘ eco e y’in
Figu e 1: Sys ema ic e iew p ocess ollowing PRISMA guidelines.
3Some jou nals publish mo e issues owa ds he end o he yea , which sugges s a highe es ima e.
The Nexus o COVID-19 241
he i le, he majo i y (n= 9) we e published in 2021, and o he 13 a icles ha ha e
he wo d ‘policy’in hei i le, also he majo i y (n= 9) we e published in 2021.
We iden ified ou main me hods: opinions and commen a ies (n= 111),
empi ical su eys ocusing on he analysis o p ima y (o iginal) empi ical da a
4
(n= 41), o he empi ical me hods, in ol ing s a is ical analysis o seconda y
empi ical da a (n= 32) o applied models (n= 20). Conce ning he me hod o da a
collec ion, he ele an dis inc ion o ou da ase is p ima y (empi ical su eys)
e sus seconda y da a. Figu e 2 shows he equency o he app oaches employed by
he s udies.
In e ms o applica ion, 109 s udies a e ocused on pa icula coun ies o e-
gions. A o al o 31 s udies a e ca ego ised as ‘global’, add essing issues such as global
educ ion in emissions due o COVID-19 (Ge elman, Chen and Ba deen 2021; Smi h,
Ta ui and Yamaga a 2021) o gene al lessons om he pandemic o policymake s
(Pe kins e al. 2021). The emaining 19 s udies ha analysed se e al specific coun ies
we e classified unde ‘o he ’, meaning ha hey ocused on mo e han one wo ld
a eas (including con inen s). Fo ins ance, Samani e al. (2021) in es iga ed he
impac ha changes in ene gy p oduc ion du ing he pandemic had on g eenhouse
gas (GHG) emissions in Colombia, F ance, he Ne he lands and Po ugal. Simila ly,
I an e al. (2022) ied o iden i y he indi ec en i onmen al impac s o COVID-19 o
he USA, China, Spain and I aly –conside ed o be he mos affec ed economies. The
las ca ego y is ‘no applicable’, co e ing 64 a icles. None o hese u ilised o iginal
empi ical da a and we e mos ly commen a ies/opinion a icles (see Figu e 3).
Figu e 3 summa ises he me hods used in combina ion wi h each wo ld a ea. I
shows ha empi ical su eys a e mo e common in Eu ope, No h Ame ica and
Oceania, and models in Asia as well as on a global scale.
Figu e 2: Me hods used in he sample o s udies on he nexus o COVID-19 and clima e change.
4The ew s udies unde aking an expe imen in he sample we e a ibu ed o he ca ego y
empi ical su ey as hey analyse p ima y (o iginal) empi ical da a.
242 C. Mes e Ga cia e al.
Rega ding ou le o he s udy, he e is no p edominan jou nal on he ela ion-
ship be ween clima e change and COVID-19. Jou nals wi h he highes publica ion
a es ha e published six pape s each. These a e En i onmen al and Resou ce
Economics (wi h 146 ci a ions accumula ed by Ap il 1, 2022), Clima e Policy (30),
Sus ainabili y (32), Global Sus ainabili y (10) and IOP Con e ence Se ies: Ea h and
En i onmen al Science (5). The emaining jou nals ha e published fi e o ewe
a icles. Table 1 shows he 10 mos ci ed a icles in he sample.
5
No e ha none o he
mos ci ed a icles we e published in he fi e jou nals wi h mos a icles on he nexus
o COVID-19 and clima e change. As i is easie o a icles ha ha e been published
ea lie o ge mo e ci a ions, he able also indica es he ci a ions pe mon h. Finally,
he jou nal Science o he To al En i onmen , which has fi e publica ions, appea s as
he mos ci ed jou nal on he ela ionship be ween COVID-19 and clima e change,
accumula ing 355 ci a ions in o al.
The mos ci ed a icles belong o he opic ‘Impac s o COVID-19 on clima e
change and policy’(see Sec ion 3.2), which ocuses on he dec ease in GHG emissions
due o lockdown measu es du ing he COVID-19 ou b eak. Fo example, Baldasano
(2020), who has he mos ci a ions, in es iga ed ai quali y in Mad id and Ba celona
du ing he pe iod Ma ch–Ap il 2020. His esul s show ha , due o he d as ic
educ ion in affic, NO
2
concen a ions dec eased by 62 % in Mad id and by 50 % in
Ba celona.
Figu e 3: Me hods employed in s udies by wo ld a ea. No e: MENA, Middle Eas and No h A ica.
5Al hough one migh a gue ha he ime pe iod is ai ly sho o being ci ed, as he able shows,
some s udies ecei ed many ci es –six o hem e en mo e han 100. In iew o his, we hink he
in o ma ion offe ed in he able is use ul. I all s udies would ha e been ci ed ew imes (say less han
10 imes), such a able would no ha e been use ul in dis inguishing s udies wi h much impac .
The Nexus o COVID-19 243
Table :Mos ci ed a icles on he nexus o COVID- and clima e change.
Ti le Topic Jou nal Ci a ions Ci a ions
p/m
Jou nal
impac
ac o
Au ho Yea A en ion
o policy
“COVID- lockdown effec s on ai
quali y by NO
in he ci ies o Ba celona
and Mad id (Spain)”
Impac s o COVID-
on clima e change
and policy
Science o he
To al
En i onmen
.. Baldasano No
“Cu en and u u e global clima e
impac s esul ing om COVID-”
Impac s o COVID-
on clima e change
and policy
Na u e Clima e
Change
.. Fo s e e al. No
“Will COVID- fiscal eco e y packages
accele a e o e a d p og ess on clima e
change?”
Impac s o COVID-
on clima e change
and policy
Ox o d Re iew o
Economic Policy
.. Hepbu n e al. Yes
“Sus ainabili y and de elopmen a e
COVID-”
Sus ainable eco e y
a e COVID-
Wo ld
De elopmen
.. Ba bie and
Bu gess
Yes
“Food was e managemen du ing he
COVID- ou b eak: a holis ic clima e,
economic and nu i ional app oach”
Impac s o COVID-
on clima e change
and policy
Science o he
To al
En i onmen
.. Aldaco e al. No
“When pandemics impac economies
and clima e change: Explo ing he
impac s o COVID- on oil and
elec ici y demand in China”
Impac s o COVID-
on clima e change
and policy
Ene gy Resea ch
and Social
Science
.. No ouzi e al. No
“Impac o he COVID- pandemic on
en i onmen al awa eness, sus ainable
consump ion and social esponsibili y:
E idence om gene a ions in B azil and
Po ugal”
Impac s o COVID-
on clima e change
and policy
Jou nal o
Cleane
P oduc ion
.. Se e o e al. No
244 C. Mes e Ga cia e al.
The main issues discussed in hese s udies a e clima e change a ge s pos -
COVID-19, add essing bo h nega i e and posi i e ou comes. Fo ins ance, Gosens and
Jo zo (2020) s a e ha , al hough China has d a ed he 14 h fi e-yea plan o each
ca bon neu ali y by 2060, he e a e no signs o clea en i onmen al ambi ion.
Indeed, Beijing’s eco e y p og am shows no suppo o enewable ene gy
indus ies –while much in es men flows o ossil uel indus ies. On he o he side,
mo e posi i e app oaches, such as sus ainable inno a i e amewo ks and unding
oppo uni ies, a e sugges ed o be de eloped h ough Ho izon Eu ope o boos
sus ainable u ban a eas and each clima e neu ali y in 100 ci ies ac oss Eu ope
by 2030 (Maes osi, And eucci and Ci ie o 2021). I is qui e easy o be scep ical abou
his hough.
The mos ci ed a icle in he opic o sus ainable eco e y is by Ba bie and
Bu gess (2020). They highligh he ulne abili ies o de eloping coun ies o
COVID-19, pa ly due o he sca ce in e na ional suppo owa ds he 17 Sus ainable
De elopmen Goals (SDGs). They sugges h ee policies o de eloping coun ies o
achie e sus ainable de elopmen in a cos -effec i e and apid manne : a ossil uel
subsidy swap o p omo e enewable ene gy in es men s and knowledge in u al
a eas; ealloca ing i iga ion subsidies o imp o e wa e supply, sani a ion and
in as uc u e; and a opical ca bon ax –i.e. a le y on ossil uels ha unds na u al
clima e solu ions. Coun ies like Colombia and Cos a Rica ha e al eady implemen ed
such a ca bon ax.
4.3 Public Conce n Abou Clima e Change and COVID-19
Almos all a icles abou his opic a e su eys o public opinion o analyses o public
da a.
8
An impo an subjec discussed in his ca ego y is whe he he COVID-19
pandemic has caused a dec ease in en i onmen al conce n and/o ac ion (Ecke e al.
2020; Lou ei o and Alló 2021; Lyy imäki e al. 2020; Rauchfleisch, Siegen, and Vogle
2023; Spisak e al. 2022; S odda e al. 2021; Ulichney e al. 2021; Zhang, Hao, and
Mo se 2020). Fo example, acco ding o he ‘fini e pool o wo y’hypo hesis, he
pandemic educed public conce n abou clima e change, since people can be con-
ce ned only abou a limi ed numbe o issues. The mos ci ed a icle, by Ecke e al.
(2020), po ays he discou se abou he ela ionship be ween clima e change and
COVID-19 as going in wo opposi e di ec ions: o b ing a en ion back o clima e
change and lea n om posi i e beha iou s in esponse o COVID-19 ( he au ho s call
i a ‘ ial un’) and o a gue ha go e nmen s need o ocus o he momen on
8O en hese s udies add ess he in e connec ion be ween conce ns, a i udes and clima e ac ion
(see, e.g., Ulichney e al. 2021), which equi es us o discuss hese issues oge he .
The Nexus o COVID-19 251
economic eco e y o COVID-19 and lea e clima e ac ion on he ‘back sea ’. They
unde ake wo expe imen s in No h Ame ica in which pa icipan s we e gi en one
o wo opiniona ed a icles wi h each poin o iew, finding no suppo o aming
COVID-19 esponses as a ial un o clima e ac ion bu nei he find s ong e idence
o ejec he ame ei he .
O he s udies show, using analysis o news media da a, ha he deba e on
clima e change has dec eased in a en ion due o he dominance o COVID-19 in
ecen news (Lou ei o and Alló 2021; Lyy imäki e al. 2020; Rauchfleisch, Siegen, and
Vogle 2023; Spisak e al. 2022). O he s udies sugges , howe e , ha he pe sis ence o
clima e h ea s, g adual mains eaming o clima e conce n and he deba e a ound
sus ainable eco e y a e COVID-19 mean ha clima e change is likely o emain
ele an o he public (Lyy imäki e al. 2020).
Ano he popula heme is whe he he e is a co ela ion be ween clima e change
suppo and pe sonal iews ega ding COVID-19 –including poli ical affilia ion
(Ch is ou, Theodo ou and Spy ou 2022; Ellio 2022; Geige e al. 2021; Thake
and Cook 2021; Wong-Pa odi and Be lin Rubin 2022). S udies show an associa ion
be ween he belie ha in ec ious diseases inc ease due o clima e change and
p o-en i onmen al a i udes as well as suppo o sus ainable eco e y policies
(Kallbekken and Sælen 2021; Takshe e al. 2022; Thake and Floyd 2021). Mo eo e ,
Thacke and Cook (2021) show ha lea ning abou he connec ions be ween clima e
change and heal h can help inc ease clima e-policy suppo among igh -wing
indi iduals. This leads o a suppo o a clima e- ocus in COVID-19 eco e y policy
and posi i e indi idual beha iou owa ds clima e change.
4.4 Lessons om COVID-19 o Clima e Change Ac ion
A icles in his ca ego y a e qui e di e se. They add ess lessons and oppo uni ies
ha a ise om he COVID-19 pandemic o deal wi h ano he c isis, namely clima e
change. Se e al s udies examine egional lessons, ocusing on adap a ion s a egies
o clima e change. Fo ins ance, Ji icka-Pü e , B andenbu g and P öbs l-Haide
(2020) highligh ha COVID-19 emphasised he need o econside ee and g een
spaces in me opoli an a eas o adap o clima e- ela ed h ea s such as hea wa es.
Fo Nege e al. (2021), who s udy he pandemic in Is ael, Pales ine and Jo dan, be e
heal h su eillance and mo e esilien heal h ca e sys ems a e impo an o p epa e
and be equipped o any h ea , including clima e change.
Indi idual beha iou s du ing he pandemic ha e gi en ise o s udies wi h a
psychological dimension. These add ess he esponses o indi iduals o ules and
es ic ions ha we e imposed o comba he pandemic as well as hei associa ion
252 C. Mes e Ga cia e al.
wi h opinions and beha iou s ega ding clima e change (Co ino 2021; Goebel e al.
2020; Hochachka 2020; Pe kins e al. 2021). Acco ding o Co ino (2021), i we ocus on
he benefi s and oppo uni ies o a mo e sus ainable wo ld a he han on he isks
o clima e change, a leas some o he indi idual beha iou al successes om
he pandemic could be applied o he clima e c isis. In addi ion, Hochachka (2020)
emphasises he use ulness o simple, conc e e and ela able messaging as well as
accessible clima e knowledge o communica e complex issues. Sec ion 5 p o ides
mo e de ails abou lessons om COVID-19 expe iences o clima e policy.
4.5 Effec s o COVID-19 and Clima e Change on he Economy,
Food Secu i y and Po e y
This opic b ings oge he s udies ha sha e a ocus on he effec ha COVID-19 and
clima e change ha e on diffe en aspec s o ou economy and socie y. Se e al a icles
s udy he impac s using a a ie y o indica o s, such as he exchange a e (Langa,
Massuangahne and Nhanala 2022), infla ion (Wahidah and An iyanda i 2021) o he
link be ween GDP g ow h and ene gy consump ion (Khu shid and Khan 2021). Dunz
e al. (2021) s udy he ela ionship be ween banks’lending decisions and economic
eco e y policy in Mexico. They find ha p ocyclical cons ain s in lending and
c edi ma ke s ampli y sho - e m shocks by limi ing fi ms’ eco e y in es men s,
educing he effec i eness o go e nmen spending.
O he s udies add ess he impac o COVID-19 and clima e change on po e y
and ood secu i y, especially in Asian coun ies (Rahayu 2021; Si a, Sul ana, and
Bod ud-Doza 2021). Clima e change, COVID-19 and po e y a e in e connec ed in a
way ha inc eases he ulne abili y o ce ain g oups o he popula ion. In line wi h
Ba bie and Bu gess (2020), Si a, Sul ana and Bod ud-Boza (2021) exp ess he need o
implemen p o-poo s a egies add essing clima e change esilience and sus ainable
economic eco e y om COVID-19. Some o he objec i es hey p omo e a e in a-
s uc u al imp o emen s o sa egua d ulne able households, heal h and social se-
cu i y, employmen oppo uni ies and clima e adap i e ag icul u al di e sifica ion
as a clima e-adap a ion s a egy. As he global economy is highly in e dependen
h ough supply chains, unce ain y and bo lenecks in p oduc ion, anspo a ion
and income a ising om he COVID-19 pandemic ha e dis up ed ag icul u al ac-
i i ies, u he agg a a ing challenges in ood secu i y (Rasul 2021). This mo i a es
he au ho s o plea o sus ainable s a egies o comba and eco e om bo h he
pandemic and he clima e c isis o build mo e esilien ood sys ems.
The Nexus o COVID-19 253
4.6 Collec i e Responses o C ises
All a icles unde his opic –bu wo, which a e empi ical s udies based on su eys –
can be ca ego ised as ‘opinions and commen a ies’. Many o hese s udies add ess
collec i e ac ion (o inac ion) unde COVID-19 in ela ion o simila ac ion unde
clima e change (Aske and S e ánsson 2021; Elande , G anbe g and Mon in 2021;
Raymond, Kelly and Hennes 2021). They highligh ha he collec i e esponses ha e
been inadequa e in e ms o in e na ional coope a ion in bo h cases (Aske and
S e ánsson 2021; Cole and Dodds 2021; Raymond, Kelly and Hennes 2021; S ua ,
Pe e sen and Gunde son 2022). An o iginal iew is exp essed by Schmid (2021), who
finds a he s iking simila i ies be ween he wo p oblems, ega ding unce ain y,
ee- ide incen i es and ‘disincen i es o poli icians o adequa ely add ess he
espec i e issue wi h ea ly, a sigh ed and possibly ha sh policy measu es’.He
a gues ha o such complex p oblems, i may be necessa y o es ablish no el
poli ical decision p ocedu es ha ac i ely in ol e expe s and o lowe he
in ol emen o poli ical pa ies d i en by pa icula in e es g oups o o e come
he ba ie s o u gen ly needed clima e policies.
The e a e clea ly diffe en opinions abou u u e ac ion owa ds clima e change.
While some au ho s de i e hope om go e nmen esponses o COVID-19 o clima e
change go e nance (Raymond, Kelly and Hennes 2021; Van Lange and Rand 2022),
o he s a e mo e scep ical (Aske and S e ánsson 2021; Cole and Dodds 2021). The
la e s udies discuss ha he hope o sol ing clima e change like he pandemic is
o e ly op imis ic, a guing ha he wo collec i e ac ion p oblems a e e y diffe en ,
so ha indi idual ac ions o sol e p oblems posed by he pandemic p o ide li le
help o he p oblem posed by clima e change. They also belie e ha , i any hing, he
ac ions aken in esponse o COVID-19 exp ess he inabili y o coope a e owa ds
clima e change mi iga ion. This is because, o he pandemic, he economic cos s
ha s a es accep ed o limi ha m o COVID-19 we e ‘subop imal’ o he ‘global
collec i e’, bu hey migh ha e been ‘op imal’ o each indi idual s a e. On he
con a y, he economic cos s ha s a es migh ha e o accep o limi ha m om
clima e change a e op imal o he global collec i e bu migh be subop imal o
indi idual s a es (in he sho un).
4.7 Simila i ies and Diffe ences Be ween COVID-19 and Clima e
Change
This opic includes s udies ha compa e COVID-19 and clima e change esul ing in
iden ifica ion o in e ac ions, simila i ies o diffe ences. E e y a icle belonging
o his opic is an opinion o commen a y a icle, and only one a icle has an a ea
254 C. Mes e Ga cia e al.
ocus (Sub-Saha an A ica). The wo c ises ha e been compa ed om se e al
pe spec i es: he way hey con ibu e o human ea (Jankó 2020), poli ics and
esponses o bo h c ises (Lidskog, Elande and S and ing 2020; an de Ven and Sun
2021), isk managemen (Pasini and Mazzocchi 2020; Ruiu, Ragnedda and Ruiu 2020),
o in b oade e ms (Ebi e al. 2021; G undmann 2021; Ja ely, Joshi and Ja ley 2021).
In gene al, and in line wi h wha is p e iously discussed ega ding collec i e
esponses o bo h c ises, i is ag eed ha he wo issues sha e cha ac e is ics, such
as he need o in e na ional coope a ion, affec ing ulne able and ma ginalised
communi ies wo se, and in e connec ing wi h ood, wa e , heal h, ene gy and
in as uc u e sys ems (Ebi e al. 2021). Main diffe ences include he ime span o
bo h c ises –COVID-19 is sho - e m while clima e change exp esses sho - e m shocks
as well as long- e m ends. Addi ionally, hese wo challenges a e pe cei ed and
communica ed diffe en ly, ea ing he COVID-19 pandemic as a c isis bu communi-
ca ing clima e change in e ms o u u e isks (Ruiu, Ragnedda and Ruiu 2020).
5 Policy Lessons
In his sec ion, we summa ize s udies ha ocus on he nexus o COVID-19 and
clima e policy. We will fi s iden i y he mos ci ed au ho s and he opics mos
ela ed o clima e policy. Then, we will summa ise lessons om COVID-19 o clima e
policy and sus ainable ac ions a e COVID-19.
The e a e 52 a icles ha ocus on policy ela ed o COVID-19 and clima e change.
O hese, 21 a icles we e published in 2020, 30 in 2021 and only one in ( he fi s
mon hs o ) 2022. Rega ding me hods, 34 a icles a e classified unde opinions and
commen a ies, 13 use empi ical me hods and 5 use models. O he jou nals ha ha e
published such a icles (41 in o al), only se en ha e published mo e han one a icle.
Clima e Policy is he jou nal wi h he highes numbe o publica ions, which is
pe haps no su p ising gi en he name and scope o he jou nal. Table 3 summa ises
he 10 mos ci ed a icles ha gi e a en ion o he nexus o COVID-19 and clima e
policy.
As expec ed, he mos ci ed a icles ela ed o clima e policy lie wi hin he opic o
sus ainable eco e y a e COVID-19. Indeed, 40 % o he a icles ha ocus on policy
belong o his opic (see Figu e 5). The h ee la ges opics in he li e a u e conce ning
clima e policy comp ise sus ainable eco e y ac ions, collec i e esponses o c ises
and policy lessons om he pandemic ha a e applicable o clima e change. The
s udies do no show a clea dis inc ion be ween mi iga ion and adap a ion policy
ocus. Ou o he 52 a icles ha ocus on policy, eigh s udies s ess he wo d ‘mi i-
ga ion’and six ha e he wo d ‘adap a ion’in he abs ac , o which fi e s udies ha e
bo h wo ds.
The Nexus o COVID-19 255
The COVID-19 pandemic has se ed as an oppo uni y o induce sho - e m
policies in o de o mee long- e m objec i es. Se e al s udies connec he pandemic
o he Sus ainable De elopmen Goals (SDGs) and Agenda 2030, d awing lessons om
COVID-19 o policymake s in o de o achie e he SDG 2030 Agenda (A menia e al.
2022; Ba bie and Bu gess 2020; Doni and Johannsdo i 2021; Elmousalami 2021;
Table :Mos ci ed a icles on he nexus o COVID- and clima e policy.
Topic Yea Jou nal Coun ies Ci a ions Ci a ions
p/m
Au ho
Impac s o
COVID- on
clima e change
and policy
Ox o d Re iew o
Economic Policy
O he .Hepbu n e al.
Sus ainable
eco e y a e
COVID-
Wo ld
De elopmen
n.a .Ba bie and
Bu gess
Impac s o
COVID- on
clima e change
and policy
Biological
Conse a ion
La in
Ame ica
.Vale e al.
Sus ainable
eco e y a e
COVID-
Tou ism
Geog aphies
Global .P ideaux e al.
Sus ainable
eco e y a e
COVID-
En i onmen al and
Resou ce
Economic
O he .Ba bie
Sus ainable
eco e y a e
COVID-
Sus ainabili y: Sci-
ence, P ac ice, and
Policy
n.a .Ma ka d and
Rosenbloom
COVID-
lessons o
clima e change
ac ion
Jou nal o Eu o-
pean In eg a ion
Eu ope .Dupon e al.
Sus ainable
eco e y a e
COVID-
Sus ainabili y:
Science, P ac ice,
and Policy
Global .Bodenheime
and
Leidenbe ge
Collec i e
esponses o
c ises
En i onmen al
Resea ch
Asia .Rahman e al.
Sus ainable
eco e y a e
COVID-
En i onmen al and
Resou ce
Economics
Eu ope .Engs öm e al.
256 C. Mes e Ga cia e al.
Munasinghe 2020). The s udies mos ly ocus on SDG 13, which e e s o clima e ac ion,
and measu es o achie e he 13 h goal. Simila o Elmousalami (2021), who sugges s
‘Sus ainable Clima e Change Policies (SCCPs) ha depend on he COVID-19 policies’,
Table 4 summa ises some ecu en policy ins umen s and a ge s d awn by he
COVID-19 pandemic o clima e change mi iga ion.
Lockdown measu es du ing he COVID-19 pandemic o ced people o s ay a
home, in u n educing emissions om ac i i ies such as a elling o wo k o o
leisu e. Ou imp ession is ha he ou comes o ( oo ew) s udies and a sho ime
pe iod co e ed by hem do no wa an defini e conclusions abou whe he COVID-19
dis up ed es ablished beha iou s and p omo ed pe manen changes in a ou o
sus ainable a el pa e ns. Some s udies a e posi i e: O’Ga a and Fouque (2022)
unde ook a su ey in he Uni ed Kingdom showing ha indi iduals a e willing o
educe hei a el consump ion in he long e m, which migh lead o 20–26 %
educ ions in ai a el and 24–30 % in ca use. Ano he s udy by Pa iño De A aza,
Lewis and Sa in (2023) collec ed da a o 27 EU coun ies plus he Uni ed Kingdom
s udying anspo usage ound mo e mixed e idence. In pa icula , he au ho s
ound diffe en eac ion in anspo beha iou ac oss coun ies: in Aus ia,
Ge many, Denma k, Sweden and he Uni ed Kingdom, a educ ion in demand
pe sis ed o a while a e es ic ions we e li ed; bu in G eece, Po ugal, I aly
Figu e 5: Sha e o main opics iden ified ela ing COVID-19 o clima e policy.
The Nexus o COVID-19 257
and Spain, anspo ebounded a e ; in he emaining coun ies, he e was li le
e idence o new sus ainable anspo beha iou pe sis ing o e ime.
The mos ci ed s udy is conduc ed by Hepbu n e al. (2020). They su eyed 231
officials om cen al banks and finance minis ies as well as o he economic ex-
pe s om G20 coun ies o assess he ela i e pe o mance o 25 majo fiscal
eco e y a che ypes. The esul s show fi e policies wi h high po en ial on bo h
economic and clima e impac me ics: clean physical in as uc u e, ene gy-
efficiency e ofi s o buildings and in es men s in educa ion and aining, na u al
capi al and low-ca bon echnologies. Acco ding o heau ho s, hesepolicieswill
no only de elop mo e efficien and cleane echnologies bu also add ess social
p oblems such as unemploymen caused by COVID-19 –no ably h ough educa ion
and aining. Addi ionally, ene gy-efficiency e ofi s will lowe social and heal h
inequali ies by sh inking eal elec ici y cos s and keeping houses wa m du ing he
win e pe iods.
Inc easing digi al wo k and educa ion leads o a educ ion in anspo a ion and
hus in CO
2
emissions (Bodenheime and Leidenbe ge 2020). Mo eo e , by in es ing
in mo e ene gy-efficien echnologies, imp o emen s in anspo sys ems and
in as uc u e may lead o mo e in ense use o public anspo a ion and p omo ion
o ac i e mobili y like cycling (Kakde i e al. 2021). Applying such policies now will
lead o g eene ci ies, cleane and mo e efficien use o ene gy and ul ima ely achie e
clima e a ge s.
Al hough he heo e ical and empi ical suppo o ca bon p icing as an effec i e
and sys emic ins umen is imp essi e, i emains a con o e sial policy in some
Table :Sus ainable clima e policies and a ge s guided by COVID-.
Policies Ta ge s
. In es men in enewable ene gy (n=). Sma g een ci ies
. Applica ion o a ca bon ax (n=). % enewable ene gy
. In es men in low-ca bon echnologies (n=). Reduc ion o GHG
emissions
. Mo e efficien anspo (n=). G een g ow h
. Communica ion s a egies o p omo e indi idual and collec i e ac ion
(n=)
. In es men in educa ion and aining (n=)
. Re ofi buildings’ene gy efficiency (n=)
. Use o digi al echnology o educe wo k/educa ion hou s ou side he
home (n=)
No e: n deno es he numbe o s udies p oposing he policies. No e ha some a ge s in Table a e no quan i a i e, bu
quali a i e. Indeed, ‘sma g een ci ies’and ‘g een g ow h’aim o a quali a i e ans o ma ion. As o educ ion o GHG
emissions, he numbe s a y a lo depending on he ambi ion and de elopmen o he coun y as well as he ime ho izon
wi hin which he educ ion is planned.
258 C. Mes e Ga cia e al.
ci cles. While i can in oduce new e enue s eams and con ibu e o a mo e sus-
ainable eco e y (Ba bie 2020; Ba bie and Bu gess 2020; Min z-Woo e al. 2021),
subsidies o low-ca bon ac ions ecei e a highe accep ance among gene al public
han ca bon axes (Engle e al. 2021), e en hough hey end o lead o ela i ely high
ebound (Mu ay e al. 2014). In gene al, al hough implemen ing a ca bon ax is
sugges ed by one s udy o po en ially wo sen he ecession (which is highly unce ain
in ou iew), he e is high suppo o i i combined wi h o he policies (Engs öm
e al. 2020).
6 Conclusions
The main objec i e o his s udy was o iden i y he ques ions ha ecen esea ch
has aised ega ding he ela ionship be ween COVID-19 and clima e change. The
unexpec ed COVID-19 pandemic laid ba e he in e connec ion be ween economic,
en i onmen al and heal hca e sys ems. Th ough an analysis o publica ions ha
include he keywo ds ‘COVID-19’and ‘clima e’o ‘co ona i us’in hei i le, 204
a icles we e collec ed and sys ema ically e iewed. Gene al s udy cha ac e is ics
demons a e ha he mos p ominen a icle ypes a e opinions and commen a ies,
ollowed by empi ical su eys. In e ms o geog aphy, Eu ope, Asia and No h
Ame ica we e he mos s udied a eas.
Based on compu a ional linguis ics and quali a i e analysis, se en main opics
we e iden ified in he li e a u e su ounding he nexus o COVID-19 and clima e
change: (1) impac s o COVID-19 on clima e change and policy; (2) sus ainable e-
co e y a e COVID-19; (3) public conce n abou clima e change and COVID-19; (4)
lessons om COVID-19 o clima e change ac ion; (5) effec s o COVID-19 and clima e
change on he economy, ood secu i y and po e y; (6) collec i e esponses o c ises
and (7) simila i ies and diffe ences be ween COVID-19 and clima e change. The mos
ci ed opic is opic (1), which mainly discusses he change in emissions due o
COVID-19.
Se e al o he e iewed s udies discuss he lessons om he COVID-19 pandemic
o clima e policy. These sugges ha one canno be op imis ic as sol ing he clima e
c isis is no like esponding o a pandemic. While he wo c ises sha e as simila i ies
he need o collec i e esponses, in e na ional coope a ion and in ol ing expe s in
poli ical decisions, he e a e also many diffe ences. COVID-19 is sho e m and
di ec , while clima e change is slowe , complex in i s mechanisms, and h ea ening
no only humans bu also ecological sys ems. Clima e policy in imes o COVID-19
sugges s a need o ocus on a sus ainable eco e y om he pandemic, implemen ing
The Nexus o COVID-19 259
measu es ha accoun o ene gy and anspo efficiency, in es men s in low-
ca bon echnologies and in educa ion o new clima e-induced indus ies, and
egula ion and p icing s a egies o en o ce indi idual clima e ac ion.
Rega ding u he esea ch, as COVID-19 is now unde con ol globally, i may be
he ime o s a collec ing empo al da a o assess i s long- e m social, economic and
en i onmen al impac s as well as i s influence on opinions abou public policy in
diffe en fields (heal h, clima e). Any esul s o hese can se e as a obus ness check
o o ecas s by s udies co e ed in he e iew he e.
Fo example, while se e al s udies e iewed he e ound e idence ha COVID-19
confinemen measu es educed ai pollu ion and global emissions ia educed
mobili y, i has no ye been s udied whe he such beha iou al changes a e pe sis-
en . P io s udies based on su ey ques ionnai es show mode a e op imism ha
people will wo k mo e emo ely (Sa in e al. 2022a), bu e idence o impac s on
clima e ac ion is sca ce. In addi ion, u he esea ch is wa an ed on he ques ion
how COVID-19 has affec ed inequali y, pa icula ly in low- and middle-income
coun ies.
Da a and Code A ailabili y
Da a o his s udy a e a ailable a : h ps://gi hub.com/I anVSa in/Co idClima e.
Highligh s
–We e iew 204 a icles on he ela ionship be ween COVID-19 and clima e
change.
–They a e classified in o se en main opics using compu a ion linguis ics.
–S udies gi e mos a en ion o he impac s o COVID-19 on emissions.
–Low-ca bon echnologies and ca bon axa ion a e he mos commonly sugges ed
policies.
Acknowledgemen s: This wo k was co- unded by he p ojec CAPABLE in he Eu-
opean Union’s Ho izon Eu ope esea ch and inno a ion p og amme (g an ag ee-
men 101056891).
Appendix
See Figu e A1.
260 C. Mes e Ga cia e al.
