NEW PUBLICATION IN ICE JOURNAL

The GEAR members Ángela García-Alaminos, María Ángeles Tobarra, and María Ángeles Cadarso have recently published the paper “Drivers of the Carbon Footprint Impact Resulting from the Reconfiguration of Global Value Chains» in the most recent issue of the Spanish journal Cuadernos Económicos de ICE, entitled “International trade and global value chains in a new global context. The article is a result of the European Commission under Horizon Europe project TWIN SEEDS (Towards a World Integrated and Socio-economically Balanced European Economic Development Scenario), grant number 101056793 (https://doi. org/10.3030/101056793) and has also received funding from the University of Castilla-La Mancha and the EU Regional Development Fund trough the project SOS-ESOCAM (ref. 2022-GRIN-34177).

This study aims to assess whether the evolution of the global value chains (GVCs) in which the Spanish economy is embedded has contributed to emission reduction goals or not. To this end, we analyze the evolution of Spain’s carbon emissions from multiple perspectives between 1995 and 2018, and evaluate their determinants through a structural decomposition analysis using an extended multi-regional input-output model. We pay particular attention to the impact of GVC reconfiguration, which has shifted from greater fragmentation and offshoring of production to a slowdown in globalization and even reshoring of activities. Our results show that the geographical factor of these GVCs has contributed to increasing emissions throughout the entire period, while other factors (emission intensity, demand level and pattern) have helped reduce them since 2008.

You can find the full text here: https://doi.org/10.32796/cice.2025.109.7925

NEW PUBLICATION IN THE JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS POLICY

The GEAR members Luis A. López, Mateo Ortiz, Ángela García-Alaminos and María Ángeles Cadarso have recently published the paper entitled “Consequences of Legislation-based Reshoring for EU Carbon Emissions in Global Value Chains» as a part of the special issue titled “Industrial Policy and Global Value Chains in an Era of Disruptions” in the Journal of International Business Policy.The article is a result of the European Commission under Horizon Europe project TWIN SEEDS (Towards a World Integrated and Socio-economically Balanced European Economic Development Scenario), grant number 101056793 (https://doi. org/10.3030/101056793).

The recent global events, including the COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical shifts, have emphasized the fragility of global value chains (GVCs) and sparked interest in reshoring strategies. These strategies involve relocating production closer to home or to allied countries to enhance resilience. However, the environmental implications of such moves remain underexplored. Now, in the article “Consequences of Legislation-based Reshoring for EU Carbon Emissions in Global Value Chains», we investigate how reshoring driven by EU regulations impacts CO2 emissions across GVCs, focusing on strategic products like antibiotics and semiconductors.

The study employs an environmentally extended multiregional input-output model combined with a source-shifting technique to assess the effects of reshoring on the EU’s carbon footprint. It analyzes several scenarios involving trade reconfigurations for strategic products identified by the European Commission. This approach allows to evaluate the environmental impacts of shifting production locations and identify potential synergies between resilience and sustainability goals.

The results indicate that reshoring can lead to significant reductions in the EU’s carbon footprint, particularly for carbon-intensive sectors like iron and steel. While direct emissions within the EU may increase, the overall carbon footprint decreases due to lower emissions from new suppliers compared to former ones. This study concludes that strategic reshoring can align with climate goals, offering a pathway to enhance both resilience and sustainability. Future implications suggest that coordinated policies could further optimize these benefits, supporting the EU’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions while strengthening supply chain resilience.

You can find the full text here: https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-025-00216-8

NEW PUBLICATION IN STRUCTURAL CHANGE AND ECONOMIC DYNAMICS

The GEAR members María Ángeles Tobarra, Luis A. López, Ángela García-Alaminos and María Ángeles Cadarso have recently published the paper entitled “Identifying critical EU carbon emissions risk through global value chains” in Structural Change and Economic Dynamics. The article is a result of the European Commission under Horizon Europe project TWIN SEEDS (Towards a World Integrated and Socio-economically Balanced European Economic Development Scenario), grant number 101056793 (https://doi. org/10.3030/101056793).

This study examines the distribution of carbon emissions across global value chains (GVCs) and identifies the sectors within the EU that are most vulnerable to carbon-related risks. Using environmentally extended input-output analysis, the authors map both upstream and downstream carbon “hotspots” and introduce a novel Climate-Reshoring Index (CRI) to assess sectoral vulnerability to carbon dependency and trade disruptions.

Key findings reveal that the sectors emitting and consuming carbon-intensive goods are not the same. For example, Electricity & gas and Basic metals (especially from China and Russia) are major upstream emission sources, while Russian refined petroleum products dominate downstream imported emissions. Sectors like Chemicals and Metals show over 50% of their carbon footprint as imported. The most at-risk sectors, according to the CRI, include Computer, electronic and optical equipment, Pharmaceuticals, and Electrical equipment—all critical to the EU’s strategic autonomy. The study emphasizes the need for EU policies to account for sector-specific carbon exposure to enhance both climate goals and economic resilience

You can find the full text here:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0954349X25000876?via%3Dihub

NEW PUBLICATION IN iSCIENCE!

The GEAR members Guadalupe Arce, Ángela García-Alaminos, Mateo Ortiz and Jorge Zafrilla have recently published the paper entitled “Attributing climate-change-related disaster displacement responsibilities along global production chains” in iScience.

This paper analyses the link between unsustainable consumption by world powers and the increasing vulnerability of some developing countries. Its main aim is to propose a fair method for attributing responsibility regarding climate migration. To do so, this paper explores the historical responsibility of nations for climate change based on a consumption perspective rather than a production criterion, given the role that globalization and trade dynamics have played in both the climate crisis and the vulnerability of the Global South.

The assessment of historical emissions under the consumption criterion reveals that the responsibility for the negative consequences of climate change must be concentrated in a short list of countries. The top 15 countries whose demand has generated the greatest share of historical emissions account for 74.01% of the total, most of them developed and high-income countries that have led the globalization process. This responsibility attribution contrasts with the assessment of vulnerability to climate migration, which points to developing economies in the Global South (such as Bangladesh, Haiti, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Madagascar, Myanmar, Mozambique, Niger, Sudan, and Somalia, selected as the top 10 most vulnerable counties) as those whose populations are more likely to suffer the consequences of climate change.

According to our estimations, top responsible countries should contribute 0.2%–0.5% of their GDP to a global financial fund for climate migrants. This work supports the principle of climate justice regarding worldwide current challenges.

You can find the full-text here:

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2024.111124

GREAT EXPERIENCE AT THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON REGIONAL SCIENCE IN CUENCA

Last week members of the GEAR group travel to Cuenca to attend the International Conference on Regional Science organised by the Spanish Regional Science Association (AECR)

We organized a special session entitled ‘Environmental impacts of global value chains reconfiguration and emerging trends’  in which the progress made in TWIN SEEDS were presented:

  • Identifying critical UE carbon emissions risk through global value chains. María Ángeles Tobarra, Luis Antonio López, Ángela García-Alaminos y María Ángeles Cadarso
  • The consequences of global reshoring trends in the EU carbon emissions. Mateo Ortiz, Luis Antonio López, Ángela García-Álaminos y María Ángeles Cadarso
  • Environmental impact from MNEs technological transfers on right-sourcing strategies. Jorge Enrique Zafrilla, Mateo Felipe Ortiz, Nuria Gomez y Angela García-Alaminos
  • Mitigation potentials for EU environment right-sourcing strategies. Nuria Gómez, Fabio Monsalve, Guadalupe Arce y Jorge Enrique Zafrilla

GEAR members also participated in the spetial session ‘Input-Output in regional analysis. Theory and applications’ presenting the following papers:

  • Aged-based households’ carbon footprint in Spain: an inequality and carbon taxation approach. Marina Sánchez-Serrano, Jorge Enrique Zafrilla, Guadalupe Arce y Luis Antonio López.
  • Capital- and finance-based environmental accounting framework. Manuel Tomás, Luis Antonio López.

In addition, Cristian Soria, a student of the Master’s Degree in Sustainable Growth and Development of our faculty, joined us to present his final degree project which he carried out under the supervision Nuria Gomez in the ‘Young Researchers Session: I have an idea…’:

  • La influencia de la actitud medioambiental en las decisiones de consumo: el caso de los adolescentes de Castilla- La Mancha. Cristian Soria y Nuria Gómez.

NEW PUBLICATION IN REGIONAL SCIENCE POLICY & PRACTICE

The GEAR members Marina Sánchez-Serrano, Jorge Zafrilla, Mateo Ortiz and Guadalupe Arce have recently published in Regional Science Policy & Practice the paper entitled “Carbon taxation and related vulnerability of Spanish urban and rural households in a regional level”.

Consumer choices  are critical to reducing CO2 emissions from human activities. Climate policies aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of consumers often have a negative impact on low-income families and rural households with limited access to low-carbon consumption choices.

In this paper, we estimate households’ carbon footprint in Castilla-La Mancha (Spain) by urban-rural location and expenditure attributes and simulate the impacts of a carbon tax on the disposable income of different types of households.

A multiregional input-output model is proposed to assign global carbon footprints to products. This model will help us identify the main driving goods in each type of household’s carbon footprint and evaluate the household’s vulnerability after carbon taxation.

Our findings suggest that high-spending households would face the taxation strongest effects on car fuels and transport services, as they would have an impact of 2% of their total expenditure by the taxation on these products, while this effect in lower-income households would be 0,75%. A tax on basic housing services (electricity and heating) would have a regressive impact, undermining the consumption level of vulnerable households. They would be affected by 2,5%, while higher income households would spend between 1 and 1,5% of their total expenditure on paying the carbon tax on this product.

This heterogeneity across households leads us to recommend taxes and compensation mechanisms charged on adequate products to reduce households’ carbon footprints while avoiding the regressivity of climate policies and reducing urban-rural inequalities.

You can find the full text here:https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1757780224003342

GEAR IN THE 10th CONFERENCE ON INPUT-OUTPUT ANALYSIS

Some members of the GEAR group attended the 10th Hispanic-American Conference on Input-Output Analysis organised by the Faculty of Economics and Business (University of Oviedo), which took place in Gijon on 4, 5 and 6 September.

Guadalupe Arce and Fabio Monsalve taught the course ‘Herramientas para la visualización de datos. Una aplicación para modelos MRIO’ in the fifth edition of the Input-Output Analysis School (ESAIO).

The group organized a special session entitled ‘Environmental, Social and Economic impact of global value chains reconfiguration’  in which the following papers were presented:

  • Tracking the local drivers and global suppliers of urban scope-3 CO2 emissions: An application to the city of Madrid, 2013-2019. Jacobo Ferrer Hernández, Sergio Alvarez
  • Quantifying the impact of shifting trade patterns on employment por Oscar Lemmers
  • Environmental impact from MNEs technological transfers on right-sourcing strategies por Jorge Enrique Zafrilla Rodríguez, Mateo Felipe Ortiz Moreno, Nuria Gomez Sanz, Angela García Alaminos

In addition, the following papers were also presented by GEAR members in other sessions:

  • Environmental impact from spanish food waste. Nuria Gomez Sanz, Daniel Molina Duarte, María Ángeles Tobarra Gómez, Pilar Osorio Morallón
  • Climate-related direct, indirect and induced impacts of migration: evidence for Bangladesh. Marina Sánchez Serrano, Guadalupe Arce González, Angela García Alaminos, Jorge Enrique Zafrilla Rodríguez.

CONGRATS PILAR!

Pilar Osorio, GEAR member, has completed her PhD in Economics.

The thesis entitled “Sustainability of household consumption and challenges for decarbonization in Spain and Castilla-La Mancha through input-output analysis”, was supervised by María Ángeles Cadarso and María Ángeles Tobarra, and is composed of three peer-reviewed papers:

  • Córcoles, C., López, L. A., Osorio, P. y Zafrilla, J. (2024). The carbon footprint of the empty Castilla-La Mancha. Energy Policy, 184, 113892. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2023.113892
  • Osorio, P., Cadarso,M.A., Tobarra,M.A, García-Alaminos, Á (2023). Carbon footprint of tourism in Spain: Covid-19 impact and a look forward to recovery. Structural Change and Economic Dynamics. DOI: 10.1016/j.strueco.2023.03.003

The thesis tribunal was formed by Professors Mònica Serrano, from the University of Barcelona, Ángeles Cámara, from the Rey Juan Carlos University, and Mateo Ortiz, from the University of Castilla-La Mancha.

GEAR in Chile: 30th International Input-Output Conference

The GEAR research group attended the 30th International Input-Output Association Conference (IIOA), hosted by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and held in Santiago de Chile from the 1st to the 5th of July 2024.

The group organized a special session entitled «Environmental impact of global value chains reconfiguration», in which the following papers were presented:

  • The consequences of global reshoring trends in the EU carbon emissions. Mateo ORTIZ, Luis A. LOPEZ, Ángela GARCíA-ALAMINOS, Maria Angeles CADARSO.
  • Recent trends in international trade and their consequences on carbon footprints. Ángela GARCÍA-ALAMINOS, Maria Angeles CADARSO, Luis A. LOPEZ, Maria A. TOBARRA-GOMEZ .
  • Multinationals’ technological transfer on right-sourcing strategies: an environmental assessment for the European Union. Jorge E. ZAFRILLA, Ángela GARCíA-ALAMINOS, Nuria GOMEZ, Mateo ORTIZ
  • The environmental unintended consequences of a potential EU-MERCOSUR free trade agreement. An analysis for the agri-food industries in Spain. Yolanda PENA-BOQUETE, Fernando DE LA TORRE CUEVAS

Additionally, additional papers were presented by the GEAR members in different sessions:

  • Climate-related direct, indirect and induced impacts: evidence for Bangladesh. Guadalupe ARCE, Marina SÁNCHEZ, Jorge E. ZAFRILLA, Ángela GARCíA-ALAMINOS.
  • Capital- and finance-based environmental accounting framework. Luis A. LOPEZ, Manuel TOMÁS.
  • Aged-based household carbon footprint in Spain: an inequality and carbon taxation approach. Marina SáNCHEZ, Guadalupe ARCE, Luis A. LOPEZ, Jorge E. ZAFRILLA

PROGRAM OF THE CONFERENCE: here

NEW GEAR’s MULTIDISCIPLINARY PUBLICATION IN THE CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL

New GEAR’s multidisciplinary collaboration is available now in the Chemical Engineering Journal:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1385894724037185?via%3Dihub#f0060

The paper, entitled “Sustainable Farms from a Biogenic Co2 Source: The CO2-MPS Strategy”, has been developed by A. Gueddari, Á. García-Alaminos, C. Alonso, J. Canales-Vázquez and S. García-Yuste.

This paper proposes a novel strategy to increase pig farmhouses’ sustainability.

Swine farming faces unprecedented challenges in meeting the growing demand to feed an increasing population. To do so, these farms contribute significantly to producing approximately 35 % of the world’s NH3 emissions, a highly harmful air pollutant. In response to this critical environmental issue, the CO2 Management Pig Slurry Strategy (CO2-MPS) proposes an innovative solution to mitigate NH3 emissions by leveraging the biogenic CO2 produced within pig farmhouses. This groundbreaking Carbon Dioxide Utilization (CDU) approach based on utilizing this biogenic CO2 to form a protective blanket over pig manure lagoons promises the reduction of over 8 million metric tons of NH3 emissions annually. Such NH3 emissions are well-documented initiators of Particulate Matter, particularly PM2.5, highlighting the potential positive impact on air quality of this strategy. In addition, implementing the CO2-MPS strategy would lead to the generation of environmentally friendly fertilizers.