The conference, themed “Bridging Continents, Fueling Progress: Energy Development in a Global Context,” brought together leading academics, policymakers, industry experts, and energy practitioners from around the world to discuss emerging challenges and opportunities in the global energy transition.
During the conference, Dr. Afolabi presented his paper, "Asymmetric Vehicle Transition and Decarbonization in the European Union: The Mediating Role of Environmental Policy Stringency." The study examines how the transition from internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs) to electric vehicles (EVs) influences carbon emissions across EU member states, while exploring the role of environmental policy stringency (EPS) in shaping this relationship. The results show that EV adoption reduces carbon emissions through both direct effects and stronger environmental policies, whereas ICEVs increase emissions through a direct channel only, with the magnitude of these effects varying significantly between high- and low-emitting EU member states.
The presentation stimulated insightful discussions on the design of transport decarbonization policies, the effectiveness of environmental regulation, and the importance of recognising heterogeneous transition pathways across European economies. The feedback received from conference participants provided valuable perspectives that will contribute to the further development of the research.