The Brown-Bag event entered its third round on 7 May 2025! Marie Wegener presented her current state of research on the topic Influence of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) on Carbon Emissions - A Meta Analysis in the PARSEC arena.
Together with her research partner Cornelius Krüger, they plan to compare over 600 studies as part of their meta-analysis and thus shed light on the contradictory theoretical assumptions on the role of FDI: While the (1) Pollution Haven Hypothesis assumes that investments in countries with weaker environmental standards lead to higher emissions, the (2) Pollution Halo Hypothesis emphasises positive effects through technology and knowledge transfer.
The current state of research shows a mixed picture - depending on the region, methodology and regulatory environment, studies come to sometimes contradictory results. This is where the analysis by Wegener and Krüger comes in: By systematically collating the literature, they aim not only to identify patterns, but also to explain under which conditions FDI is more likely to increase or decrease pollutants.
In the next steps, they are planning, among other things, more in-depth modelling using meta-regressions that take into account contextual factors such as institutional quality, energy source mix or countries' level of development. In addition, tests for publication bias and sensitivity analyses will be carried out to ensure the robustness of the results.
Many thanks to Marie Wegener for her exciting presentation and insights into her research as well as to all participants of the BrownBag session for the inspiring exchange at PARSEC! We are already looking forward to the next sessions and to further interdisciplinary dialogues.
