Measurement on the Construction Level of China’s Green, Low-Carbon, and Circular-Development Economic System

Abstract

This study aims to measure how well China’s green, low-carbon, and circulardevelopment economic system (the GLCCD Economic System) is being developed. By establishing the indicator system and indicators, the spatiotemporal range entropy weight method, Gini coefficient, Theil index, σ convergence model, and national and provincial data from 2012 to 2017 are employed. The construction level of almost all GLCCD Economic Systems at national and provincial levels has shown improvement during the study period. Among them, a significant boost is only observed in the development power indicator; improvement in the production system indicator and development benefit indicator is mild, and the life system indicator sees a decline year by year. The construction level of the GLCCD Economic System throughout China is generally balanced but tends to expand in scale. However, the inter-regional development benefit indicator shows a convergence trend. Based on the analysis of the similarities and differences between green and low-carbon circular development, the development power and development benefit, production system, and life system are incorporated into a unified logical framework. The construction level of the GLCCD Economic System is measured as a whole in a holistic manner. This study finds out the scientific connotation of the GLCCD Economic System. The changing trends and regional differences in the construction level of the GLCCD Economic System are revealed. These findings provide a clear and reliable decision-making basis for the construction of the GLCCD Economic System.

Key words： green, low-carbon and circular development, indicator system, spatiotemporal range entropy weight method, Gini coefficient, Theil index