Towards sustainable environmental policy and management in the fourth industrial revolution: Evidence from big data analytics

Abstract

This study is to explore the relationship between the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the environment using the big data methodology. We scrutinize the trend of the Fourth Industrial revolution, in association with the environment, and provide implications for a more desirable future environmental policy. The results show that the Industrial Revolution has been generally perceived as negative to environment before the 2010s, while it has been widely regarded as positive after the period. It is highly expected that the Fourth Industrial Revolution will be capable of functioning as a new alternative to enhance the quality of the biophysical and social environment. This study justifies that the new wave of technological development may serve as a cure for the enhancement of the environmental quality. The positive linkage between the new technological development and the environment from this study clearly indicates that the environmental industry and environmental technologies will be key economic factors in the next-generation society. They should be of critical importance in shaping our cities into clearer and greener spaces, and people will continuously depend on the development of new environmental technologies in order to correct environmental damages.