Abstract

Economic Complexity (EC) methods have gained increasing popularity across fields and disciplines. In particular, the EC toolbox has proved particularly promising in studying complex and interrelated phenomena, such as the transition towards a more sustainable economy. Using the EC approach, scholars have investigated the relationship between EC and sustainability, identifying the distinguishing characteristics of green activities and assessing the readiness of productive and technological structures for the sustainability transition. This article proposes to review and summarize the data, methods, and empirical literature relevant to the study of the sustainability transition from an EC perspective. We review three distinct but connected blocks of literature on EC and environmental sustainability. First, we survey the evidence linking EC measures to environmental sustainability indicators. Second, we review articles that assess productive systems’ green competitiveness. Third, we examine evidence on green technological development and its connection to non-green knowledge bases. Finally, we summarize the findings for each block while identifying criticalities and avenues for further research in this recent and growing body of empirical literature.