Empowering People, Financing Change, Protecting Nature: Policy Pathways for BRICS Sustainability

Sustainability challenges in the BRICS economies require a multidimensional perspective that captures how environmental quality, human capital, and financial systems jointly shape long‐term development outcomes. This study examines these relationships using genuine savings (GS) as a comprehensive indicator of sustainability from 2000 to 2024. Drawing on clean cooking fuel access, PM2.5 exposure, forest area, female labor participation, domestic credit, and health expenditure, the analysis applies the method of moments quantile regression (MMQR) to uncover heterogeneous effects across the sustainability distribution. The results show that forest area and female labor participation consistently improve GS, while PM2.5 and health expenditure exert negative pressures, particularly in countries positioned at lower sustainability quantiles. Domestic credit has a modest but positive influence, and the effect of clean cooking fuels weakens at higher quantiles. Robustness checks using OLS, HAC‐robust, and cluster‐robust estimators confirm the stability of the findings. The study highlights the need for targeted, country‐specific strategies that strengthen natural capital, expand gender‐inclusive labor markets, reorient health spending toward preventive systems, and improve the allocation of financial resources. These insights offer practical guidance for accelerating sustainable development transitions in the BRICS region.