Sustainability Evaluation of the Doughnut Economics: A Bibliometric Analysis

Considering the lack of a comprehensive review of Doughnut Economics (DE) as an emerging sustainability evaluation framework, this study conducts a bibliometric analysis from 2012 to 2024 to reveal the research progress using CiteSpace. After introducing its connotation and summarizing its theoretical basis, accounting procedures, and urban practices, bibliometric analyses show that: (a) The “planetary boundary/ies,” “sustainable development,” and “doughnut economics” are the three most frequently co-occurred keywords, and the similarities and differences of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and DE are presented; (b) Timeline view reveals the term climate change has the longest research history and widest citation relationships in DE research; (c) The landmark studies of Raworth, O’Neill, Steffen, and Fanning are illustrated as the most important works with the highest frequencies of co-citations; (d) Stockholm University, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, and University of Oxford are the top three DE research centers within environment-related disciplines, and the authors are mainly come from the England, USA, and Germany. The results not only provide a valuable reference for researchers interested in DE but also put forward the emphasis and orientation of future studies.