green paradox test in fiscal decentralization using multi-objective optimization and response surface methodology (rsm)

In a situation where environmental degradation, extreme climatic events, energy consumption, and increasing carbon dioxide emissions have become major challenges, fiscal decentralization is recognized as an effective strategy to promote environmental sustainability. fiscal decentralization is an integrated system of the management of revenue, expenditure, and related liabilities to lower levels of government.  in the present study, rsm and seasonal data during the period 1996-2023 were used for multi-objective optimization. two objective functions, carbon dioxide reduction and energy consumption, were also selected for optimization in two scenarios. the research variables also include revenue decentralization, expenditure decentralization, economic growth, urbanization rate, and industrialization. for optimization in both scenarios, 4 influential decision-making variables were selected and considered as optimization variables, and the goal was to reduce the two objective functions of carbon dioxide and energy consumption. in the first scenario, important factors are the rate of urbanization, industrialization, and economic growth on the objective function of energy consumption and carbon dioxide. also, the revenue decentralization parameter had the least impact on the objective functions of carbon dioxide and energy consumption. in the second scenario, the greatest impact on the objective function was economic growth and industrialization rate. also, the least impact on the objective functions was the expenditure decentralization parameter. therefore, in both scenarios, revenue decentralization and expenditure decentralization had a negligible and negative impact on carbon dioxide emissions, and therefore, a green paradox was not created in iran.