Marium Vahed: Greening Muslim Communities Through Environmental Education

By Amada Mayer - Lawson Foundation

This is episode four of our Youth Action & the Environment Pilot Fellowship documentary series, produced by My Media Creative as part of their Climate Warriors Series. Each film captures the incredible stories of four fellowship recipients, the projects they’ve championed, and how much they have grown as environmental leaders.

Equipping Young Muslims to Participate in the Environmental Movement

Marium Vahed is a storyteller, entrepreneur, and community organizer who believes that building the green future our planet deserves will require that all communities are engaged in the environmental movement and empowered to pursue innovative climate action solutions.

Marium’s environmental action story reached a tipping point in university when she, along with a group of other young Muslims, were inspired to take matters into their own hands when they recognized that, while people of colour continue to be disproportionately impacted by climate change, few efforts were made to spur their participation in building a more sustainable future.

“We founded Green Ummah in 2019 as a response to a realization by myself and several coworkers that there weren’t really any resources or organizations dedicated to helping Canadian Muslims get involved in the environmental movement and climate change work.”

Initially developed with the intention of engaging in more traditional in-person organizing work, the pandemic changed Green Ummah’s strategy and encouraged the passionate co-founders to further explore how their work could continue to create a positive impact digitally. This is how the Greening Our Communities Toolkit came to be.

“The Greening our Communities toolkit was our way of developing a digital resource for education that teachers could draw from as they teach in different Islamic secondary schools.”

This digital toolkit, finalized and distributed with the support from the Youth Action and the Environment Pilot Fellowship, has since evolved into comprehensive lesson plans aimed at enhancing teachers’ capabilities in integrating environmental teachings with Islamic principles, Canadian and Indigenous history, and practical change-making strategies.

Inspiring Environmental Stewardship

The impact of the Greening Our Communities Toolkit has been significant, reaching over 200 students across Ontario Islamic secondary schools. The toolkit not only educates but also transforms students’ relationships with the environment, fostering a newfound appreciation for nature and helping to facilitate greater immersion into the outdoors.

“For students who had never engaged with nature before, almost all of them have said that this toolkit has changed their relationship with the environment positively.”

Marium’s project spotlights how young Canadians across the country are imagining innovative solutions to address the gaps and opportunities they see around them and, with adequate support and resources, are successfully developing unique approaches to solving them.

In the case of the Greening Our Communities Toolkit, because Marium and her colleagues noticed a gap in their own educational experiences and were compelled to fix it, for the first time in Canadian history, culturally and religiously tailored educational resources exist for young Muslims and have already begun to help build greater environmental stewardship.

Navigating Individual versus Collaborative Leadership

Reflecting on her own experience developing a successful environmental action project, Marium emphasized the importance of building a communal sense of leadership among her team, which went beyond any individual’s leadership ambitions.

“Over the past two years, I’ve thought about and realized that the greatest projects often do not rest on individuals. This has helped my identity as a leader evolve quite a bit, and I now consider myself more enmeshed within a community of change-makers. 

I like figuring out how to delegate work, how to create organizations that are self-sustaining, and how to tell narratives about environmental change that are rooted in my culture, my community, or my family, rather than my personal ambitions.”

Across the country, many young people aspire to engage in environmental action but struggle to balance their meaningful ambitions with juggling full-time schooling or work and personal or volunteer commitments. To them, Marium’s story and reflections on leadership illuminate an important piece of advice: you don’t have to go at it alone.

“I think in Canada and North America, we have a very individualistic idea of what leadership should look like. But in reality, this work is community work, so there has to be community leadership, and that consists of collaboration between people doing many small actions.”

Looking Forward: Telling Stories and Inspiring Change

Marium knows her journey is only getting started, and what stands out in the back of her mind as she navigates her next steps is the power of stories and their important role in inspiring positive change.

“My hope is to continue to tell stories that resonate with people and inspire them to engage in change-making that embraces a radical and optimistic perspective on life.”

For other young, passionate changemakers, Marium’s story, much like the Greening Our Communities Toolkit, holds many lessons for how others can create a positive impact on their communities, the environment, and beyond. Here are her top three:

“Firstly, spend time in nature because it’s critical to do work that feels connected, not just to you and your ambitions, but to your community and the environment around you.

Secondly, just do it! You can prepare for something as long as you want to, but we can often get stuck in our own heads, thinking about all the barriers and challenges that exist in front of us. Even if something isn’t perfect, just starting the process is really, really important because it can easily snowball into something bigger than you ever imagined.

Lastly, there are resources for you out there, and Green Ummah is one of them. No matter who you are, where you live, or the challenges you face, I think it’s possible to find resources. You have to keep speaking to people, sharing your story, and asking them for what you need because you never really know who will change your ability to build something truly impactful until you find them.”

You can connect with Marium on LinkedIn and learn more about Green Ummah and the Greening Our Communities Toolkit on their website.

Amanda Mayer - Director at The Lawson Foundation - COO & Program Director, Amanda has been with the Lawson Foundation since 2014. Cause-driven, engaged, and socially conscious – Amanda embraces opportunities that allow her to take on issues and support causes that inspire her.

This piece was originally published on the Lawson Foundation on March 25th 2024.

Inspired by her faith to be friend to the earth

By Patricia Lane & Iman Berry 

These in-their-own-words pieces are told to Patricia Lane and co-edited with input from the interviewee for the purpose of brevity.

Iman Berry is inspired by her Islamic faith to energize others to care for the planet.

This 22-year-old Western University business and political science student from Windsor, Ont., co-founded Green Ummah to create an ecological movement for Canadian Muslims and to educate others about climate action.

Tell us about your project.

When I volunteered with the Canadian Muslim Vote initiative in the federal and municipal elections, we heard a lot of concern about climate change and the environment from Muslims. They wanted more information about how they can help, in part because our faith requires us to care for our planet. In 2020, I co-founded Green Ummah, which translates loosely as “Green Muslims coming together”, to help meet that need.

We worked with teachers and scientists to design a school-based curriculum that offers teachers both a faith-based and secular approach. Nature Canada provides funding for any class to take a field trip to a nearby natural area, where the children meet with a naturalist. The curriculum emphasizes Indigenous teachings and encourages leadership by having students design and implement a project to make a difference. In 2021, we reached about 100 kids. This spring, we will reach almost 500, in both public and Islamic schools.

Green Ummah was also active in the last municipal elections, educating social media audiences about the role municipalities can play in protecting the environment.

We run a competition awarding prizes for the best blogs that imagine a better future. We have also given presentations in mosques.

How else have you been involved?

I participated in Nature Canada’s “Nature on the Hill” and met with members of Parliament to ask for rapid action on climate change. When I asked why support for the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion continues in the face of climate change and huge costs, one MP explained that many Canadians are not yet ready to live without fossil fuels. This made my work at Green Ummah seem even more relevant.

Tell us about your background.

My parents believe they have a faith-based obligation to make their voices heard when there is injustice and to give their time and energy to help others less fortunate. When they went to a rally or joined others to feed hungry people, they took me and my sister with them.

In high school, I volunteered in my member of Parliament’s office. MP Brian Masse showed me that politicians can make a big difference for ordinary people. I invited him to speak at our mosque and since then, politicians have been regular guests. This helps people know who to turn to when they have a problem and to put a face on decision-makers. Since I saw the movie The Day After Tomorrow, I have been alive to the reality of the need to protect our futures. Green Ummah is a way to help others see that, too.

What makes your work hard?

Decision-makers seem too willing to settle for half-measures to create the impression that they care. But the reality is that the entire business model must change if we are to keep our planet cool enough for a decent future. An oil company might green its production process but if it is still producing oil, it is contributing to catastrophe. As a business student, it is challenging to imagine how we can have a fashion industry if we intend to produce fewer clothes.

What gives you hope?

Everywhere I go, I see people of all ages involved and engaged. None of us is alone.

What do you see if we get this right?

When we have figured out how to live well within the Earth’s capacity, we will be so much better able to solve the other crises.

What would you like to say to other young people?

You might feel like your idea doesn’t matter but the truth is that it does. We need everyone. You will get more done if you join an organization that supports your talents.

What about older readers?

Climate change is affecting you right now where you live but it will affect my generation more than it will ever affect you. Your actions now matter to our future.

This piece was originally published on Canada’s National Observer on May 29th, 2023.

A Ramadan reflection on Islam and climate action

By Memona Hossain

Muslims everywhere are currently observing Ramadan, a month of fasting and striving to grow their faith through prayer and acts of goodness.

• This month also marked the release of the new IPCC report on climate change, which provided the world with an urgent call to action.

• “The connection of the inner state of the heart with the outer state of physical action is the very point of intersection at which Ramadan and the new IPCC report meet. As Muslims focus on their worship…it is imperative that they make a very conscious commitment to connect their acts of worship towards the wellbeing of the Earth,” a new op-ed argues.

• This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

This month, Muslims across the world welcomed the month of Ramadan – a blessed month during which they fast and strive towards nurturing God-consciousness both spiritually and through acts of goodness. This month also marked the release of the new IPCC report, which provides a “how-to guide to defuse the climate time-bomb,” as described by UN Secretary General António Guterres. However, what characterized this report was a hopeful urgency in the call to action. The report calls for a joint commitment by all of humanity to participate in a global effort towards a radical shift in the impacts of climate change.

As the IPCC Working Group II Co-Chair, Debra Roberts explained last year, “Our assessment clearly shows that tackling all these different challenges involves everyone…working together to prioritize risk reduction…in this way, different interests, values and world views can be reconciled…”  Different perspectives, world views, and approaches to understanding and connecting with the Earth’s wellbeing, must cooperatively form the climate action narrative.

Muslims and the Islamic world view play a role in this. The Pew Research Center identifies a global Muslim population of more than 1.9 billion, which is projected to grow significantly in the coming years. With more than 50 Muslim-majority nations in the world, along with a significant number of Muslims living in places like Europe and North America, the climate change discourse impacts Muslims bilaterally. Many Muslim nations are bearing significant impacts from climate change, while others are also living in nations that are actively contributing to climate change. An understanding of how the Islamic framework can contribute to the collective climate change narrative is crucial, and in the wake of the new IPCC report, Ramadan is an opportune time to reflect on this.

Muslim youths participating in a nature study in Canada based on Islamic teachings on the environment. Image by Fadeelah Hanif/Green Ummah.

My research depicts some insight in the Muslim environmental philanthropy narrative. Within the Islamic worldview, all things living on the Earth are perceived to be in a shared glorification and worship of God, as found in the Qur’an,

تُسَبِّحُ لَهُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتُ ٱلسَّبْعُ وَٱلْأَرْضُ وَمَن فِيهِنَّ ۚ وَإِن مِّن شَىْءٍ

إِلَّا يُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِهِۦ وَلَـٰكِن لَّا تَفْقَهُونَ تَسْبِيحَهُمْ ۗ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ حَلِيمًا غَفُورًۭا ٤٤

“There is not a single thing that does not glorify His praises—but you simply cannot comprehend their glorification. He is indeed Most Forbearing, All-Forgiving,” (translation) 17:44. 

To uphold the sacred, interconnected spiritual connection between all of creation is a sacred responsibility. And the month of Ramadan is a month that should nurture and strengthen that responsibility, as the Qur’an states the purpose of Ramadan as being:

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ ٱلصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ ١٨٣

“O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may attain God-consciousness,” (translation) 2:183.

Greenfaith representatives attending a 2021 People vs Fossil Fuels action in Washington, D.C., demanding that U.S. President Biden stop funding fossil fuel projects. Image courtesy of People vs. Fossil Fuels

Deepening the consciousness of the Creator implies that one should develop an appreciation, love, and authentic form of care for what has been created by God.  And the act of glorification and worship which is shared by all communities of beings on the Earth is a sacred bond which must be carefully tended to. The connection of the inner state of the heart with the outer state of physical action is the very point of intersection at which Ramadan and the new IPCC report meet. As Muslims focus on their worship as well as acts of service to humanity, it is imperative that they make a very conscious commitment to connect their acts of worship towards the wellbeing of the Earth this Ramadan.

As the United States Institute of Peace so aptly puts it, climate action “…urgently requires that we build partnership and synergy with a powerful group of allies: religious communities…who form an unparalleled channel to billions of hearts and minds.” The message that comes from religious leaders, the stories that touch hearts through belief systems, and faith-based action have greater impetus to inspire change, than numbers and graphs. The intersection of Ramadan and the new IPCC report can also welcome meaningful conversations on how the Islamic worldview can be part of the wider climate change narrative.

Participate or help organize community green or zero-waste iftars (the meal eaten at sunset to open the fast)

1. Invite local Muslim environmental groups to speak about topics related to Islam & the Earth

2. Partner with and/or fund local mosques & Islamic centers on green initiatives

3. Ensure Muslim representation in key environmental roundtables and decision-making processes

As a new Oxford University study has recently verified, simply having human-to-human conversations are “crucially important” for mobilizing climate action, and can help make meaning (and process emotions) invoked at times of crisis. Cutting across all beliefs, knowledge systems, and ways of life, climate change is calling on us to form a uniquely unprecedented response narrative.

Greenfaith delegate attending a 2021 People vs Fossil Fuels event in Washington, D.C., demanding that U.S. President Biden stop funding fossil fuel projects. Image courtesy of Tasnim Mellouli.

 Memona Hossain is a PhD Candidate in ecopsychology and has been a lecturer at the School of Environment, University of Toronto. Hossain serves on the Board of Directors for the Muslim Association of Canada, Faith & the Common Good, and the Willow Park Ecology Centre, is an advisor & content contributor for Faithfully Sustainable, and has most recently launched the Islam & Earth project.

This piece was originally published on Mongabay on April 11, 2023.

Windsor teacher promotes green themes during Ramadan

A Windsor Islamic High School teacher recently taught her students about sustainability through a curriculum from the group Green Ummah. (Aastha Shetty/CBC News)

Protecting Mother Nature is an important theme in Islam, and a Windsor teacher is helping her students make the connection during Ramadan. 

Shaymaa Zantout helps lead green initiatives at the Windsor Islamic High School. She says one of the central ideas in Islam is that human beings were created as khalifa — stewards or guardians of the land.

"So, there's a huge emphasis on being caretakers of the land and the environment that surrounds us, because it's seen as this trust... that we've been entrusted with by our creator. And so the connection there is really significant and I think one that we're trying to instill in the students at our school as well."

She's working with a group called Green Ummah, which developed a curriculum for students in partnership with Nature Canada.

The group was founded by students, including some from Windsor, to promote an environmental movement within the Muslim community.

Shaymaa Zantout, a teacher at Windsor Islamic High School, speaks with CBC Windsor Morning host Peter Duck about how caring for nature is a spiritual responsibility.

"We had the opportunity to participate in activities, go on a field trip...out into nature. We got to write letters to our school administration asking for some changes to be made to make our school more eco-friendly," she said.

"So we're trying to make it very hands on, thanks to this program. And even now that that curriculum, we've finished studying it, we're still incorporating some of those teachings throughout all our lessons."

The Green Ummah website says its lesson plans for teachers are solutions-oriented. Students, the organization says, already bring creativity, energy and innovative thinking to green issues.

"Our hope is to provide middle school and high school students an intersectional understanding of the environmental movement, equip them with methodologies to build sustainable and equitable solutions, and create opportunities for digital collaboration between Muslim youth across Canada," stated the website.

Zantout says that faith provides a useful lens to look at issues like the environment because people may not get to see the impact they made during their lifetime.

"But the idea is, whether you see the results or not ... this servitude as part of your relationship with God," she said.

This piece was originally published on CBC News on April 9 2022.

Green Ummah Launches New Curriculum for Muslim Youth

In October, Islamic schools implemented a new curriculum to help Muslim high school students learn about environmental stewardship and advocacy. It’s a curriculum that could appear in schools across the country.

Green Ummah, a non-profit organization focused on creating a green movement in the Muslim community, developed and launched the Greening Our Communities Toolkit, with the help of teachers. The curriculum will teach youth about the climate-and-biodiversity crisis, environmental racism and justice, and Islamic perspectives on the environment. 

“We need to start getting racialized, marginalized youth into spaces in nature. We need to be the ones to break down those barriers ourselves, for these kids,” says Aadil Nathani, co-founder of Green Ummah.

“They’re already engaged with what’s happening with the climate,” he adds. “They already have a little bit of climate anxiety, eco-anxiety, to go along with all of the other anxiety that they deal with. If we can get them right into nature with relevant programs, with a way for them to understand and find a care for nature or love for nature, that’s also going to help the climate movement in the future.” 

A student at Gibraltar Leadership academy works on an activity that is part of the toolkit.

Gibraltar Leadership Academy (Scarborough), Safa and Marwa School (Mississauga), and Windsor Islamic High School (known as WIHS) are the first schools to implement the new curriculum, which is taught in the Geography and Islamic Studies classes. Teachers can use the toolkit for any grade at the high school level.

Rejaa Ali, a teacher at Gibraltar, says a lot of the information in the toolkit is refreshing. Shaymaa Zantout, who teaches at WIHS, says the content has been enriching her lessons. Both teachers expressed that students are making a lot of personal connections with the toolkit as compared to other classroom settings. 

HOW STUDENTS AT GIBRALTAR ARE RESPONDING 

“Everything we’ve talked about is curriculum based, but being able to connect with it from your own value systems, that’s a big deal, because that knowledge stays with you forever and you’re way more engaged,” says Ali. 

The modules include topics on what it means to be green, and students get to analyze their own worldview and learn about other worldviews, going beyond the eurocentric view and encouraging students to learn different perspectives.

“Many of the students have never really been exposed to perspectives outside of a colonial perspective in terms of just knowledge. So they’re responding to the toolkit with a lot of interest,” Ali says. 

A completed mind map activity done by a student at Gibraltar Leadership Academy, in the class taught by Ali.

“We’ve been studying Indigenous traditional knowledge and a lot of them were able to connect that to their own forms of traditional knowledge that’s been passed down in their own families, or even within Islamic heritage. Practices that are not typically perceived as science based, but have a lot of history involved in their right.” 

Ali hopes that with the material they learn through the toolkit, students will be able to take action and implement what they’ve learned to make a positive change, for example, thinking about their own carbon footprint and how they can decrease it, as opposed to feeling guilt. 

“There’s a lot of passion involved. The more knowledgeable you are of events that are happening in the world, then you come with a lot of energy.” 

HOW THE TOOLKIT IS HELPING STUDENTS AT WIHS 

“This really aligns well with what I’ve been wanting to do, which is incorporating more personal elements where they can actually connect with the material,” says Zantout. 

Zantout says she believes faith is an important lens to see the world through, acknowledging that one should be mindful of their surroundings and how much emphasis is put on the environment. 

“I love the opportunities where they can tie themselves to the most intrinsic level to the content, like your role as a Muslim. It’s not just a label you slap onto yourself — how are you actively playing a role within your identity to better the environment?” 

Zantout says many students come in with a rigid view of what geography is and how it relates to them. 

“Geography is really closely tied to many aspects of their life. There are so many perspectives that you need in order to understand geography,” she says, adding that she hopes students take away lessons of mindfulness about their role and their impact on the environment.

Green Ummah hopes to spread this toolkit to more schools, including non-Islamic ones, and will collect feedback after this first phase. 

This piece was originally published on Nature Canada on November 19, 2021.

Green Ummah Launches Blog Post Competition

To secure an equitable and sustainable future, we need to collaborate on the solutions. Below are three topics we feel are worth addressing:

1. How will you work towards a better relationship between you/your community and nature in your neighbourhood?

2. What is your ideal “Green Future” in Canada? What is a challenge to achieving this future and how can we overcome it?

3. How has the impact of COVID-19 (ex. lockdown, work from home, shifting social norms) changed the way you engage with nature?

We want to hear from you. If you are interested in sharing your thoughts, we encourage you to submit a 750 word piece as a Word document to info@greenummah.org. In your submission please include your name, phone number, age and city of residence, along with an optional 1-2 sentence short bio and a social media handle. Furthermore, feel free to input up to 3 pictures or graphics into your submission. Any pictures/graphics and sources used shall be hyperlinked and or cited at the bottom of the submission.

We encourage you to be creative; solutions can range from policy, to technical interventions, to individual behaviour change, and beyond. The authors for the top blog post for each question will win a prize and be given the opportunity to present their work at the Green Ummah webinar conference (information to be provided shortly). The deadline to submit in order to be eligible for a prize is January 31, 2021. Submissions will be graded using the following marking scheme:

1) Writing style (grammar, spelling, punctuation, flow, citations) – 25%
2) Content and creativity (unique answer, comprehensive insight, cohesive viewpoint) – 50%
3) Lay out of text and use of graphics – 25%

Note, we have zero tolerance for discrimination in any form and will not accept submissions rooted in discrimination or bigotry. 

We look forward to hearing your ideas and working with you on your submissions! If you have any questions, please email us at info@greenummah.org.

Grassroots Windsor group calls on Canadian Muslims to think green this Ramadan

Green Ummah was co-founded by students from the University of Windsor — including law student Aadil Nathani

As Muslims across Canada continue to fast during the holy month of Ramadan, a new grassroots community group in Windsor is calling on all Muslims to keep the environment top of mind when practising their faith. 

Dubbed "Green Ummah," the group was in part founded by students at the University of Windsor, and derives its name from the Arabic word for community.

"Green is self-explanatory," said Aadil Nathani, a third-year law student at the University of Windsor, and one of Green Ummah's founders, adding that Ummah is a term used to refer to the Muslim community. 

According to Nathani, the group's goal is to address "what we see as a holistic, intersectional approach that's needed to tackle something like climate change."

"And each community will deal with it differently," he said. 

For example, Nathani pointed out that Muslims can easily reduce their environmental impact by limiting the amount of water consumed during the Wudhu purification process prior to praying five times each day.

"The tap is typically running for about two minutes while you're doing wudhu, so we've encouraged people during the first week of our Ramadan challenge to conserve water during the time they're doing their wudhu," he said. "Instead of having the tap on full-blast, just have it run on half the blast of water that you can have."

Throughout Ramadan, Nathani said his organization has four overall goals, including conserving water, reducing food waste, and reducing energy consumption and one's overall carbon footprint. 

"Then for the last week of Ramadan, we're getting into a project where we want folks to start engaging with nature a little bit more," Nathani said. 

We want them to start getting out to the parks — once the parks get open obviously — while practising social distancing.

In addition to encouraging environmentally friendly thinking throughout Ramadan, Nathani said Green Ummah is also advocating for green gifts during the Eid celebrations that mark the end of Ramadan.

"Come the end of Ramadan, you have Eid, which is the celebration of Ramadan," he said. "It's customary to give out gifts to the young ones and to family members and loved ones."

Nathani said his group is partnering with local gardening stores to "provide discounts on seeds and garden kits to keep you busy throughout the summer."

He added that Green Ummah hoped to have more direct contact with mosques during Ramadan, but physical distancing rules brought on by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic have it difficult to do so. 

There is also an Islamic responsibility that we're trying to hone in on and touch ...- Aadil Nathan, Co-Founder, Green Ummah

"There's a large Muslim population in Ontario and in Canada — about one million Muslims in Canada," he said. "So we have a huge potential for impact here, if each person starts thinking in a more environmentally friendly and sustainable way."

Nathani added that Imam Youseh Wahb with the Windsor Islamic Association is one of Green Ummah's founding members.

"As well as a human responsibility, there is also an Islamic responsibility that we're really trying to hone in on and touch, so that we can reach all of the different generations and start getting entire homes to be more sustainable and think more environmentally friendly," Nathani said. 

Early responses to the initiative have been promising, Nathani said, with some local schoolteachers even asking if they can share some of Green Ummah's material with their classes.

"It gets us thinking about directions that we can go in the future," Nathani said. "One of which is to hopefully work with schools and Islamic schools, on creating greener curriculums for them."

This piece was originally published on CBC News on May 11 2020.