Islam and the Environment

When Islam is featured in popular media, it's often in the context of conflict: extremism, radicalism, fundamentalism. But Dr. Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Professor of Islamic Studies at George Washington University, has a surprising perspective on his own faith: that it's deeply predisposed towards environmental stewardship. In a public lecture and later interview with IDEAS host Paul Kennedy, Dr. Nasr explains why Islam may well be seen as a 'green' religion.

To hear the complete episode, please visit the Ideas website. 

Islam: Is it the Green Religion? by IDEAS producer David Gutnick

These recent headlines from mainstream media around the world highlight how the words "Muslim" and "Islam", are often mentioned in the context of terrorism.

But according to a world-renowned scholar, there's another word that should be associated with Islam -- and it may surprise you -- environmentalism. Dr. Seyyed Hossein Nasr of George Washington University, believes Islam is more disposed towards environmental stewardship than other faiths, and may well be regarded as the 'green' religion.

"Christianity in the West," said Nasr to CBC Radio One IDEAS, "has had a tremendous problem: how to come to terms with the environment at a time when its most devout followers have not shown much interest in the environment. If you take all the verses of the New Testament, there is no reference to nature."

Dr. Seyyed Hossein Nasr was born in Iran. He holds undergraduate degrees in math and physics from M.I.T, a Masters in geology and a Ph.D. in the history of science from Harvard University.

"The Qur'an addresses not only human beings, but also the cosmos," says Nasr. "It is much easier to be able to develop an environmental philosophy. Birds are called communities in the Qur'an. Human beings, bees, it is so easy to develop an authentic Islamic philosophy of the environment."

Nasr's interest in science, religion and the environment spans five decades. He's published dozens of books including Man and Nature: The Spiritual Crisis in Modern Man. In it, Nasr compares how Taoism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity and Islam, particularly its Sufi expression, see humankind's relationship with the environment.

"As long as men lived according to religion there was no environmental crisis," says Nasr.

"St. Francis of Assisi wrote, ''Be praised, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars;in the heavens You have made them bright, precious and beautiful.'"

But Christianity's sensitivity to the natural world changed in the 1600's, says Nasr, when the Catholic Church burned its hand with the trials of Galileo. Catholic and Protestant Christian theologians became less interested in thinking about the cosmos, with the world of nature.

Nasr says the scientific revolution in Europe "left nature in the hands of two forces: modern science where the meaning of nature is totally irrelevant, and -- of course - greed."

"Islam was never secularized as Christianity was," says Nasr. "Muslims did not lose faith in the same way that happened in the Christian West. You had a very different dynamic in the phenomenon in what has to do with nature."

Nasr's views have been both celebrated -- and censored. He acknowledges that there's a considerable rift between his understanding of the Islamic faith and what's actually practiced in Islamic nations: "In almost every Islamic country, what the preachers preach on Friday is ordered by the government,"says Nasr. "One of the things these governments do not like is anything that will stultify what they believe to be economic progress. So there is a very strong opposition to environmental issues."

Nasr says that when he talks about pollution in countries like Pakistan and Iran, he hears people say that the West will somehow find a solution. "That is the attitude of most people with an inferiority complex," he says. "That is why the Muslim minorities living in North America play such a huge role in the future of the rest of the Islamic world."

Nasr has criss-crossed the globe speaking to religious and environmental leaders trying to build consensus on how to best raise awareness about what he calls a 'worldwide crisis.'

"We human beings cannot be happy without the happiness of the rest of creation," he says. "We have killed enough, massacred enough of God's other creatures,"

"God will judge us in the future on whether we are able to live in harmony and peace with the rest of his creation or commit suicide," he says. There is no third choice."

To hear the complete episode, please visit the Ideas website. 

Against Modernity

Fazlun Khalid - Islamic environmentalist, Founder-Director, Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Environmental Science

One of the effects of what we’ve now come to know as modernity is that if you’re not up there with the rest of the crowd following “fashion” then you must be backward. Fashion has many guises and its most obvious manifestation is the clothes industry (the words clothes and fashion are now interchangeable) where models manage to look progressively glamorous whilst they progressively wear less and less. This is a trick, and in this trick lies a moral.

Behind the jargon of political correctness and the hype of the advertising industry, the idea of modernity stands as naked as the fashion models. Like them, it exudes glamour at the same time. But it is the fleeting glamour of built-in obsolescence, and its nakedness attracts and devours. This process is most evident in the garish cities to which people are attracted like suicidal moths to a powerful street lamp. It is estimated that over 70% of the world’s population will be living in cities before the end of this century. Think what will happen to these people when the water stops flowing through the taps, as it will inevitably do, and the flush toilets stop working in the high rise blocks.

Seasoned travellers sometimes face the unexpected, and this happened to me in Indonesia during a visit to this mosaic of a country before the financial meltdown in 2008. My colleagues in the Institute of Ecology in Bandung were taking me to a madrassa (Qur’an school) in one of the neighbouring villages. It was described blandly in advance as an alternative school system that employed “traditional methods”. But I was in for a surprise. The person I was first introduced to was the “marketing manager”. A marketing manager in a Qur’an school? This puzzled me. “The economic crisis in the country never touched us,” he told me. “Why?” I asked. “Our fresh produce is in great demand, especially in the cities,” he replied, patiently. My puzzlement grew into curiosity: Qur’an schools equal economic independence, but how could that be?

I was led into a village community, which practiced organic farming for economic self-sufficiency in what was described to me as the traditional way. Here is another example of how modernity plays tricks with words. It is fashionable in the developed world to go into “organic farming” yet the methods used by this movement are as old as the hills, and the people of this village have got it right – it is the “traditional way”. This was one of a network of Qur’an school villages that had survived the ravages of colonialism. Apparently there are hundreds of them and the particular village I was taken to supports about 300 students whose ages ranged from twelve to eighteen. A third of them were female. Most of the learning activities centred in and around the mosque and, when they were not studying, the male students worked in the fields. The female students worked in the packing sheds grading and weighing the produce for market. The village also boasted a herd of dairy cows and a fish farm. There was also a clinic and sports facilities.

The remarkable thing about this community was that the whole ethos of it was non-institutional. I didn’t get the impression of being in a regimented, over-organised place. The feel was that of a village – a community of people of which the students were a part. The income derived from agricultural produce supported the students. The students paid no fees and they were housed and fed by the village. And yet the village made a profit. I then saw the point of the marketing manager.

My discussions with the Imam, who was also the head of the community, ranged amongst other things to self-sufficiency and the way the Muslims used to trade internationally without the help of the banks. I told him about certain Muslim groups in the West who are advocating a return to traditional trading through the use of gold and silver coins. His response was that he does not trust paper money and that his community traditionally kept their surplus wealth in gold. This is how they saved themselves when the crisis hit the country and the banks collapsed.

So we are back to tradition again. The fashion today is for banks and for paper money, which is at the root of the environmental crisis, but any critique of this is considered to be a bit unfashionable, if not loony. Such is the power of fashion and the path to “progress” – another fashionable buzzword, but what does it mean? The term’s application relates almost exclusively to economic progress, but the fact that this is causing massive pollution and species extinction at an alarming rate are issues people are not willing to look at squarely.

And then there is “sustainability”. It is now the buzzword in eco-economics. Very fashionable in fact, but nobody can agree what it actually means. Here in Indonesia, however, we have people living sustainably after the very traditional fashion of their forefathers and learning to cope with the dominant model at the same time. No definitions needed here – just getting on with it. So, tradition is best. It is not about a monopoly of any one faith or nation or tribe or group. Tradition has evolved out of centuries of responses to the rhythms of nature; importantly, it is in context. It is not subject to the vagaries of one economic theory or another, and neither is it dependent on the impulses of global financial markets. This is real progress. It is not polluting and it does not line the pockets of corrupt politicians, racketeers, petty officials and trans-national corporations. Such tradition is by the people, for the people.

This article was originally published on iai news in October 2014. 

Muslims and Medicine

By: Adline A Ghani

Although health and wellness may be on everyone’s minds these days, attention to wellbeing is by no means a new concept. People have been searching for ways to ‘stay in the pink’ since the dawn of civilisation. In the Islamic world, early Muslim scientists and physicians played an essential role in developing healthcare practices, tools and ethics that continue to affect our lives to this day. Among the most significant developments in healthcare brought forth by the Islamic world was the introduction of hospitals. In the 8th century, Al-Walid bin Abd Al-Malik, a Caliph (chief Muslim civil and religious ruler) of the Umayyad Caliphate (Islamic system of government of the 7th and 8th centuries ruled by Prophet Muhammad’s descendants, the Umayyad dynasty), was the first to construct a purpose-built health institution, called the . Derived from the Persian words ‘bimar’, meaning disease, and ‘stan’, meaning place, such institutions not only looked after the sick; they also actively pioneered diagnosis, cures and preventive medicines.

Healthcare for All

The Middle East and North Africa had a large number of bimaristans, which were sometimes mobile and would often fulfil the role of medical schools and libraries. Among the most esteemed were Bimaristan Al-Nouri in Damascus, built in 1154 by Sultan Nour Aldeen Zanki; Bimaristan Marrakesh in Marrakesh, built in 1190 by Caliph Al-Mansur Ya’qub Ibn-Yusuf; and Bimaristan Al-Mansouri in Cairo, built in 1248 by Sultan Saif ad-Din Qalawun as-Salihi. These bimaristans were known to open their doors 24 hours a day and had hundreds of beds to receive patients, regardless of race, religion or background. Some were even known to provide patients with special attire: one kind for winter and another for summer. They not only offered their services free of charge, but also gave money to patients when they were discharged, to help make up for the wages they had lost while in hospital – a concept completely unheard of today.

Medical Discoveries

The field of medicine would not have gone far in the Islamic world without the dedication of Muslim scholars who made numerous advances and discoveries that have enhanced our understanding of healthcare. Muslim physicians, for example, were among the first to differentiate between smallpox and measles, as well as diagnose the plague, diphtheria, leprosy, rabies, baker’s cyst, diabetes, gout and haemophilia. While Europe still believed that epilepsy was caused by demonic possession, Muslim doctors had already found a scientific explanation for it. Muslim surgeons were also pioneers in performing amputations and cauterisations. They also discovered the circulation of blood, the use of animal gut for sutures and the use of alcohol as an antiseptic. Other Muslim innovations include surgical instruments and glass retorts, as well as the use of corrosive sublimate, arsenic, copper sulphate, iron sulphate, saltpetre and borax in the treatment of diseases.

At the forefront of Muslim discoveries in medicine was Ibn Sina. His discovery that tuberculosis was contagious and could be transmitted through the air earned him a position as one of the greatest physicians of all time. Even to this day, the quarantine methods he introduced have helped to limit the spread of infectious diseases. The one thing that Muslim doctors did want to spread, however, was their knowledge, which is why manuscripts became so important. Illustrated in colour and sometimes illuminated in gold, manuscripts served as a fascinating visual record that provided useful information about the human anatomy, including the skeletal system, nervous system, veins, arteries, intestines, organs and muscular system.

Natural Remedies

Scribes would copy these treatises on medicine and healthcare, including ones on botany and traditional medicines. They would then be disseminated far and wide, including to Southeast Asia. It is obvious that these manuscripts were used extensively. Many show signs of considerable wear and tear, as well as extensive margin notes that demonstrate interactivity between the book and user. In this part of the world, people who studied and acquired knowledge of plants and their uses were sometimes described as the bomoh (traditional physician) or bidan (midwife). As experts on ubat akar kayu, or medicines made of herbs, roots, bark and other natural products, they would prescribe their home-brewed remedies to patients, often in the form of ready-made tablets known as jamu or majun.

Such time-honoured knowledge of herbs and natural ingredients has now been revitalised via biotechnology, as modern consumers looking for natural and alternative ways to maintain their wellness are increasingly turning to traditional treatments. In other parts of the Islamic world, the dispensing of remedies was often carried out by apothecaries. They were medical professionals who formulated and dispensed medicines to physicians and patients, very much like today’s pharmacists. Among the tools of their trade were apothecary boxes, which went beyond their medical utility. Often beautifully decorated with floral motifs and sometimes featuring Qur’anic verses, they frequently contained the practical components of weights and balances.

Apothecaries and Aromatherapy

Apothecaries used medicine jars called albarelli (singular: albarello) to store dry drugs and medicines that were an essential part of the treatments they practised. The jars were sealed with a piece of parchment or leather tied with a piece of cord, and the waisted shape of the vessel made removal and replacement from crowded shelves easy. Originally devised in the Islamic world, the albarello was enthusiastically adopted by apothecaries throughout Europe, often paying tribute to its origins with Islamic designs.

Muslims were early adopters of aromatherapy as a form of alternative medicine and to promote wellbeing. Although the ancient Babylonians, Greeks and Egyptians had carried out early forms of distillation, it was Muslim chemists of the Abbassid caliphate who eventually perfected the process of pure distillation. The process was employed to purify chemical substances and also to develop attars, or perfumed oils. Incidentally, it is while distilling roses for attar that Muslim chemists discovered rose water, which is now used extensively throughout the Islamic world in religious ceremonies and in cuisine. The underlying factor behind the use of perfumed oils and rose water among Muslim communities is the appreciation that aromatic compounds can, in fact, positively affect one’s mind, mood, spirit and even health.

We have certainly come a long way in terms of healthcare. But in many ways, much has not changed. Viruses are becoming more resistant, toxins continue to be the scourge of modern living and each generation seems to develop eating habits even unhealthier than the one before. One thing on our side, however, is awareness – arguably the most important factor in health and wellness. Without it we would simply be ignorant. Let’s take a page from the Muslim scholars and physicians of yore and share what we know about living better and healthier lives in mind, body and spirit. As Ibn Sina once said, ‘Absence of understanding does not warrant absence of existence.’

This article was originally published on muslimvillage.comon September 2nd, 2014. 

Alhamdulillah for Trees

6_59

And with Him are the keys of the unseen; none knows them except Him. And He knows what is on the land and in the sea. Not a leaf falls but that He knows it. And no grain is there within the darknesses of the earth and no moist or dry [thing] but that it is [written] in a clear record. (Quran 6:59)

The “Alhamdulillah Series” was inspired by Ruzky Aliyar who featured a series of nature images with the tagline “Alhamdulillah”. The series was profiled on Muslim Matters during the Winter of 2012 and quickly drew praise for the simplicity of the message. Building upon this effort to remember the many blessings of Allah, Khaleafa.com has picked up the initiative and will continue to highlight the many signs of Allah.

“There truly are signs in this for people who reflect.” (Quran 13:3)

Promising Environmental Action, Faiths Rise Together at Religions for the Earth Summit

Parliament Chair Imam Abdul Malik Mujahid commits to ensuring that the forthcoming 2015 Parliament of the World’s Religions in Salt Lake City, Utah, will make sustainable living a primary focus. Imam Mujahid speaks here at the Religions for the Earth MultiFaith Service held September 21, International Day of Peace, at Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York City.

Nearly half a million people marched to save the only planet we have on the 21st of September at the People’s Climate March in New York City. After exceeding goals to stage the biggest climate march in history, the day ended with an interfaith service packing thousands into the largest Cathedral in the World, St. John the Divine. Leaders spanning the faith traditions of the world vowed there to commit unprecedented action to curb climate change.

In this historic moment the Parliament, in conjunction with partners Green Faith and Interfaith Center of New York, took part in the 3-day Religions for the Earth conference presented by Union Theological Seminary. Organized by Union Forum’s Karenna Gore, daughter of Former U.S. Vice-President and global environmental champion Al Gore, the conference that brought together more than 200 leaders of world spiritual communities and interfaith organizations also leveraged partnerships with the World Council of Churches, Religions for Peace, the Jewish Theological Seminary, and the National Religious Partnership.

Months of planning and organizing- with Parliament Trustee Dr. Kusumita Pedersen at the core and Trustee John Pawlikowski advising- resulted in a great showing of support from the Parliament Board. Highlighting some of the ways that spirituality as a healing, connecting, and educational force can powerfully address the climate crisis were Rev. Andras Corban Arthen of the Earth Spirit community, who spoke on an Indigenous Peoples panel, Rev. Dr. Anne Benvenuti, author and educator, who discussed the spiritual connection of humans and other animals, and Phyllis Curott, attorney and Wiccan priestess, who led an opening session prayer. Parliament Trustee Emeritus Naresh Jain, who serves currently on the Parliament’s UN Task Force, was also in attendance. The Parliament’s Executive Director, Dr. Mary Nelson, connected with former Vice President Al Gore, as did Parliament Chair, Imam Abdul Malik Mujahid, who spoke at the closing Multi-faith Service.

What amplifies the voices of faith communities today is hoped to carry over into massive action at the forthcoming 2015 Parliament. Speaking to the Multi-faith Service at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on the evening of September 21, Imam Abdul Malik Mujahid made a public commitment that the 2015 Parliament will take on climate issues and sustainable living as a prime focus.

The Parliament applauds the remarks offered by its partners,  especially those shared by Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations Jan Eliasson at the Religions for the Earth Multifaith Service. Concerning what spiritual communities who work together harmoniously can achieve, Eliasson said, “Faith leaders like you here today have an essential role to play. You can set an example of dialogue and of mutual respect. You can use your pulpits to convey important messages as we have heard today. You can reach across lines of faiths and across the lines of identities that might otherwise divide people. I ask you, I plead with you to continue to remind us of the ethical and moral dimensions of climate change. Such efforts related to higher morality are needed not only on environment, but in general, at a time when we are seeing so much of sectarian turmoil and hatred around the world. I thank you all for mobilizing the positive power of religion…”

Press Release from the Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions

On the Recovery of the Ozone Layer

Climate Change

By Hind Al-Abadleh,

Reading the news headlines1 on September 10, 2014 about the start of recovery of the ozone layer over Antarctica cheered my heart as someone who teaches about the chemistry of the ozone hole and the role that chloroflourocarbons (CFCs) played in speeding up the destruction of this ‘shield’ gas up in the stratosphere.

To place this news in the context of environmental history:

In 1974, it was scientifically established that CFCs –used in fridges, radiators, spray cans, and air conditions- are agents that can destroy stratospheric ozone, and it was 13 years after that the Montreal Protocol was established for a total global ban on the production of CFCs by the late 1990s.

This protocol is one of a kind international treaty by politicians, hosted by Canada, that sent the right message to the people of the Earth that governments care about the ozone layer.  It also sent the signal to the industry that manufactured the CFCs that you need to innovate and come up with chemicals that have useful applications to society, but would not cause environmental degradation.  In effect, the treaty revoked the social and political licenses given to industrial sectors that made the CFCs.

We’re in 2014 now, 40 years after the science was established, and 27 years after the Montreal protocol was signed.  It is in September 2014 that reports of the first signs of recovery of the ozone layer are reported.  Why? Because CFCs have a very long lifetime in the atmosphere (140 years for CFC-12 known commercially as Freon 12 or R-12), even after stopping their emissions.  This is why we’re still experiencing ozone loss in Antarctica every winter and spring time in the Southern hemisphere.  While full recovery is projected to happen in 2050, the impacts from global climate change on ozone loss are still uncertain.

Take home messages:

• Nature has its own recovery time that is on the order of decades when humans acknowledge their negative disturbance of natural equilibrium and gather the political will and courage to act and stop further degradation of natural ecosystems.
• Governments take a relatively long time to formulate and enforce regulations on industrial emissions.  Why?  Because they’d rather (1) wait for a significant body of scientific data to come through rather than following a precautionary principle of ‘better be safe than sorry’ when new man-made substances are manufactured and dumped irresponsibly, and (2) have unsatisfied and frustrated citizens who demand action on environmental issues that affect people on the ground.

How could we use the above success story to understand the most pressing environmental issue of our time, global climate change?  Again, a bit of environmental history would be useful:

In 1957, increasing CO2 buildup was reported as ‘surprising’ by scientists at the Scripps Oceanographic Institute working on international geophysical year projects.

In 1979, the first major international climate science conference was held in Geneva, which led to the creation of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)  in 1988.  In 2013, the IPCC started releasing reports on their fifth assessment of the status of the climate.  They announced that the planet has warmed about 0.8 deg C since the beginning of the 20th century, and that CO2 buildup is happening at a faster rate than previously projected.2

There is no debate among scientists that humans are the main driving force behind a changing climate. We are currently experiencing the disruption and impacts3: faster rates of melting ice caps, ocean acidification, depletion of fresh water resources, increased severity of storms, floods and droughts with impacts on crop production, in addition to rising surface and atmospheric temperatures.

One could argue that the success story of saving the ozone layer through the Montreal Protocol is hard to replicate for solving global climate change because the industries and consumer products that were dependent on CFCs represent a much smaller sector than the gigantic fossil fuel industry that underlies our current way of life in the 21st century.

This very statement could either depress us to no action, or motivate us to rethink our current value system to innovate our way out of a fossil fuel era.  After all, humanity did not transition from the stone age because of lack of stones!  Similarly, we have the potential to transition from a fossil fuel-dependent civilization without burning every drop of oil in the ground.  It was refreshing to read about a new fossil fuel divestment group in Canada, called “Fossil Free Faith-Canada’s Interfaith Divestment Network”4 that “aims to be a source of support and resources for Canadian faith communities and their members who are committed to or considering climate action, especially around fossil fuel divestment and clean energy reinvestment.

We’re now in 2014 (57 years after reporting CO2 buildup).  Governments of the world have met many times, 4 since 2007, in Bali, Copenhagen, Cancun and Qatar, and left with no concrete steps on how to move forward.

Determined not to lose hope and motivated to work to send a loud message to politicians, people from all walks of life will be marching on September 21 during the 2014 UN Climate Summit meetings taking place in New York City.  The ‘People’s Climate March’5 is being planned by hundreds of coordinated efforts among hundreds of social and environmental non-governmental and non-profit organizations.

Peoples Climate March

Marches around the world will also take place outside the U.S. during September as well.  The demands are clear5: “a world with an economy that works for people and the planet; a world safe from the ravages of climate change; a world with good jobs, clean air and water, and healthy communities.”  The film, Distruption,6 features leading scientists, historians, activists and faith-based leaders and documents the planning and calls to join the largest people’s march for the climate in the history of human beings.

These critical times in history challenge us to rethink who we are, where we’re going, and what ideals and ethical principles we struggle to live up to.  It is incumbent that we stand on the right side of history as concerned people who are empowered by scientific knowledge and rich inherited and collective human wisdom.

References:

1 http://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/international-action-against-ozone-depleting-substances-yields-significant-gains/index.html

2 https://www.wmo.int/pages/mediacentre/press_releases/pr_1002_en.html

3 ‘What We Know’ initiative on Climate Change from AAAS:http://whatweknow.aaas.org/get-the-facts/

4 http://fossilfreefaith.ca

5 http://peoplesclimate.org

6 http://watchdisruption.com

Hind Al-Abadleh is an Associate Professor of Chemistry at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, ON.  She could be reached via email: halabadleh@wlu.ca

British Muslims Go Green: 100km Cycle Challenge and First Eco Fair

 

Press Release: British Muslims went green this Saturday, 6th September, as Muslims from all over London took part in a 100km cycle ride from Mosque to Mosque. Muslims pray 5 times a day from dawn till dusk, and each ‘Salah’ prayer constituted a different stop at some of London’s most iconic houses of worship, from the East London Mosque, all the way to the al Manar Mosque in West London.

The ‘Tour de Salah’ challenge, organized by MADE in Europe, forms part of a wider campaign called ‘Green Up My Community’ supported by the City Bridge Trust and aimed at increasing awareness of environmental issues, as well as sustainable practice within the Muslim community. MADE is a grassroots organisation serving to empower young Muslims to make change within their communities, through campaigns and education. The Green Up Campaign is targeted towards Mosques, promoting awareness of climate change and its effects, as well as working with the Mosques to become beacons of environmental justice through efficient waste management and water and energy consumption.

One of the Mosques looking to take an active role on the issue is the London Central Mosque in Regents Park, which co-hosted the first Muslim-led Eco Fair with MADE. As the third ‘Salah’ stop on the map, this was an opportunity for people of all ages, family and friends, Muslims and non- Muslims, to gather for a day of fun and activities, and learn something new about the environment that we all share. With Mosques like Harrow Central, Kingston Muslim Association and the Palmers Green Mosque taking an active part in the cycling challenge, the future looks promising as more follow suit.

Environmental sustainability has become a topic of great urgency in the last few decades, and was cited as ‘one of the most serious threats we face’ by Prime Minister David Cameron. In the latest report by the UN, the effects of global warming were dubbed to be ‘severe, pervasive and irreversible’. UN General Secretary Ban Ki Moon has called world leaders to mobilise on September 23rd to discuss their commitment to reducing carbon emissions. On September 21st, people from different walks of life all over the world, including London, will be taking part in a ‘Climate March’ to demonstrate to their respective governments just how seriously they want their leadership to respond to this imminent threat.

“To some extent, it is understandable that the Muslim community is not leading the Environmental movement simply because the Muslim world in the modern era wasn’t at the forefront of damaging it,” comments prominent Muslim theologian, Sheikh Shams. “However, now that we are aware of the issue, given what our deen (religion) teaches us, given the teachings of our Prophet, we need to quickly catch up and get to the forefront because our rightful position is to be leading on all issues of preserving the environment,” he adds.

The Eco Fair boasted a range of activities and businesses, ranging from the pedal-your-own-smoothie bike, to organic and eco-friendly soaps and cosmetics, to Fairtrade cakes, solar-powered phone chargers, and upcycling workshops. The Imam of the Mosque, along with Sheikh Shams who was also cycling the whole leg, both stressed the importance of environmental activism. For many attendees, it was refreshing to see an initiative like this coming straight from within the Mosques. “I think this is a much needed event in the Muslim community, because environment and sustainability are among the key principles in Islam yet the average Muslim probably doesn’t think too much about it,“ remarks Mikhail, a Science teacher from Leicester.

“I never realized how much of a contribution bottled water actually has on the environment. Since coming here, I’ve just been thinking that we need to make a change,” commented David Tsan, one of the cyclists upon arriving at the Fair.

“If there is one thing that we all have in common, it is the custodianship of this planet,” remarked Sarah Javaid, co-founder and acting director of MADE. “In Islam, we believe that we have been given the responsibility of caretaking the Earth as Allah’s vicegerents, and so we see no better cause to unite over. It is great to be working with Mosques, and to see them leading the way on such initiatives. We hope to continue our work with Mosques and really watch them pioneer sustainable change“

As the threat of global warming increases by the day, such initiatives are a welcome effort and a call for further action from both the faith and non-faith communities to stand united in preserving our planet.

1.    MADE in Europe is a UK-registered charity which works to mobilise young Muslims to take action against global poverty through volunteering, campaigning and education.  For more info seewww.madeineurope.org.uk. 

2.    For more info on Tour de Salah: http://www.madeineurope.org.uk/get-involved/tour-de-salah

3.    For more info on the Eco Fair: http://www.madeineurope.org.uk/get-involved/made-fair

The Value of Trees in Islam

September 21-27, 2014 marks National Forest Week in Canada. To learn more on how you can become involved, please visit www.canadianforestry.com

By: Muaz Nasir

Many of us are aware of the environmental benefits of trees. They provide shelter and food for animals, purify the air of pollution and regulate the temperature within urban environments. They play a critical role in the quality of human life as well as the environmental well-being of our communities. Few would argue against the importance of trees, but have we really considered their full potential and the economical value of the services they provide?

Recently, TD Economics conducted a study analyzing the influence and impacts of trees within Toronto and came up with several noteworthy findings:

• Urban forests do more than beautify the scenery. They represent an important investment in environmental condition, human health and the overall quality of life.
• The trees in the City of Toronto’s urban forest are worth an estimated $7 billion, or about $700 per-tree.
• Toronto’s urban forests provides residents with over $80 million, or about $8 per-tree, worth of environmental benefits and costs savings each year. For the average single family household, this works out to $125 of savings per annum.
• For every dollar spent on annual maintenance, Toronto’s urban forest returns anywhere from $1.35-$3.20 worth of benefits each year.

From their study, trees play an important role in managing wet-weather flow, regulating air quality, contributing towards energy savings and sequestering carbon. This has become increasingly important as climate change has altered the weather patterns across Canada, with some areas experiencing extreme drought while others face localized flooding. There are also the societal benefits of a healthy forest canopy such as the aesthetic value of trees and their importance in naturalizing parks and boulevards.

In another study, TD Friends of the Environment found that 96% of Canadians feel it is important to plant trees today in order to sustain a healthy environment and improve the quality of life for future generations. While only two in ten Canadians participate in the tree-planting or greening initiatives, two-thirds were willing to volunteer a few hours if they believed there was a community benefit. There is a strong desire by Canadians to enhance the forest canopy and protect our natural areas.

What is Islam’s perspective of trees?

The Islamic tradition is rich in references about our responsibility as Muslims to act as stewards of the environment. The Quran also has numerous passages that describe the lush gardens and trees in heaven, highlighting their value not only in this world but their significance in the hereafter. There are several sayings from the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) that relate the importance of trees and plants in Islam.

1. Planting trees is regarded as an act of charity (sadaqa) and the planter receives blessings from all those who benefit from it:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "There is none amongst the Muslims who plants a tree or sows seeds, and then a bird, or a person or an animal eats from it, but is regarded as a charitable gift for him."

2. Trees are to be treated with respect and not to be unnecessarily harmed:

"I was throwing stones at a date-palm belonging to some of the Ansar. They tool me along with them to the Prophet (ﷺ). He said: "O Rafi'! Why were you throwing stones at their date-palm?'" He said: "I said: 'Out of hunger, O Messenger of Allah! He said: 'Do not throw stones at them, eat what falls. May Allah fill you and quench your thirst.'"

3. The Prophet also had a deep spiritual connection to trees:

The Prophet (ﷺ) used to stand by a tree or a date-palm on Friday. Then an Ansari woman or man said. "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! Shall we make a pulpit for you?" He replied, "If you wish." So they made a pulpit for him and when it was Friday, he proceeded towards the pulpit (for delivering the sermon). The datepalm cried like a child! The Prophet (ﷺ) descended (the pulpit) and embraced it while it continued moaning like a child being quietened. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "It was crying for (missing) what it used to hear of religious knowledge given near to it."

4. The Prophet also used trees as a metaphor to describe the believing Muslims:

We were with the Prophet (ﷺ) and fresh dates of a palm tree were brought to him. On that he said, "Amongst the trees, there is a tree which resembles a Muslim." I wanted to say that it was the datepalm tree but as I was the youngest of all (of them) I kept quiet. And then the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "It is the date-palm tree."

5. There are also several references to trees in the afterlife in both positive and negative contexts:

The Prophet said: “Whoever says: ‘Glory is to Allah, the Magnificent, and with His Praise (Subhan Allahil-Azim, Wa Bihamdih)’ a date-palm tree is planted for him in Paradise.” http://www.sunnah.com/tirmidhi/48/96

Regarding: 'And We granted the vision (Ascension to the Heaven "Miraj") which We showed you (O Muhammad as an actual eye witness) but as a trial for mankind.' (17.60) It was an actual eyewitness which was shown to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) during the night he was taken on a journey (through the heavens). And the cursed tree is the tree of Az-Zaqqum (a bitter pungent tree which grows at the bottom of Hell). http://www.sunnah.com/urn/43950

What we can take from these Hadiths is that planting and maintaining trees are an act of faith. Like all of creation, they should be respected and represent signs of Allah.

In Surat Al-Hajj, Allah says, “Do you not see that to Allah prostrates whoever is in the heavens and whoever is on the earth and the sun, the moon, the stars, the mountains, the trees, the moving creatures and many of the people?...”(Quran 22.18). Trees are given special mention as Allah created them as one of the many signs of His existence. The next time you are in a park, take a moment to pause and reflect on the beauty of their stature, the complexity of their lifecycle and the blessings they bestow upon us and other animals.

How can I become involved in planting trees?

There are several organizations that host planting events throughout the spring and fall seasons. If you are unable to attend an event, you can also donate to have trees or native shrubs planted on your behalf.

Tree Canada: A charitable not-for-profit organization, Tree Canada is committed to working with its corporate, government, and individual partners on tree-planting programs, including providing “ReLeaf” to areas suffering damage from natural disasters, offering funding to communities for fruit-bearing trees, providing schools with outdoor classrooms, and more.

Evergreen: Evergreen is a national not-for-profit that has been working since 1991 to restore the connection between Canada’s cities and the natural environment. Focusing on four program areas—Greenspace, Children, Food and CityWorks—Evergreen builds partnerships with diverse groups and engages key influencers and the public to inspire local action and create sustainable urban development.

TD Tree Days: As TD’s flagship urban greening program, TD Tree Days provides TD employees and their families, our customers and community partners the opportunity to demonstrate leadership in environmental stewardship in their local communities.

If you are interested in increasing the forest canopy on your property, many municipalities will plant trees on City-owned boulevards at no cost. If you are within the Greater Toronto Area, LEAF is an organization the provides valuable information about trees and species that are best suited to urban environments. They also provided assessments of your property on which trees will thrive in your soil and light conditions.

LEAF: LEAF is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the protection and improvement of the urban forest and engages citizens in urban forest stewardship through planting, education and training.

Interfaith Guided Hike - Photos

Thank you for attending the Greening Sacred Spaces Guided Hike yesterday afternoon. The feedback we received was overwhelmingly positive and everyone had a great time.

As promised, we have included some links to the participating organizations that helped put this event together. We would like to thank them for their contribution and for making this event a success.

Greening Sacred Spaces (http://www.greeningsacredspaces.net/)

Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (http://www.trca.on.ca/)

The Don Watershed (www.DiscovertheDon.ca)

Khaleafa.com (www.khaleafa.com)

City of Toronto (www.toronto.ca/parks)

The speakers that presented were:

Margaret McRae - Toronto Field Naturalists (http://www.torontofieldnaturalists.org/)

John Wilson - Lost Rivers (http://www.lostrivers.ca/)

Baruch Sienna - Author of The Natural Bible (http://thenaturalbible.weebly.com/)

Emily Gordon - M.Div. student

Jennifer Gordon - Green Awakening Network (http://www.tucc.ca/churchdevelopment/green-awakening-network.html)

Muaz Nasir - Toronto Water

TRCA Staff :

Michael Charendoff - Project Coordinator, Don River Watershed (mcharendoff@trca.on.ca)

Lisa Ward - Coordinator, Multicultural Program Stewardship & Outreach Education (lward@trca.on.ca)

Liana D'Andrea - Stewardship Assistant (ldandrea@trca.on.ca)

Interfaith Guided Hike

Khaleafa.com is a proud supporter of the upcoming Greening Sacred Spaces - Guided Hike. This interfaith stewardship activity will delve into the spiritual perspective on environmental and ecological stewardship. Spaces are limited, so sign up early to avoid disappointment. Join Greening Sacred Spaces for a guided hike at Taylor Creek Park! Conveniently located near the Victoria Park subway station and free of admission, this exciting event welcomes young adults from every faith background.

On this hike, you can look forward to guides from different faith communities and former members of the Don Watershed Regeneration Council. Religious leaders will address the following questions: “How does your faith articulate the need for stewardship of water and trees? How is that reflected in contemporary society?” You can also expect to participate in stewardship activities such as mulching, weeding, and picking up litter. Refreshments will also be served!

The hike will begin promptly at 2:00 pm at the Victoria Park subway station. Please wear closed-toe shoes and long pants. It is also advisable to bring a hat and a reusable water bottle.

This event is sponsored by Greening Sacred Spaces.

Alhamdulillah for Garlic

 

And [recall] when you said, "O Moses, we can never endure one [kind of] food. So call upon your Lord to bring forth for us from the earth its green herbs and its cucumbers and its garlic and its lentils and its onions." [Moses] said, "Would you exchange what is better for what is less? Go into [any] settlement and indeed, you will have what you have asked." And they were covered with humiliation and poverty and returned with anger from Allah [upon them]. That was because they [repeatedly] disbelieved in the signs of Allah and killed the prophets without right. That was because they disobeyed and were [habitually] transgressing. (Quran 2:61). 

Garlic has traditionally been used as a natural health remedy to treat various ailments for centuries both as a fresh plant and as a supplement. Research continues to demonstrate its antioxidant, anti-microbial, anti-cancer, anti-tension and anti-blood coagulation properties. It also regulates blood sugar, is high source of vitamin C and iodine and overall strengthens your immune system.  It truly is one of nature's miracle foods.

The “Alhamdulillah Series” was inspired by Ruzky Aliyar who featured a series of nature images with the tagline “Alhamdulillah”. The series was profiled on Muslim Matters during the Winter of 2012 and quickly drew praise for the simplicity of the message. Building upon this effort to remember the many blessings of Allah, Khaleafa.com has picked up the initiative and will continue to highlight the many signs of Allah.

“There truly are signs in this for people who reflect.” (Quran 13:3)

Charter for Compassion

Since its inception, Khaleafa.com has served as a portal to reignite the discussion about the environment from the Muslim-Canadian perspective. We have shared stories, profiled leaders and provided resources to highlight the contribution Islam can bring to the global environmental movement. What has remained at the core of our mandate has been to raise awareness about different aspects of the environment and identify ways that Muslims can become more engaged with our natural surroundings.

Part of this includes restoring compassion (rahama) towards the environment. Compassion towards nature; towards plants and animals; towards the delicate balance of the natural systems surrounding us. Compassion is a central tenet of the Islamic faith and an attribute that is best fostered in our relationship with nature.

On this note, Khaleafa.com is proud to become a signatory to the Charter for Compassion, an international cooperative effort to restore not only compassionate thinking but compassionate action to the center of religious, moral and political life. Compassion is the principled determination to put ourselves in the shoes of the others, and lies at the heart of all religious and ethical systems. In the context of the environmental movement, this also means developing an awareness of the role and responsibilities we have as stewards of this planet.

The best idea humanity has ever had…

The Charter for Compassion is a document that transcends religious, ideological, and national differences. Supported by leading thinkers from many traditions, the Charter activates the Golden Rule around the world.

The Charter for Compassion is a cooperative effort to restore not only compassionate thinking but, more importantly, compassionate action to the center of religious, moral and political life. Compassion is the principled determination to put ourselves in the shoes of the other, and lies at the heart of all religious and ethical systems.

---

The text of the Charter for Compassion:

The principle of compassion lies at the heart of all religious, ethical and spiritual traditions, calling us always to treat all others as we wish to be treated ourselves. Compassion impels us to work tirelessly to alleviate the suffering of our fellow creatures, to dethrone ourselves from the centre of our world and put another there, and to honour the inviolable sanctity of every single human being, treating everybody, without exception, with absolute justice, equity and respect.

It is also necessary in both public and private life to refrain consistently and empathically from inflicting pain. To act or speak violently out of spite, chauvinism, or self-interest, to impoverish, exploit or deny basic rights to anybody, and to incite hatred by denigrating others—even our enemies—is a denial of our common humanity. We acknowledge that we have failed to live compassionately and that some have even increased the sum of human misery in the name of religion.

We therefore call upon all men and women to restore compassion to the centre of morality and religion ~ to return to the ancient principle that any interpretation of scripture that breeds violence, hatred or disdain is illegitimate ~ to ensure that youth are given accurate and respectful information about other traditions, religions and cultures ~ to encourage a positive appreciation of cultural and religious diversity ~ to cultivate an informed empathy with the suffering of all human beings—even those regarded as enemies.

We urgently need to make compassion a clear, luminous and dynamic force in our polarized world. Rooted in a principled determination to transcend selfishness, compassion can break down political, dogmatic, ideological and religious boundaries. Born of our deep interdependence, compassion is essential to human relationships and to a fulfilled humanity. It is the path to enlightenment, and indispensable to the creation of a just economy and a peaceful global community.

If you represent an institution, organization, or community interested in signing the Charter, please visit the Charter for Compassion web site.

Greening Islam

Earlier this year, Sarrah AbuLughod, a Green Muslims Board Member, was interviewed by a reporter with Symbolia Magazine and Showtime on climate change. Her story was captured in comic format designed by Audrey Quinn and Luncy Bellwood and can be found as part of the Years of Living Dangerously series presented by Showtime.

Ramadan Reminders

Back by popular demand, Ramadan Reminders will be returning every week for you to share with your friends and family. These humorous reminders encourage Muslims to take the green alternative this Ramadan and think about the environmental consequences of everyday actions. For those who missed them last year, we have uploaded these cards for your enjoyment below. Check out our Facebook page for new additions every week during Ramadan.

Getting to Green During Ramadan

 

By Kori Majeed

Ramadan is the perfect boot camp for the soul. This Blessed Month is like thirty days of acting on New Year's resolutions, only we are working on them alongside our community. What better time to focus on getting green than during Ramadan when we are consciously trying to follow the Prophet's ﷺ example and create habits that will take us through until the next Ramadan.

Green habits are especially needed at the masjid during Ramadan as we spend more time at our local masjid reading Qur'an in the musullah during the last moments before maghrib prayer, breaking fast as a community with a shared iftar meal, and standing steadfast through tarawih prayers. But there is something about the time between maghrib and tarawih when we tend to relax our spiritual muscles…and our belts.

Americans could circle the equator 300 times with the amount of paper and plastic cups, forks and spoons we ditch in a year.1 Let me share another thing that Americans do big: we eat an average of a ton of food a year2. That statistic could not be more excessive until you read that a whopping 40 percent of food in the U.S. gets chucked in the trash, uneaten 3.

I'd like to think that the statistics of Muslim communities during Ramadan would be much, much lower, but personal experience tells me that, sadly, this is not the case. At the masjid we break our fast with a bottle of water and a bowl of dates. We throw that bottle and bowl in the trash on the way to maghrib prayer. After praying, we fill our plates to overflowing with birayani, chickpea daal, chicken and salad.

We get another bottle of water and a cup of tea. We eat, we drink, alhamdullilah. We get a second plate, alhamdullilah. We throw that water bottle, plate, cup, napkin, and fork in the trash along with portions of an uneaten second helping. As the saying goes, our eyes are bigger than our stomachs. We pray again.

Eat. Trash. Pray. Repeat.

Night after night of throwing away paper, plastic and styrofoam plates, cups, cutlery, napkins and paper towels. A lunar month of that unsustainable cycle leaves masses of trash produced by the 1.6 billion Muslims around the world. We stand in prayer begging for forgiveness and yet thoughtlessly and ironically toss out food during a month when we should be sympathizing with those who are hungry. Our Ummah has got to do better than that. What can the masjid do to make these beautiful community meals more green? How can individual Muslims curb their earthly impact during an intensely spiritual month?

Here are several often simple ways to green our masajid during Ramadan:

• Get in contact with local Muslim green advocates – like Sarah Jawaid of Green Muslims or Ibrahim Abdul Matin, author of Green Deen: What Islam Teaches About Protecting the Planet – who have the knowledge, expertise and enthusiasm to help our communities develop green habits at the masjid and at home.

• Form a masjid Green Team of ambassadors who are willing to take action to implement Green Ramadan tasks and educate and refocus the community on the conservation ethic inherent in Islam.

• Provide recycling options during iftar, like containers for collecting paper, plastic and food scraps for composting. Green ambassadors can make sure plates are scraped and recyclables are put in the proper bins.

• Broadcast Green Ramadan issues in Friday khutbahs, lectures and newsletters reminding believers to use the month of Ramadan as a time to examine our individual and collective impact on the earth.

• Use platters and pitchers to serve some food and drinks instead of individual bowls or plastic bottles.

• Use reusable plates, cups, cutlery and napkins. Masajid can buy their own, borrow them from a local restaurant or encourage community members to bring their own reusable dinnerware to masjid iftars, like Zero Trash Iftar Kits from GreenRamadan.com.

• Eat less meat. Yep, I said it. Just because it is halal doesn't mean we need to eat it every day. Diversify the iftar menu with vegetarian or vegan meals. Get even more creative by having nights when iftar meals are made solely from locally grown ingredients, are gluten free, 100 percent organic, or the meats are green zabiha (halal, organic and grass-fed).

• Too much food? Challenge community members to put on their plate only what they can eat. Individuals can also bring a reusable container to take leftovers home to eat for the next morning's suhoor or the masjid can donate extra food to local shelters or soup kitchens.

• Use food scraps to generate compost for the masjid grounds.

• Launch a Greenest masjid competition between local masajid to produce the least amount of trash during Ramadan.

• Use permanent markers to write names on cups and plates. There will be less confusion on which cup belongs to whom and thus less stuff thrown away due to fear of contracting cooties.

All that is on the earth belongs to Allah. He established a balance and a natural pattern in all mankind and then appointed mankind as khalifa on earth. In the Qur'an, Allah reminds us to “…eat and drink but waste not by excess, for Allah loves not the wasters.”

Insha'Allah, we can work together to revive the sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ reducing our consumption and cultivating our environmental consciousness and stewardship, all the while saving our masajid money and minimizing the environmental impact of our Ramadan iftars. May these small efforts be the ones that secure our place in Paradise.

 You can learn more about Kori Majeed on her site Green Ramadan

This article was originally published on MuslimsMatters on July 2nd, 2014. 

[1] Wills, A. (2010, June 21). Recycling To-Go Plastics. Retrieved June 2014, fromhttp://earth911.com/news/2010/06/21/recycling-to-go-plastics/

[2] Aubrey, A. (31 December 2011. The Average American Ate (Literally) A Ton This Year. Retrieved June 2014, fromhttp://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2011/12/31/144478009/the-average-american-ate-literally-a-ton-this-year

[3] National Resources Defense Council. (2012, August 21). Wasted: How America Is Losing Up to 40 Percent of Its Food from Farm to Fork to Landfill. Retrieved June 2014, from http://www.nrdc.org/food/wasted-food.asp

Islam offers important lessons for environmental movement

By: Syed Rizvi,

When I first heard of Obama’s most recent plan to combat climate change, I thought about the issue of the environment more broadly.Ninety-seven percent of scientists say climate change exists, and according to 18 scientific associations,humans are the prevailing cause for this change. Putting aside the inevitable political wrangling over such a plan, the environment is something that stands as a universal concern. The details of Obama’s plan may receive legitimate criticism, but cutting coal pollution is without a doubt a prudent course of action. Yet Congress and the American people are having difficulties coming together on this issue.

About 83 percent of Americans are affiliated with a religion, thus religion is a driving force for a majority of Americans. In addition, faith is the biggest authority on morality, and environmentalism is a moral issue. That is why religion can and should take leadership and provide political aid to environmentalism. It should boggle the mind of any conscientious person why environmentalists haven’t been able to team up with religious blocs, including Jews, Christians and Muslims. I don’t know the answer to that question, but I can speak on Islam’s articulated and well-documented beliefs on protecting the environment. Recognizing Islam’s position on the environment will help redefine a widely misunderstood and misjudged religion so that Muslims and non-Muslims can work together on tackling environmental issues here at the University of Texas at Austin and abroad.

To determine the ‘Islamic view’ on any certain issue one must reference Islamic jurisprudence, which is derived from two main sources. The first source is the fourth and the most holy of holy books, the Quran, and the second source is hadiths, or the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). It is important to note that while the beliefs presented here are held by a majority of Islamic schools of thought, if not all, there are still varying interpretations, and if a conclusion has consensus it may be reached by different means. In fact, there are four schools of jurisprudence in the Sunni sect of Islam and also a separate Shia sect of Islam.

In regard to the preservation and protection of the environment, Dr. Nasr Farid Wasil, the former Mufti of Egypt, or Sunni scholar and interpreter of jurisprudence, states that humans “must keep the universe as pure and magnificent as Allah [the Arabic word for God] has created it” because humans are the guardians of the world. One of the supporting pieces of evidence is Surah, or chapter, 16 verses 5-14from the Quran, which talks about humans being entrusted with the world and its bounties. Nearly 1,400 years ago, Imam Jafar al-Sadiq (peace and blessings be upon him), a divinely guided leader for Shiites and the father of the Sunni schools of thought, wrote extensively on the sciences. His writings warned that we should not pollute the environment, otherwise the planet would become uninhabitable. Surah 6 verse 141 supports Imam Jafar al-Sadiq’s (peace and blessings be upon him) scientific postulation with a stern warning to humanity not to be wasteful and harvest the land in consideration of its vitality.

In addition to the the Holy Quran and its teachers, Muslims look to the greatest teacher the Messenger, Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). Muslims find answers to many of life’s questions in hadiths. According to Al-Bukhari and Muslim, Sunni collections of hadiths, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is reported to have said that “Muslims will always earn the reward of charity for planting a tree, sowing a crop and the birds, humans, and animals eat from it.”

With this brief introduction of Islamic jurisprudence on environmentalism, it is important to know that there is real work being done by Muslims in today’s world. Although without the force of law, the Indonesian Ulama Council, Indonesia’s top Muslim clerical body, made the unprecedented move recently of outlawing all activities resulting in wildlife extinction, and in Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, called for “all-out endeavors to protect the environment in Iran, and urged a halt to the environmental damage caused by the new constructions,” according to the Tasnim News Agency, an Iranian government news agency. In addition, there are Muslim organizations that strive to protect and conserve the environment like the Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Environmental Sciences.

However, this is not nearly enough. Here in Austin and more broadly in America, the Muslim community is not as concerned with environmental issues. For example, in recent history, none of the Muslim organizations at the University of Texas at Austin have hosted or organized an event with the purpose of supporting environmentalism. This may be a problem shared by communities of other faiths; however, as a Muslim, it is important not only to educate but to act. As Muslims, it is important to realize that protecting the environment is a part of our faith as clearly demonstrated, and for non-Muslims, it is vital to see the Muslim community as partners in the advancement of our world and its shared goals. Religious organizations on campus working together can serve not only to build on Austin’s environmental accomplishments but also to build mutual understanding, working toward a political unity that promotes a moral voice on issues like environmentalism, so that cutting coal emissions is not all that we do to combat climate change.

This article was originally published in The Daily Texan on June 12th, 2014. 

Canada Muslim Kids Go Green

BRAMPTON — Muslim volunteers in Ontario’s city of Mississauga have launched a new campaign to raise environmental awareness, planting 300 trees in the wooded areas in the Peel region.

“We wanted to teach kids the notion of ‘sadaqa-e-jariya’,” Abdul Wahab, head imam of Muslim Welfare Centre, told Northumberland News on Tuesday, June 3.

“We also wanted to preserve the conservation area along Mississauga and Brampton,” said Wahab.

In a campaign sponsored by Mississauga’s Muslim Welfare Centre, more than 100 young Muslim volunteers participated in the one-day drive and planted hundreds of trees.

The volunteers included around 80 students, ranging in age from grades 1 to 12, as well as teachers and volunteers from Muslim Welfare Centre.

Cooperating to make the event successful, Mina, one of Canada’s leading halal food companies, sponsored the event and provided free food and drinks to all participants.

Though it is the first to be led by the Islamic center, Sunday’s event is not the last.

Wahab said that MWC hoped to continue tree planting next year.

The MWC is a community service group, which operates under the slogan that 'Service to Humanity is Service to Allah'.

Muslims make around 2.8 percent of Canada's 32.8 million population, and Islam is the number one non-Christian faith in the country.

A recent survey showed that the overwhelming majority of Muslims are proud to be Canadian, and that they are more educated than the general population.

‘Sadaqa-e-jariya’ (continuous charity) is a kind of donation, which is highly encouraged in Islam.

Under this category, the donor is believed to keep getting rewarded as people, as well as all other living creatures, are benefiting from the charity, even after the death of the donor.

This article was originally published on OnIslam on June 4th, 2014. 

One Million Trees Campaign

Earth

Help Evergreen improve wildlife habitat in Mississauga by joining us to plant native trees and shrubs in the Applewood Greenbelt!

Saturday, May 31 10am–noon

A planting demonstration will be provided, along with gloves, tools, and light refreshments. Event will run rain or shine. Please dress in weather-appropriate clothing, including sturdy (closed-toe) footwear, and bring a water bottle.

Evergreen supports the City of Mississauga's One Million Tree Campaign and will be entering the plant information on their behalf.

Location and Meeting Place: Applewood Greenbelt is located Southeast of Eastgate Pkwy and Tomken Road in Mississauga, and is accessible from Willowbank Trail between Lee Drive and Highgate Place. An Evergreen representative will meet you on the north side of Willowbank Trail. See map for more information.

If driving, parking is available along Willowbank Trail, as well as in designated areas along the other residential streets. Transit, cycling, walking or carpooling is encouraged. For a transit route near you consult the Mississauga Trip Planner.

Alhamdulillah for Spring

 

And Allah has sent down rain from the sky and given life thereby to the earth after its lifelessness. Indeed in that is a sign for a people who listen (Quran 16:65).

The “Alhamdulillah Series” was inspired by Ruzky Aliyar who featured a series of nature images with the tagline “Alhamdulillah”. The series was profiled on Muslim Matters during the Winter of 2012 and quickly drew praise for the simplicity of the message. Building upon this effort to remember the many blessings of Allah, Khaleafa.com has picked up the initiative and will continue to highlight the many signs of Allah.

“There truly are signs in this for people who reflect.” (Quran 13:3)

10 Green Hadiths

Forest

By: Muhammad Fathi

Did the Prophet (peace and blssings be upon him) say anything about saving our planet? Did he promote any ideas or practices relevant to the world's growing concern about the future of the earth and its resources?

Today, with the increasing awareness of the dangers facing our planet and the great interest in green ideas, a reflection on the guidance of the Prophet in this area proves helpful and relevant. What is distinctive about the Prophet's approach to environmental issues is the connection he establishes between green practices and the Hereafter reward, which represents for Muslims an incentive greater than any worldly gain or reward and, as a result, prompts a greater care for the earth and more effort to conserve its resources.

Plant a tree even if it is your last deed:

1. Anas (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “If the Hour (the day of Resurrection) is about to be established and one of you was holding a palm shoot, let him take advantage of even one second before the Hour is established to plant it.” (Authinticated by Al-Albani)

Planting trees is a renewable source of hasanat:

2. Anas also reported that the Prophet said, "If a Muslim plants a tree or sows seeds, and then a bird, or a person or an animal eats from it, it is regarded as a charitable gift (sadaqah) for him." (Bukhari)

Conserve resources even when used for rituals:

3. Abdullah ibn Amr ibn Al-`Aas (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet passed one day by Sa`d ibn Abi Waqas (May Allah be pleased with him) while he was performing wudu' (ritual cleaning of body parts in preparation for prayer). The prophet asked Sa`d, "Why is this wastage?" Sa`d replied "Is there wastage in wudu also?" The Prophet said, "Yes, even if you are at a flowing river." (Ahmad and authenticated Ahmad Shakir)

Keeping environment clean is important:

4. Mu`adh (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet warned, "Beware of the three acts that cause you to be cursed: relieving yourselves in shaded places (that people utilize), in a walkway or in a watering place." (Ranked sound, hasan, by Al-Albani)

5. Abu Zarr Al-Ghafari (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Removing harmful things from the road is an act of charity (sadaqah)." (Authenticated by Al-Albani)

No for over-consumption! Consider recycling and fixing before buying new items:

6. Abdullah ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet said, "The believer is not he who eats his fill while his neighbor is hungry." (Authenticated by Al-Albani)

7. Asked about what the Prophet used to do in his house, the Prophet's wife, `A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her), said that he used to repair his shoes, sow his clothes and used to do all such household works done by an average person. (Authenticated by Al-Albani)

8. The Prophet said, "Whoever kills a sparrow or anything bigger than that without a just cause, Allah will hold him accountable on the Day of Judgment."  The listeners asked, "O Messenger of Allah, what is a just cause?" He replied, "That he will kill it to eat, not simply to chop off its head and then throw it away." (An-Nasa'i)

Animals should be cared for:

9. Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet said, "A man felt very thirsty while he was on the way, there he came across a well. He went down the well, quenched his thirst and came out. Meanwhile he saw a dog panting and licking mud because of excessive thirst. He said to himself, "This dog is suffering from thirst as I did." So, he went down the well again, filled his shoe with water, held it with his mouth and watered the dog. Allah appreciated him for that deed and forgave him." The Companions said, "O Allah's Messenger! Is there a reward for us in serving the animals?" He replied: "There is a reward for serving any living being." (Bukhari)

10. Abdullah ibn `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet said, "A woman entered the (Hell) Fire because of a cat which she had tied, neither giving it food nor setting it free to eat from the vermin of the earth." (Bukhari)

This article was originally published on OnIslam on April 22, 2014.