In August 2015, a remarkable gathering of Islamic leaders from twenty countries met in Istanbul, Turkey, to launch an “Islamic Declaration on Climate Change.” The stated goal of the symposium was to reach “broad unity and ownership from the Islamic community around the Declaration.”Footnote 1 The initiative came about through a coalition of non-profit organizations working on environmental education in Muslim societies. However, in addition to civil society groups, the declaration also had three significant institutional partners that suggest the mainstream credentials of this initiative: The Islamic Scientific Educational and Cultural Organization (ISESCO), which models itself on UNESCO for Muslim countries and is based in Morocco; The Organization of the Islamic Conference, which is the largest intergovernmental organization of Muslim States; and The International Islamic Fiqh Academy based in Saudi Arabia.
What was also notable about the declaration was its willingness to challenge the fossil fuel economy of the Middle East, a region that remains the heartland of Islam's origin and holy sites despite the dominant demographic dispersal of the Muslim diaspora in South and Southeast Asia. Although statements made by the attendees were not reflective of official national policies of governments like Saudi Arabia, the fact that scholars were comfortable making them indicates that space for such discussions can open even in the fossil-fuel economies. One could also argue that the fossil-fuel economies did not object to these statements because they see the initiative as inconsequential to political decisions on high. However, this would be a cynical reading of the changing reality of environmental consciousness in the Middle East. The transformation of Dubai from an oil economy to a service economy has shown that using capital accumulated through the age of oil and gas to diversify is possible and prudent. There has also been a concern among Saudi investors such as Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal regarding the challenge of “stranded assets” that could result from investments in fossil fuels (“Saudi Prince” 2013). Furthermore, the Saudi government has been following an ambitious renewable energy research and development program since 2010 when a royal decree established the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KCARE), and has shown its willingness to engage with climate change discourse due to its own vulnerabilities to global warming (Nachmany et al. Reference Nachmany2015).
This was not the first time that Islamic scholars had convened to focus on climate change. In 2008, twenty-two participants from Islamic NGOs, academia, government, and Muslim environmental activist groups from fourteen countries convened a forum under the auspices of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). They drew up a “Seven Year Plan for Islamic Action on the Environment.” This workshop was the first step of a project initiated by the Earth-Mates Dialogue Centre (EMDC) and the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC) “to harness the teachings, values and ethical law of the Islamic faith in the service of humanity, in order to meet one of the most serious challenges in the contemporary world” (ARC 2008). Although there has not been a detailed review publicized of the seven year mandate of this group, the year 2015 was also opportune to reinvigorate this effort, marking the seventh anniversary of the plan's launch.
The Istanbul Declaration of August 2015 amply referenced Qurʾanic verses and Ahadith (sayings and traditions of the Prophet Muhammad) and quite specifically set targets for Muslim countries. There was even a call for businesses in Muslim countries to divest from fossil fuels in clause 3.4. Such bold statements being supported by a fairly robust and influential group of organizations will undoubtedly lead to some pressure on countries in the Middle East to respond to this global challenge. Given the advent of the United Nations major Climate Change Conference (the 21st Conference of the Parties on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) in which the future of the beleaguered climate change treaty will be decided, the timing is opportune. There is perhaps some interfaith competition to show relevance and tenacity on this issue following Pope Francis's landmark encyclical on the environment. However, it may be worth considering how we reached this point and the likelihood of this bold declaration gaining real traction for action in the Middle East.
Environmental Ethos in Islamic Societies
The advent of Islam as an organized religion occurred in the desert environment of Arabia, and hence there was considerable attention paid to ecological concerns within Islamic ethics. While Islamic theology is not pantheistic, and shares many of the anthropocentric attributes of other Abrahamic faiths, there is a reverence of nature that stems from essential pragmatism within the faith. Due to resource constraints, early Muslims realized that long-term development was only possible within ecological constraints which were shared by all of humanity. Furthermore, Islam considers environmental deterioration as symptomatic of social injustice and hence development and the environment are inextricably linked. As the foundational scripture of Islam, all doctrines must be legitimized through Qurʾanic injunctions and curricular efforts must first acknowledge that there is indeed a scriptural basis for this linkage between environment and development.
The first linkage in this regard is made through the concept of mizan (Surah 42: Verse 17; Surah 55: Verses 7–9, Surah 57: Verses 25) or balancing the material and immaterial worlds (dunya and din). The concept of mizan was also invoked in the Istanbul Declaration. Unlike the ascetic traditions in Hinduism or Buddhism, seeking wealth is considered a worthy goal in Islam (Surah 62: Verse 10). Thus the Qurʾan recognizes that economic development is essential but that it must not be undertaken in excess or by compromising earthly limits (Surah 47: Verse 12). There is thus a clear distinction made between consumption for improving the human condition and wanton consumerism. A most salient aspect in the Islamic scriptural tradition is the constant reference to the natural world. Repeatedly Muslims are reminded to reflect upon the natural systems and their obligations of stewardship through the concept of khilafah (Surah 2, Verse 30). The Islamic Declaration on Climate Change referenced this context and noted that we are now living in the Anthropocene (the epoch of humans) and hence the duties of khalifah have particular applicability.
Several organizations have been taking root in the Muslim World to further manifest these environmental norms. Of course given the vast geographic expanse of Islamic countries from Indonesia to Morocco, there is a wide spectrum of ideas and perspectives, and therefore, it is important to highlight that Muslims, like others engaged in the environmental movement, may have many different ideas influencing their decision to join this global effort. This responsibility is built upon a connection between primary textual sources from the Qurʾan and prophetic traditions (Ahadith), which highlights the interconnectedness of the Islamic ethos, in theory and practice, for Muslims. It is upon this interconnectedness that individuals, communities, and governmental organizations are establishing a solid foundation, which has reinvigorated Muslims’ commitment to sound environmental practices.
Environmental activism in Muslim societies has often been galvanized by charismatic political or religious leaders or by a pressing ecological challenge. For example, the rapid urbanization of the United Arab Emirates led to a concomitant rise in environmental leadership. In particular, a shaykh of the Emirate of Ajman, Abdul Aziz Al-Nuaimi, labels himself “The Green Sheikh,” and has initiated a growing movement in the region to focus on ecological conservation in sync with Islamic culture. Contemporary organizations are also trying to link Islamic architecture in desert regions with energy conservation principles. The development of the low-carbon Masdar City in Abu Dhabi is an example of a centrally planned effort to instill environmental education and design within an urban development initiative. However, this project remains an enclave within a more conventional swath of infrastructure development in the region. The challenge will be to upscale the lessons from Masdar City and replicate features of the environmental impact mitigation therein across the region.
At the grassroots level, The Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Environmental Sciences in Birmingham U.K., established by Sri Lankan Muslim Fazlun Khalid in 1996 was among the first organizations to focus on environmental education at the community level within an Islamic context. Numerous other organizations have also developed in North America with a similar mandate. There is also a growing genre of scholarship around Islam and the environment from the elementary school level all the way to tertiary education. For example, the Pesantren Lingkungan Giri Ilmu (an Islamic religious school in Central Java Indonesia) has a structured experiential education curriculum for students who learn to grow crops through organic methods as an example of their service to Islam (Gade Reference Gade2012. There are also increasing numbers of courses in Islam, and the environment in universities and centers of higher learning are now keeping pace with environmental movements in other religious traditions. The Zaytuna College in Berkeley, California, hosted a meeting in 2013 to bring Muslim school teachers across America together to train them in experiential environmental education within an Islamic context (Pasquini, Reference Pasquini2013).
The True Greening of the Middle East?
In order for a more coherent “greening” process to be realized in the Middle East itself, there needs to be a clear analysis of the direct linkage between political, economic, and environmental factors. There are specific areas where such connections have much potential for positive impact. For instance, environmental scarcity could fuel greater conflict and humanitarian crises in the region. There is already research showing that the Syrian conflict could be linked partly to climate change conditions impacting water availability, agricultural productivity, and social distress (Gleick Reference Gleick2014). No doubt overexploitation of water resources due to population growth and affluent high-impact lifestyles are a primary cause of water insecurity. Climate change is further increasing vulnerabilities and conflicts in what is already a precarious situation.
Climatic changes are also being exacerbated by wars that can cause extensive pollution and resource stress as noted in a recent report by the United Nations on the Gaza conflict that suggests the region would be uninhabitable by 2020 (UNCTAD 2015). EcoPeace Middle East, a unique organization with joint offices in Israel, Jordan, and Palestine, has noted the urgency of addressing these challenges in much of its recent work as well as realizing the potential for using environmental issues as a peace-building strategy.Footnote 2 Environmental peace-building around the common threat of climate change also has potential in Iraq as a means of bringing Shiʿa and Sunni communities closer towards a superordinate goal on which there is no theological disagreement (Ali Reference Ali2007).
At the same time there is also a need to mainstream the greening of the Middle East beyond boutique projects. For example, the Masdar City initiative, though laudable, is designed to accommodate only about 40,000 people and it is not clear how the broader economy of the UAE might be impacted by this effort (Reiche Reference Reiche2010). If the initiative is considered as a prototype to transform the fossil fuel economy of the Gulf States then that is indeed a transformative approach. However, if the city is merely a tourist attraction with a university as its centerpiece then the impact may be more limited. An important positive step taken by the United Arab Emirates has been to provide support for the establishment of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and to hosts its headquarters in Abu Dhabi, eventually within Masdar City itself. Countries in the Middle East should lead the way towards empowering IRENA to play a more transformative role in the current energy economy in sync with traditional norms within their dominant Islamic traditions (Turfe, Reference Turfe2011).
Although such major changes to truly “green the Middle East” may take time, the positive momentum being built in the region around addressing climate change is a sign that substantive change is being considered. Veteran environmentalist writer Bill McKibben summed up his reaction to the Islamic Declaration on Climate Change as “an ongoing shift in the zeitgeist” (McKibben Reference McKibben2015). There is little doubt that Islam has been more inertial than other Abrahamic faith traditions because of its more dominant literalist interpretation of scripture. This in turn has also led to greater inertia on many social policy changes in the Middle East. However, environmental issues are emerging as an area where liberal politics are now finding some congruence with dominant scriptural interpretations. There is thus potential for both policy unity in the Middle East around environmental issues as well as for harnessing peace dividends of environmental engagement for the region.
