In 2015 Pope Francis made one of the most influential interventions into the global climate conversation. Laudato Si threw the weight of the Catholic Church behind a new climate agreement, set in the context of inequality, poverty and disenfranchisement. It kickstarted a climate movement within the church, including spin-off initiatives such as the Economy of Francesco project.
Islamic scholars have now done something similar with Al Mizan – A Covenant for the Earth. A coalition of partners, convened by UNEP, began work on the declaration in 2019. It was circulated among a group of 300 different institutions for feedback, refined and finally published last week. Meaning balance, Al Mizan re-states some foundational principles of the Islamic faith and applies them to climate change. Muslims should seek the public good, avoid wrong action, and act in moderation. Throught applied principles such as these, the statement “aims to demonstrate how Islam can be a driving force for sustainable development and environmental care.”
Given the location of the world’s oil and gas reserves, the writers have not pulled their punches. “Our energy-hungry consumer civilisation has been damaging the Earth’s ecosystems twice over: firstly, by gouging and pumping the fossil fuels, coal, oil, and gas, out of the bowels of the Earth where they were formed and locked in by geological processes over millions of years and secondly, by releasing carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, mainly by burning these fuels.”
“Our behaviour has drastically interfered with the equilibrium, mīzān in the language of the Qur’an, of the Earth’s interconnected systems,” they go on to say, explaining the origins of the title.
In response, they “call upon the governing authorities and corporations in Islamic and other countries to take the actions necessary to transition swiftly from fossil fuels, to usher in a global economy powered by sun, wind, and water.” They then endorse the Fossil Fuels Non-Proliferation Treaty that I mentioned last week.
These are courageous words, and I don’t know how they will be received by the governments addressed so directly here. But it will be interesting to see the discussion this prompts, including among my Muslim neighbours and colleagues here in Luton.
The Earthbound Report 
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