I RECENTLY spoke at a conference on sustainable development organised by the Institute for Islamic Development (Ikim), the nation’s think thank on Islam. The theme for the conference was “Understanding the Islamic perspectives of sustainable development”. Though the conference was meant to deliberate on the Islamic interpretation of sustainable development, participants from other religions also came. In fact, there was a paper by a speaker from a Buddhist education organisation from Thailand. Ikim deserves a big pat on the back for taking the initiative to hold an interfaith discussion on such an important topic as sustainable development. My paper on the topic of “science and sustainable development” was slotted in the session on governance and policy.
That opportunity to present a paper proved to be an eye-opener for me. I never knew that there were so many verses in the Quran that advocate sustainable development as a form of ibadah (worship) for Muslims. I am not sure if many among Muslims are aware of this. My guess is that many are not privy to the calling for Muslims to embrace sustainable development as a matter of religious directive. Otherwise, we would not see the rampant abuse of nature by man, including Muslims.
Such abuses include many acts that we like to think are not in conflict with the teachings of Islam. How very wrong we are. Going by many Quranic verses, even the simple act of throwing rubbish into rivers can be considered un-Islamic. So is the indiscriminate cutting of trees, which leads to the serious problems of erosion and disastrous landslides. In a way, the devastation of Cameron Highlands, as recently reported, is actually very un-Islamic.
In preparing the presentation, I came across many analyses by Islamic scholars on how Islam views sustainable development. Evidence of sustainable living advocated by the Quran has been cited by many scholars. Verses that support sustainable development directly and indirectly are clearly espoused in the Quran. These include the need to respect all creations of Allah, since man has been given the responsibility to be the custodian of all beings; the call for the sharing of Allah’s bounties among all mankind, including future generations; and, the constant calling to rid mankind of lust, selfishness and greed.
We are all familiar with the Western concepts. The often-quoted Western definition of “sustainable development” is, of course, that which is espoused by the highly cited Brundtland Report. In the report, sustainable development is defined as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. In the Islamic definition, sustainable development is essentially about not depriving future generations of the same opportunities and access to nature’s blessings, as enjoyed by the current generation. Therefore, for Muslims, going against the spirit of sustainable development is considered sinful.
Though the Islamic and Western definitions do not differ much, the actual practices in pursuing sustainable development do differ. Both, of course, agree on the fact that future generations should have the same access to the natural resources provided by Allah in pursuing their opportunities in life. But in Islam, there is a strong calling for the sharing of knowledge to embark on the path of sustainable development. The West has, over the years, come up with much rhetoric to share technologies to support sustainable development. But in practice, the opposite is true.
Take the classic example of sharing technologies to treat waste. The West has always hesitated. In fact, one of the sticky issues in the global agreement to tackle climate change is technology transfer. The West, which has the technologies, is hesitant to share. We, therefore, have no choice but to develop our own.
It is clear that there is much evidence in the Quran that confirms that Islam has long preached sustainable development before it even became an obsession of the West. Muslims need to be aware of this. It is, therefore, imperative for Muslims to treat sustainable development as a religious commitment. This further goes to show that Islam is a complete religion. It is not just about the rituals of praying and fasting. Islam is a way of life.