"Al-Mizan: The World Environmental Covenant" to be Shared with Turkish Public on September 26

Prepared under the leadership of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), "Al-Mizan: The World Environmental Covenant" will be shared with the Turkish public on September 26. The Covenant aims to be a common call to action for the Islamic world regarding the planet's ongoing climate crisis.

The common call to action for the Islamic world, aiming to address the climate crisis facing the planet, "Al-Mizan: The World Environmental Covenant", will be shared with the Turkish public on September 26 at 10:30 AM, in Üsküdar Üniversitesi (ÜÜ) Nermin Tarhan Conference Hall.

"Al-Mizan: The World Environmental Covenant" was prepared under the leadership of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), in collaboration with the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), the Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Environmental Sciences (IFEES), Üsküdar Üniversitesi Environmental Ethics Forum, Qatar Quranic Botanic Garden, and Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar.

The opening speech of the program will be delivered by Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan. Subsequently, Prof. Dr. İbrahim Özdemir, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at ÜÜ and Director of the Environmental Ethics Forum, will give a speech titled "Al-Mizan for Our Future."

Climate Change and Global Collaborations

An increasing collaboration has developed among religious organizations, scientific research forums, civil society groups, and international organizations in understanding and finding solutions to the problems caused by climate change. Members of different religions and cultures living on the same planet have begun to discuss, debate, and share their common problems and moral sensibilities. The UNEP Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs) strategy document was published in 2018.

One of the initiative's strong successes was the Faith for Earth Coalition, launched in October 2020. Working with faith-based actors to address the Sustainable Development Goals and common environmental priorities also took shape during this process. The idea of an Islamic Environmental Covenant, which would later be named "Al-Mizan: The World Environmental Covenant," emerged at the 8th Islamic Conference of Environment Ministers in Rabat, organized by UNEP-Faith for Earth Initiative and the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

1.8 Billion Muslims Aim to Embrace Sustainability

ICESCO, IFEES, Üsküdar Üniversitesi, Qatar Quranic Botanic Garden, the Faculty of Islamic Studies at Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar, and the Faith for Earth Initiative came together to articulate Islam's teachings related to the environment, so that 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide can adopt sustainability as part of their daily lives. The text, named "al-mīzān" – a fundamental concept in the Quran found in Surah Ar-Rahman (the 55th Surah of the Quran) – is seen as a covenant and pledge made by Muslims with the world. For this reason, it was named "Al-Mizan: The World Environmental Covenant."

The first draft of the Covenant was shared globally with over 300 Islamic institutions for feedback and consultation. It is hoped that the Covenant will establish competencies and partnership networks between those working on religion, environment, and sustainable development issues, as well as scientists and research centers, both within the Islamic world and beyond. The text of the Covenant will first be presented to the Islamic Conference of Environment Ministers and then to the United Nations. "Al-Mizan: The World Environmental Covenant" has been translated into Turkish, Arabic, German, and French. Translations into other languages are ongoing.

Offers an Islamic Perspective on the Environment

"Al-Mizan: The World Environmental Covenant" offers an Islamic perspective on the environment to strengthen local, regional, and international actions combating climate change and other threats to the planet. It stands out as a global effort to involve Islamic scholars and Muslim institutions in developing and adopting the call. The text aims to re-articulate the principles governing the preservation of nature in a way that meets current challenges, examining the moral dimension behind the social order of human existence.

Beginning with an assessment of the world's current state, the text invites its audience to reflect deeply on this situation, i.e., to engage in 'tafakkur'. It highlights the consequences of global climate change by referencing human heritage. Furthermore, the Covenant calls on all Muslims to take individual responsibility within a civil and democratic understanding to find solutions to their problems without losing hope.

The main headings of the Covenant are as follows:

• Signs in the Cosmos and on Earth: An Integrated Approach,
• Allah as Ar-Rahman: Cosmic Balance,
• Al-Mīzān: Balance and Reciprocity,
• Khilafah fi 'l-Ard: Vicegerency on Earth: The Well-being of the Whole,
• Working for Ultimate Good Towards All: Ethos and Morality,
• Moral Dimensions of Tawhid,
• Rahmah: Mercy,
• Shukr: Gratitude,
• Responding to the Signs of Ar-Rahman,
• Understanding the Signs of Ar-Rahman,
• Our Foremost Example on Environmental Matters: A Mercy to the Worlds: Prophet Muhammad (PBUH),
• Equality and Justice: Rethinking Prosperity, Development, and Lifestyle, Sources of Life, Accountability in Using Life's Resources,
• Animal Welfare and Animal Rights,
• Hunting and Fishing,
• Ecological Planning: Design Inspired by Nature,
• Ecological Design: The Islamic Garden Design Tradition,
• Environmental Activism: The Way Forward.

Source: ekoıQ