By Huda Alkaff

Mar/Apr 2024

During Ramadan, Muslims ideally sacrifice some of their own comfort while focusing on compassion, mercy and charitable giving to the hungry, thirsty, poor and disadvantaged. However, while one can fast from food and water for specific periods of time, our bodies cannot fast from air because clean air is the most life-giving force upon which we rely. In Islam, the breath is related to a person’s physical and spiritual life. Deep breathing can be very helpful in managing one’s physical, emotional, and psychological problems.

That’s why as we work for healthy food and clean water for our communities, we also need to demand clean air for all. This is especially true for our friends and family who live near busy highways, ports and distribution centers choked by toxic air pollution from the daily deluge of truck traffic. 

The air pollution that causes asthma and lung disease, which kills thousands every year, has many causes. However, toxic diesel exhaust from trucks is particularly dangerous, for it is also an egregious form of environmental injustice that overwhelmingly hurts low-income people and people of color. According to the EPA, over 70 million people across the U.S. live within 675 feet of major trucking routes and thus experience higher rates of exposure and health risks. Because those highways and warehouse distribution centers have historically been concentrated in or near low-income communities, people of color, children, and the poor disproportionately bear the brunt.

Wars are an additional challenge, for, as Jennifer Dathan has stated, “Explosive weapons can devastate a landscape. They can reduce buildings to toxic rubble and destroy long-cherished trees. They can contaminate the soil for decades and cause poisons to leach into once healthy rivers. They can decimate ecosystems and disturb the harmony of nature. They kill humans and animals without reflection and tip the world out of balance” (“The broken land: The environmental consequences of explosive weapon use,” July 3, 2020, reliefweb.int).

Culprit Trucks 

Diesel-burning trucks are also a climate disaster. Even though heavy-duty vehicles make up barely 5% of all vehicles on the road, they contribute more than 25% of greenhouse gas emissions within the transportation sector. This is already the largest contributor to carbon pollution in the U.S., not to mention a major source of other air pollutants like nitrogen oxides and deadly particulate matter. In Wisconsin, for example, transportation contributes to even higher emissions — over 30% of our state’s greenhouse gas emissions are from cars and trucks. In cities like Milwaukee, our communities are pushing for stricter emission standards, a transition to cleaner electric trucks and buses and a more robust and sustained support for public transit.

Wisconsin Green Muslims, a grassroots environmental justice group formed in 2005, connects faith, environmental justice, sustainability, and healing through education and service. They are working with partners like the Clean Air for the Long-Haul Cohort, a national coalition of environmental justice organizations working collectively to advance environmental justice by seeking emissions reductions in the power and transportation sectors. The Cohort creates and coordinates campaigns to amplify the voices and positions of overburdened communities in federal rulemaking; actively champions adopting and enforcing clean air and climate justice policies that reduce emissions of toxic air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions; and protects the health of Black, Brown, Tribal, Indigenous, and low-income communities.

In addition to working on a new clean trucks rule that will make real pollution cuts to trucks on the road today, the EPA is creating incentives to shift new heavy-duty truck sales toward zero-emission models across the next decade. It is also investing in a robust expansion of roadside high-speed charging infrastructure for trucks. 

The public health benefits of an aggressive transition to electric freight are huge — fewer asthma attacks and hospital visits, not to mention less risk to children’s healthy development. The American Lung Association estimates that if truck fleets electrify by 2050, the cumulative benefits could include $735 billion in public health benefits thanks to cleaner air, 66,800 fewer deaths, 1.75 million fewer asthma attacks and 8.5 million fewer lost workdays (www.lung.org). 

Numbers Make Sense Too

The economics are also smart: After a few short years, electric trucks pay for themselves because maintenance costs are significantly lower and owners can bow out of paying for expensive diesel fuel. Electric truck purchasers now get up to $40,000 in tax rebates under the Inflation Reduction Act, and these trucks are becoming cheaper every year as battery prices decline, economies of scale improve, and the relevant technology matures. 

It also helps that when given a chance, drivers love the new electric trucks. They are quieter, don’t emit noxious fumes, give off less heat, have fewer vibrations and overall provide a much smoother driving experience. “I’m so used to the vibration of the sound, the noise, the exhaust, the fumes, the heat coming out of the bottom of the cab …and now it’s a whole totally different story. This change is going to benefit everybody,” one California driver recently shared, during his first test drive with an electric rig. 

Now the EPA can protect environmental justice communities overburdened by toxic diesel pollution and support the drivers, who spend up to 14 hours a day in their trucks, by crafting the strongest, science-backed standards possible to limit greenhouse gas emissions and toxic air pollution from heavy-duty freight. The Biden administration must send a clear signal to manufacturers to invest in zero-emission electric models sooner to protect the health of highly impacted environmental justice communities everywhere. A faster transition to clean electric power on our roads is already here. We just need to keep it going. 

Moreover, the EPA must craft the strongest possible rules to safeguard environmental justice communities overburdened by toxic diesel pollution. We were disappointed to hear yet another delay in finalizing a critical climate and public health rule. We urge the Biden administration to rise above industry interests and prioritize alleviating the cumulative environmental and health burdens of transportation pollution that has plagued our communities for generations. The EPA must finalize strong standards that limit greenhouse gas emissions and toxic air pollution from the heavy-duty vehicle sector to send a clear message to manufacturers for zero emission electric models, and, ultimately, ensure clean air and protect the health of overburdened environmental justice communities as soon as possible. 

Huda Alkaff is an ecologist, environmental educator and the founder and director of Wisconsin Green Muslims. This grassroots environmental justice group intends to educate Muslims and the public about Islam’s environmental justice teachings, apply them in daily life and contribute to collaborations and coalitions working toward a just, healthy, peaceful and sustainable future. https://wisconsingreenmuslims.org/

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By The ISNA Green Initiative Team

Mar/Apr 2024

COP28 (Conference of Parties signed under the UN Climate Change Conference [UNFCC]), held in the UAE from Nov. 30-Dec. 13, 2023, was awash with flashy country pavilions, corporate-sponsored cocktail parties, and a smorgasbord of side events — so much so that some said the annual UN climate summit was more of a trade show or circus. 

There was controversy even before the opening, such as news reports that COP president Prince Sultan Al Jaber, UAE’s oil minister, had used the access to governments worldwide as an opportunity to negotiate oil and gas deals. He was even caught on tape ridiculing the idea that science called for a fossil fuel phaseout.

The event, hosted at a $7 billion venue furnished by oil wealth, accredited more than 2,400 fossil fuel industry lobbyists, which dwarfed the participants from the 10 most climate-vulnerable countries combined. Some 85,000 attendees, including more than 150 heads of state and government, were sprinkled among the representatives of national delegations, civil society, business, Indigenous peoples, youth, philanthropy and international organizations in attendance. It was a far cry from the first event in Berlin in 1995, a low-key affair with fewer than 4,000 delegates focused on multilateral climate change cooperation. 

The global stock take text lays out the pathway that nations must take to limit global warming to the previously-agreed-upon goal of no more than 2°C higher than pre-industrial levels (https://unfccc.int/documents/636608).

Major Commitments in the Final Text 

• An unprecedented reference to transitioning away from all fossil fuels to enable the world to reach net zero by 2050.

• A significant step forward in the expectations for the next round of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by encouraging “economy-wide emission reduction targets.”

• More than 120 nations committed to tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030. The world’s two largest greenhouse gas emitters, the U.S. and China, agreed to this even before the conference started.

• The fossil fuel industry has long pitched carbon-capture technology, which sucks carbon dioxide out of the air and stores it deep underground, as a climate panacea. But environmentalists worry that the technology, which has a spotty track record and has never been widely deployed, could become a smokescreen for prolonging fossil fuel use for decades.

• For the first time human health received significant attention. More than 140 countries, including China and the U.S., along with the countries in the European Union, signed a declaration asserting that climate change is costing people their lives and health. 

• Conference participants also pledged $85 billion to different climate issues and made 10 pledges: Several actions were announced to address methane pollution, a greenhouse gas 20 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. The U.S. announced regulations to cut methane pollution from the nation’s huge oil and gas industry by nearly 80% through 2038. 

• A significant outcome ahead of the conference was the consensus reached between the U.S. and China to triple renewables capacity and cut power-sector emissions by 2030, coupled with commitments to urgently reduce methane emissions. 

A clear failure was that of fairness, of climate justice for the countries least responsible for the climate crisis but suffering its worst impacts. COP28 neither delivered for low and middle-income countries, nor did it secure assurances that countries with the greatest historical responsibility for climate change will go furthest, faster and generate the finance needed for a just global transition. 

COP28 was doubly disappointing because it put no money on the table to help developing countries transition to renewable energies, said Nafkote Dabi (climate policy lead, Oxfam International). “And rich countries again reneged on their obligations,” he continued, “to help people being hit by the worst impacts of climate breakdown, like those in the Horn of Africa who have recently lost everything from flooding after a historic five-season drought and years of hunger.”

Given the COP conferences’ overarching goal to discuss and negotiate climate change policies and actions, the use of private jets by high-profile individuals clearly undermines this goal. This symbolizes a disconnect between environmental concerns and individual actions and a lack of commitment to sustainable practices. For instance, King Charles, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary David Cameron are just three of the attendees who traveled in separate planes. But they are just three participants among hundreds and hundreds of others who traveled there by private jets or yachts.  

It has to be seen how their declarations translate into real action. As former vice president Al Gore said, “Whether this is a turning point that truly marks the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel era depends on the actions that come next.” 

ISNA’s Green Initiative Team includes Huda Alkaff, Saffet Catovic, Nana Firman, Uzma Mirza and Saiyid Masroor Shah (chair).

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By The ISNA Green Initiative Team

Mar/Apr 2024

For the past ten years, the ISNA Green Initiative Team (hereinafter “team”) has been encouraging mosques, Islamic centers, schools, homes and individuals to adopt environmentally friendly practices. The site energystar.gov has recognized ISNA as an Energy Star Success Story.

As Muslims, we know that the blessed month of Ramadan has many layers of significance, among them the revelation of the Quran’s first verses and the bestowal of prophethood upon Muhammad (salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam). During this month, Muslims are not just required to fast from food and drink but are also instructed to engage in spiritual contemplation by focusing on self-improvement and increased worship, as well as practice self-restraint, sacrifice, empathy for the less fortunate and abandon wasteful practices ( Quran 6:141).

The team encourages the leadership of Muslim institutions to form a “green team” that can guide their community toward more eco-conscious practices. Ramadan is a great time to give up bad habits and begin new ones. This team can be instrumental in getting youth involved in creating awareness and educating members about the significance of observing a greener Ramadan.

It’s not easy to change habits, but with some perseverance the Islamic Center of Evansville, Ind., has had some success. For example, no plastic water bottles are allowed during iftar and other community events. Attendees have become more mindful about minimizing food waste. And, they installed solar panels to reduce their carbon footprint and received EPA Energy Certification in 2022. It also received the IPL “Cool Congregations” runner-up award of $500.

“Your mosque is one of only 130 congregations to have achieved ENERGY STAR certification for their worship facilities,” said Jerry Lawson (national manager, Small Business and Congregations, EPA). “This is out of 39,368 total U.S. facilities certified, and out of about 400,000 U.S. worship facilities.” 

Ramadan is a great time to remember our responsibility to care for and protect Earth, which, by God’s grace, provides the food we need to sustain a healthy life. Interacting mindfully with our environment and within our ecosystem is a manifestation of faith. As we fast, let’s reaffirm our sense of self-restraint, ethics of conservation and accountability to make this Ramadan both spiritually and practically better. 

To celebrate the tenth Green Ramadan Campaign, ISNA will be awarding $500, $300 and $200 to three mosques that exemplify the best Green Ramadan. The relevant details will be communicated through ISNA’s digital media. In recognition of this effort, the team, through the courtesy of Pen and Ink Pot Foundation, will also plant a tree on your behalf at a place needing trees. Your Islamic center or mosque will also receive a certificate of achievement. After Ramadan ends, please email your contact information and details of your Green Ramadan to isnagreenmasjid@gmail.com. 

Let’s be the change we want to see in the world by turning eco-friendly practices into habits that will allow us to live in a more merciful, compassionate and caring way, so that we “walk upon Earth gently” (25:63).

Fourteen Tips to Make Your Ramadan Greener 

• Reduce food waste. Eat more fruit and vegetables and less meat. Get as much local produce as possible. Remember that the Prophet ate mostly grains, dates, water, milk, honey, vegetables and fruit. 

• Take only what you can finish, eat moderately and repurpose leftovers for the next day’s iftar so that food isn’t thrown away. The Prophet said, “The son of Adam cannot fill a vessel worse than his stomach, as it is enough for him to take a few bites to straighten his back. If he cannot do it, then he may fill it with a third of his food, a third of his drink, and a third of his breath” (“Sunan al-Tirmidhi” 2380)

• Recycle materials, especially plastic water bottles, which take a very long time to decompose and now make up 25-30% of our landfills. Bring your own reusable water bottle to iftar and taraweeh. Avoid using plastic disposable bottles, as an estimated 80% of them are not recycled. 

• Avoid all Styrofoam® plates and cups at iftar parties, as they are nonrecyclable and non-biodegradable. Never warm styrofoam in the microwave, as doing so can release toxic fumes. 

• Place recycling bins in your mosque so people don’t trash all the fundraising fliers and extra literature distributed in Ramadan.

• Replace light bulbs with energy-saver LEDs and schedule your facility for an energy-efficiency audit. Consider installing solar panels, using light sensors and carpooling when possible. Driving with a friend can keep you more accountable for taraweeh and ease parking issues at the mosque. 

• Reduce water use. Use low flow, Energy-Star plumbing fixtures, install water fixture sensors, conserve water even while making wudu’ and use warm to cold water for laundry. As we learn in the hadith, “Never waste water, even if you are at a running stream” (“Sunan Ibn Majah 425”).

• Consider planting trees and vegetable gardens at home and at the mosque. Start a vegetable garden with soil or hydroponics, a type of horticulture that enables crops or medicinal plants to grow without soil by using water-based mineral nutrient solutions. “Any Muslim who plants a tree or sows seeds and then a bird or a person or an animal eats from it is regarded as having given a charitable gift” (“Sahih al-Bukhari” 2320). 

• Strive for a healthy mind, body and spirit. Follow prophetic medicine tips. Buy fair trade products, get daily Vitamin D from sunlight and stay hydrated. Avoid foods with a high concentration of preservatives, sugars, oils and salt. 

• Reconnect with nature and inhale the beauty of God’s creation while reminding yourself to walk gently on Earth.

• Celebrate this month by joining civic activities, volunteering at homeless shelters, collecting food for food pantries, joining community social projects, inviting non-Muslims to community and home iftars and taking care of Muslim inmates. Find ways for children and youth to participate in age-appropriate Ramadan activities. For instance, they can be “Green Ambassadors” during community dinners. 

• Ask your imam to deliver at least one Friday khutba on conserving and protecting the environment and contributing to the greater social good.

• On Eid, gift experiences instead of just more stuff. Your loved ones might enjoy indoor skydiving or a visit to an ice cream museum rather than more cakes and home decor. 

• If you do exchange gifts, opt for reusable gift bags and boxes to avoid wasting wrapping paper. 

Find out more at ISNA Green Initiative – Islamic Society of North America

ISNA’s Green Initiative Team includes Huda Alkaff, Saffet Catovic, Nana Firman, Uzma Mirza and Saiyid Masroor Shah (chair).

Tell us what you thought by joining our Facebook community. You can also send comments and story pitches to horizons@isna.net. Islamic Horizons does not publish unsolicited material.  

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By the ISNA Green Initiative Team

Jan/Feb 2024

Today we are witnessing unjust wars, the degradation and exploitation caused by the Zionist apartheid state, of not only a group of people and their economy, but also the violation of the rights of voiceless nature. This is causing the exponential rise of unsustainable practices, environmental degradation, and biodiversity decline. Further choking the existence of the occupied people and their land is the added layer of climate change. High temperatures, increased rainfall, sea levels rising, and increasing toxic wastes in the land have become unmanageable. 

The dehumanizing and oppression of people deprived of human rights and the right of self-determination; illegal settler colonialism; restrictions on movement; the destruction of farmlands and the native biodiversity of fauna, flora and its pollinators — to the dismantling of renewable energy infrastructure and an agricultural economy — is a direct result of an apartheid state, resulting in an ecocide. Ironically, under the facade of the victim, today the apartheid state is the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

Part of the Fertile Crescent, the cradle of agriculture and civilization, Palestine is located at the intersection of continents and has five phytogeographical areas. Since 1948, those Palestinians surrounded by Israel have been living under its brutal occupation, where uprooting olive trees, demolishing homes (Rebuilding Alliance.org) and marauding Israeli settlers are being used to constrict the Palestinians’ economy and limit their access to food, clean water, hygiene, and natural resources. Uprooting olive trees and choking off the water are tools for the ever-expanding boundaries of the Zionist state, not a “Jewish state,” as stated by Rabbi Yisroel Dovid Weiss, spokesperson of Neturei Karta. 

This is not dissimilar to other stories of land acquisition, in particular apartheid in South Africa, European colonialism, or slavery in the Americas, and the same realities in the Ottoman and Arab empires. Archbishop Tutu said he saw “the humiliation of the Palestinians at checkpoints and roadblocks, suffering like us when young white police officers prevented us from moving about.” 

Zoughbi Alzoughbi (founder and director, Wi’am: The Palestinian Conflict Transformation Center), who once visited a Native American reservation, said, “I found a historical map showing the stages of land dispossession of the First Nation people … To the staff and supporters of Wi’am the message was obvious; both Native Americans and Palestinians were Native to their lands, colonized by another people, told there was a way to live peacefully together, then violently removed from their own land, then forced onto small reservations of land, then slowly had even that land taken away by home demolitions and new settler colonies, only to end up treated by the colonizers as obstacles to peace and not as people.”

The Importance of Olive Trees

Olive trees are a primary source of income — about $12.3 million lost — for over 80,000 Palestinian families who rely on the olive harvest. According to UN figures, approximately 48% of the West Bank’s agricultural land is planted with olive trees. These trees account for 70% of Palestine’s fruit production and contribute approximately 14% to its economy. In addition, 93% of the harvest is used for olive oil production and the remaining 7% for local consumption. Olives, olive oil, and olive wood are used to produce soaps, table olives, and pickles 

Since 1967, 800,000 olive trees and 2.5 million trees have been uprooted — supposedly for security reasons. Since 1995, 60% of Palestinians have lost farmland to Israeli settlements, walls, military zones, by-pass roads and other closures (MIFTAH and VisualizingPalestine.org). Israeli agricultural export companies such as Mehadrin and Hadiklaim are among the primary beneficiaries of the destruction of Palestinian agriculture — they export produce from illegal settlements using stolen Palestinian land and water, as well as profit from the siege on Gaza.

Since October 2007 Palestinians have been unable to access their farmland (BDS & AlJazeera Nov 6. 2023). Israel has denied Palestinians access to their natural resources, including shared water resources, an estimated 1.5 billion barrels of oil reserves in the West Bank and more than $2.5 billion worth of natural gas off Gaza’s coast (UNPress, Oct. 17, 2022).

As the Israeli government cuts off fuel supplies, Palestinians living in Gaza use rooftop solar panels to help access electricity. However, since the Oct. 7 attack Israeli forces have ordered a complete siege of Gaza, which has cut off electricity and fuel supplies and targets hospitals via the solar panels on the AlShifa Hospital (ClimateHomeNews). 

Writing in The Guardian [UK] on July 9, 2019, Miriam Berger reported that Israel sprays the buffer zone to allegedly deprive potential “terror elements” of cover; however, farmers in Gaza say doing so damages crops and livelihoods. Forensic Architecture, a research agency based at Goldsmiths, University of London, stated that over the last five years Israeli planes have sprayed herbicide more than 30 times on the Israeli side of the buffer zone with Gaza. Even private rooftop home gardens are not spared.

Israeli water construction is another way to strangle Palestinian agriculture so that Israel can acquire more land. Tel Aviv builds water pipelines through Palestinian lands that help destroy the land, a practice that constricts the Palestinians’ water use and causes the destruction of olive trees and ends a generational livelihood (Corradin, Camilla. Israel: Water as a tool to dominate Palestinians. AlJazeera News. 2016).

Only an estimated 1% of solid waste is currently being recycled. The Israeli occupation has transformed the occupied Palestinian lands into a landfill for hazardous and toxic wastes and sewage since 1967. In fact, 60% of Israeli waste ends up in the occupied areas. This reality chokes the life of Palestinians while destroying the soil, and poisoning and polluting the groundwater. Israel’s disposal of its wastes is a clear violation of international laws related to environmental protection (MiddleEast Monitor, 2018).

A Solution 

The Olive Tree is a symbol of peace in all Abrahamic faiths. The Torah says, “Even if you are at war with a city … you must not destroy its trees” (Deut 20:19-20).  In Gen. 8:11-12, a dove returned an olive branch to Noah on the Ark, signaling the Flood’s end. Quran 24:35 proclaims, “The parable of His light is as if there were a niche within it a lamp: the lamp enclosed in glass: the glass as it were a brilliant star: lit from a blessed tree, an olive neither of the East nor of the West, whose oil is well-nigh luminous, though fire scarce touch it.” 

The Quran explains that humanity holds a privileged position among God’s creations — vicegerent (khalifa) — and that each person is entrusted with caring for God’s creation. And yet it repeatedly warns Muslims against hubris by asserting that they are no better than any other creature. The Prophet (salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) acknowledges that God’s knowledge and power covers everything. Therefore, abusing one of His creations, whether it is a living being or a natural resource, is a grave sin. 

Prophet Muhammad was a steadfast advocate of environmental justice, its preservation and conservation and environmental rights. He constantly sought to maintain a harmonious balance between all members of humanity and nature. He was a strong proponent of sustainable practices and equal access by all users of the environment. His words about the environment can be related to contemporary environmental issues.

In closing, the solution lies in the cry of the olive trees. This cry denotes a non-diverse, colonialist worldview, the exact opposite of the Abrahamic traditions. Muslims, as followers of the middle way — as God’s khalifah — are obliged to safeguard the trust gifted by God. Killing innocent women and children is murder, which God abhors. Indiscriminate killing cannot be validated as self-defense by any side. 

May God bless the slaughtered humans– and the destroyed environment. “O humanity! Indeed, We created you from a male and a female, and made you into peoples and tribes so that you may ˹get to˺ know one another. Surely the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous among you. Allah is truly All-Knowing, All-Aware” (49:13).

The ISNA Green Initiative Team comprises Huda Alkaff; Saffet Catovic; Nana Firman; Uzma Mirza; S. Masroor Shah (Chair).

Tell us what you thought by joining our Facebook community. You can also send comments and story pitches to horizons@isna.net. Islamic Horizons does not publish unsolicited material.  

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By Gosia Wozniaka

Jan/Feb 2024

Ahlam Osman stood at the edge of a massive landfill in Arlington, Ore., a dozen miles from the Columbia River, watching trucks dump thousands of pounds of urban garbage and bulldozers push the refuse across a vast sandy field.

She learned that 65 long-haul trucks make their way every day from Portland to the dump site — and that’s not even half of the Portland metro region’s waste.

For Osman, a Somali American who grew up steeped in Islam, visiting the 12,000-acre Columbia Ridge Landfill as a high school senior three years ago drove her, now 22 and a Portland State University senior, to examine her personal impact on the environment and explore how Islam aligns with climate action.

That journey, in turn, led her to become an organizer who encourages young African and Muslim people to engage with nature and advocate for their communities, which face many challenges brought by climate change.

“When I saw the piles and piles of garbage, that really opened my eyes and made me realize, wow, our trash isn’t just disappearing,” Osman said. “I realized that as Muslims, it’s our duty to take climate change seriously and to do our best to protect the Earth.”

As Muslims see their voice and political clout grow in Oregon and elsewhere, Osman is part of a new wave of young leaders across the country who are using Islam as a tool to tackle climate change.

She’s an early adopter in Portland, building on a Muslim green movement that’s further along on the East Coast.

On The Periphery

Being an environmental organizer was far from an apparent path for Osman.

Like many other Somalis in the early 1990s, her parents fled their home in Mogadishu with their growing family during the country’s bloody civil war. They spent four years in a refugee camp in Kenya, where conditions were cramped and necessities scarce. The family survived largely thanks to financial support from the father’s uncle who lived in Los Angeles.

The uncle helped bring the family to California, but they moved to Portland five years later after Osman’s mother developed asthma. Portland, they thought, offered cleaner air – though they later realized it was far from pristine, especially during fire season.

They joined an estimated 12,000 to 15,000 Somalis who call Oregon home, most of them living in Multnomah County. Thousands of other Africans have also resettled here, many hailing from countries with large Muslim populations, including Ethiopia and Eritrea.

Osman was born at OHSU Hospital with her twin brother – the ninth and 10th of 11 children and the first to be born in Oregon.  was brought up in a traditional Islamic household and a supportive, tight-knit family. She attended Islamic weekend classes to learn Arabic and study the Quran.

As she grew older, Osman said she noticed various things: 

• She watched fellow Somali teenagers struggle with fitting into a society that didn’t share their culture, language or religion and that made little effort to understand or reach out to them.

• Many Somali families she knew faced financial hardships, discrimination and health problems largely unknown back home. Most of them had owned homes and held stable jobs, she said, but now work for low wages. Many, like her father, a former business owner, became taxi, Lyft and Uber drivers or held a series of odd jobs to make ends meet.

• Refugee agencies often placed families in affordable apartment complexes with poor ventilation and no air conditioning, near major roadways and areas without sidewalks.

• Getting food is a problem. Many Somali refugees don’t drive, live far from supermarkets and avoid public transit after displays of anti-Muslim hatred intensified.

• It turns out Somalis and other East Africans have moved into areas considered heat islands, where cement dominates and tree canopies are sparse. This leads to higher-than-average temperatures and denser air pollution. “Where you live, your ZIP code determines your lifespan and health issues, especially in the era of climate change,” she said.

• Many Somalis don’t see the connection, for their families are focused on survival. They also feel a sense of hopelessness coupled with fatalism, because “a part of our faith is the idea that whatever is meant to happen will happen.”

• Portland’s climate movement is predominantly white and few blacks or Muslims work in sustainability-related fields. The Portland Clean Energy Fund seeks to invest millions of dollars in clean energy and climate justice job training programs and apprenticeships for people of color, among other investments. “I think there’s a huge disconnect,” Osman said. “People don’t see the connection to their faith and values.”

Waste Not

Determined to change those disparities, Osman joined leadership and civic training programs, the Multnomah Youth Commission and social justice initiatives. Her older siblings also encouraged her to get involved and pursue higher education, although many female Somalis did not.

“Osman was always very outspoken and very curious. She would seek out why things were happening, and she was driven from a young age to engage in the community,” said her older sister Hanna, who works as a public health planner and policy analyst and became Osman’s mentor.

Then there was the three-year internship with Oregon Metro, when she visited the Columbia Ridge landfill site, learned about recycling and planted native trees and shrubs. This internship would lead to an awakening of sorts.

Osman also sought to incorporate Islam’s teachings after learning that God appointed humans as khalifa (guardians) of Earth and that Islam emphasizes that Earth and its resources are an amana (trust). She tried to avoid fast fashion and buy less, scoured second-hand stores for clothes, took public transit, got better at recycling and sought to make espresso at home or bring her own mug to coffee shops.

Her Muslim colleagues and family members called her “the environmentalist” because she often shared her sustainability practices — although she isn’t overbearing with it,” her sister said. They told Osman she reminded them of Fatima Jibrell, a Somali American activist who campaigned in Somalia to salvage old-growth forests of acacia trees and promote solar cookers.

But Osman wanted to bring change to Portland, not Somalia.

In 2021, she worked as a youth environmental coordinator with the African Youth and Community Organization (AYCO), an east county nonprofit that supports immigrant and refugee Muslim African, Irani, Myanmar and Afghani teens and their families in the Portland area. She took them on hikes to local nature areas, raised their awareness about climate impacts and taught them about careers related to sustainability and renewable energy, among other industries.

“Osman has a very strong mindset about fostering an environmentally friendly way of living,” said Jamal Dar (executive director, AYCO).

Osman introduced staff and families to recycling, showing community members how to use the different collection bins and sort materials, Dar said. Such hands-on education is key, he contends, since most refugee families have no knowledge of recycling, having spent decades in refugee camps. Many adults cannot speak or read English, so flier-based campaigns are ineffective.

“There’s a big gap when it comes to communication and services within the community that we serve,” Dar said.

A Stronger Voice

Osman drew inspiration from recently established small, volunteer Muslim American environmental groups that were becoming increasingly visible, including the Wisconsin Green Muslims, Virginia-based Green Muslims or Faithfully Sustainable.

The latter was created in New York City by two Muslim college students who launched a campaign targeting overconsumption during Eid al-Fitr.

“There’s growing interest in our community not only in caring for the environment, but also in connecting with nature as part of our faith and our religious obligations to God,” said Sevim Kalyoncu (executive director, Green Muslims).

This increase in awareness corresponds partly with a shift in how Americans and the government view Muslim Americans, Kalyoncu said.

More than two decades after 9/11, about 3.5 million Muslims live in the U.S. There’s also been a rise in Muslim American politicians — including the nation’s first two Muslim congresswomen and local legislators, including state Sen. Kayse Jama (D-Portland) and Washington County Commissioner Nafisa Fai, both Somali American.

“We have a stronger voice and we feel more comfortable speaking out,” Kalyoncu said. “And we’re getting more involved in issues of the country and of the world because of that.”

Many Muslim Americans also remain connected to where their relatives still live, she said, which regularly see droughts, water scarcity and floods intensified by a rapidly changing climate.

It’s important to have environmental groups and climate organizers who represent and focus on Muslim Americans as “a stepping stone” that connects Muslims to the wider environmental movement, Kalyoncu said.

Many Muslims find that connection in their local mosque or cultural center. And that’s where the ISNA’s Green Initiative, launched nine years ago, comes in. This program guides mosques and cultural centers on how to implement environmentally friendly practices, among them waste reduction, recycling and installing solar panels, said Saiyid Masroor Shah (chair). 

Three years ago, the organization partnered with the EPA to produce an ENERGY STAR guidebook for Muslim congregations to track their energy use and improve energy efficiency. ISNA also promotes a Green Ramadan and offers resources on other climate actions.

“This is our obligation, because the Quran mentions over and over again that we are the caretakers of this world,” Shah said. “And part of the Prophet’s (salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) teachings, his methods of conservation practices, is to tell us not to waste food or water.”

Youth Leaders

In September, Osman flew to New York City to attend the first-ever conference in the U.S. focused on the climate movement and Islam. She met other Muslim American environmental leaders and heard from panelists about how climate change impacts poverty and health, how urban farming can help food-insecure families and how the fashion market is trying to become more sustainable.

The conference gave her hope and made her realize that she, as a young Muslima climate activist, isn’t alone and can make a difference.

“Being in this space with other Muslims who came from a familiar background and seeing change-makers who are just as passionate about environmental and climate justice felt like a dream come true,” she wrote after returning home.

This fall, Osman returned full time to PSU to finish her bachelors’ degree in community development. In the future, she plans to study urban planning to ensure that all communities of color aren’t bearing disproportionate climate burdens.

In the meantime, she continues to volunteer with AYCO, lead hikes for African and Muslim teens, as well as develop a new environmental justice program with the Portland Harbor Community Coalition to get more youths of color interested in nature and the environment.

She hopes to take them to the same recycling plants and landfill sites she saw, so they, too, can understand how trash and over-consumption affect the environment.

“We believe that Allah is going to ask us what we did and what our role was when there are injustices going on,” Osman said. “When I think of my legacy, I hope to be a mentor to youth… so they can advocate for themselves and recognize the power of their voice.”

Gosia Wozniacka is an environmental reporter for The Oregonian/OregonLive.  Republished with permission. This article is a condensed and modified version of a longer article written by Gosia Wozniacka that first appeared in The Oregonian/OregonLive.

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By the ISNA Green Initiative Team

Nov/Dec 2023

The ISNA Green Initiative Team continues to reach out, build relationships, and collaborate to educate everyone about Islam’s environmental justice teachings to address the multi-level climate crisis. Here are some of our recent efforts that promise to move forward, especially toward celebrating our tenth year in service in 2024. 

The team continues partnerships with several organizations, among them Wisconsin Green Muslims (WGM); the Chicago Muslims Green Team (CMGT); Faithfully Sustainable (FS); the Association of Muslim Scientists, Engineers, and Technology Professionals (AMSET); the Islamic Medical Association of North America (IMANA), the Pen and Inkpot Foundation and GreenFaith (GF). We appreciate their collaboration.

Representing at the Parliament of World Religions

The Green Initiative Team represented ISNA at the Parliament of the World’s Religions (PoWR) — the world’s largest gathering for interfaith leaders — held on Aug. 14-18 in Chicago. Founded in that city during 1893, this event brings together leaders and followers of all faiths to work together toward a common goal.

This year’s theme was “A Call to Conscience: Defending Freedom and Human Rights,” with a specific focus on fighting authoritarianism. The speakers, panels and programs focused on climate change, human rights, food insecurity, racism, women’s rights and other social justice-related issues.

The ISNA Green Initiative Team participated in several sessions. Huda Alkaff (founder and director, WGM) and Saffet Catovic participated in the “Climate and Environmental Justice” session, which focused on environmental justice as the principle of fairness and equal rights for all people regardless of their differences, specifically with regard to environmental risks and benefits. Although every person has the right to a safe, healthy and sustainable environment, it has been well established for decades that people of color, Indigenous people, and the poor and marginalized are disproportionately affected by environmental dangers, such as toxic pollution and extreme weather. 

“Sacrifice zones” exist where polluting facilities are located and toxins are deposited without protection. Other factors impact health and little or no aid is provided to mitigate the negative consequences. Such environmental injustice is systemic. 

In this program, environmental justice movement leaders presented on current issues, reported on actions being taken, and made proposals for the way forward. The ethics of environmental justice were considered from diverse religious perspectives, and speakers describe what faith communities are doing — and can do — to engage the climate emergency, loss of biodiversity and pollution to achieve a just transition. 

Huda Alkaff, Saffet Catovic and Nana Firman presented in “The Environmental Spirit of Islam: ISNA Green Initiative Team” session. They stressed the Oneness of Allah and His creation, justice, compassionate stewardship, signs of the Creator, trust in the Creator and living in just balance with nature. All of this is led through the optics of faith in action, as manifested by the team’s works and activities that are implementing Islam’s core environmental tenets. They also discussed stewardship as a collective responsibility to care for Earth and each other across all faiths, nationalities, and ethnicities via advocacy, environmental justice, personal lifestyle choices, and consumption.

Huda Alkaff presented in the “Connecting Faith, Environmental Justice, and Solar Power” session. This session dealt with how solar energy’s unifying power can help overcome Islamophobia, sharing her own personal stories and studies in Wisconsin. Exploring faiths united through the Sun’s  power and how it can bring people of faith and goodwill together to address the climate crisis; care for Earth and each other; save money to reinvest in missions of justice; move toward an equitable, efficient and renewable energy future; and how to advance just solar energy distribution through building interfaith relationships.

Huda Alkaff, Saiyid Masroor Shah, Saffet Catovic (ISNA Green Initiative) and Layalee Beirat (CMGT) addressed the “Climate and Environmental Justice: Locally and Globally” session. The session dealt with Islamic values related to working together for justice, equity, dignity, inclusion and addressing the climate crisis and environmental injustice.

Representing in New York 

Huda Alkaff represented the ISNA Green Initiative Team at the “Muslims for Climate Justice Summit: The Earth as our Amaanah,” by Faithfully Sustainable held Sept. 9-10 in New York City in person, and virtually at the “Climate Justice: What Does Islam Say?” session.

The theme was that as Muslims are Earth’s stewards, we must do everything with the best of intentions and, in addition, are responsible for aiding those disproportionately affected by climate change. A sub-session, “Climate Justice in Islam,” explored the intersection of Islamic values and environmental activism, as well as stressed the importance of addressing the disproportionate impacts of climate change on vulnerable communities. 

Nana Firman (senior ambassador, GreenFaith) participated in the “Decoding the Science of Climate Change: Fossil Fuels, Emissions and Carbon Footprints” session, which discussed that paying attention to our planet is a prophetic sunna. Now more than ever, Earth’s climate needs our care and intervention. However, reversing the damage requires that we understand why it is happening.

Members of the ISNA Green Initiative Team participated in the March to End Fossil Fuels, held on Sept. 17 in New York City. This march, part of the Global Fight to End Fossil Fuels, registered 400+ actions, marches, rallies and events worldwide. These mobilizations were coordinated by 780+ endorsing organizations and were expected to draw millions of participants. 

These actions are part of a mass global escalation demanding a rapid end to fossil fuels in a just and equitable manner ahead of the UN Climate Ambition Summit, which was held on Sept. 20 in New York City. UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called on world leaders to make ambitious commitments to phase out fossil fuels.

The latest data backs up the International Energy Agency’s finding that no new fossil fuel extraction can be developed under a 1.5°C limit. It also shows that over half of the existing fields and mines could be shut down early while protecting workers and communities. This responsibility lies with the leaders of rich nations that have a historical legacy of pollution to deliver a fast and fair phase out of fossil fuels and fund it globally. 

Presenting at the ISNA Convention

ISNA Green Initiative Team also participated in two of the ISNA convention sessions.

During the “Impact of Human-Caused Climate Change on Vulnerable Communities” session, Saiyid Masroor Shah (AMSET) and Marium Husain (IMANA), noted that the global temperature had risen almost 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and that human-caused greenhouse gas emissions are increasing. With evident consequences from this summer’s record-breaking heat waves across three continents, record low sea ice in Antarctica, flashing red signs of severe climate impacts and the worldwide grave consequences of climate change on the ecosystem, economy, energy, agriculture, health and the economically disadvantaged. 

The ISNA Green Initiative team is doing its part to educate and participate in activities related to the environment and climate change. Please join hands to make the world a better place. As God ordained us to be the stewards of Earth, let’s fulfill our responsibility.

ISNA Green Initiative Team: Huda Alkaff, Saffet Catovic, Nana Firman, Uzma Mirza and S. Masroor Shah (Chair)

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By Dalia Rakha

Sept/Oct 2023

Environmental sustainability and its execution have been greatly debated across the globe. From discussions on waste management and restoration techniques to health concerns and global disasters, the sustainability movement has attempted to define the ideal relationship between humans and the natural world. Yet, these definitions have only gone as far as physical manifestations, detailing the how but not the why.  More than 1400 years ago, Islam filled the gaps through the revelation of a single verse.

“And it is He who has made you successors upon the earth and has raised some of you above others in degrees [of rank] that He may try you through what He has given you” (Quran 6:165). 

The God-given responsibility of being His vicegerents on Earth and emulating His Divine traits of mercy, justice, and wisdom is at the core of how Muslims look at their relationship with the natural world. Islam offers a unique perspective on how and why taking care of this planet is important not only for one’s physical well-being, but also to the well-being of the soul and to fulfilling the fundamental purpose of life. Deeply spiritual, God-centric, and ethically founded, the Islamic worldview on environmental sustainability is a rich tradition being actualized through various methods in Islamic organizations across North America.

Zaytuna Modeling Vicegerency 

In the U.S., Zaytuna College is on the front lines of a movement towards self-sustainable agriculture and reconnecting with the natural world. As the first accredited Muslim American college, Zaytuna has used the Islamic lens to not only inform its academic curriculum but also its experiential learning initiatives through the Zaytuna College Center for Ethical Living and Learning (ZCELL). 

“ZCELL is a place to model methods of actualizing Muslims’ vicegerency on Earth,” said Rhamis Kent, a scholar-in-residence and instructor for Zaytuna’s Permaculture Design Certificate Course. “As a modern human society, we have accepted unexamined lives where we no longer take responsibility for our existence. We have outsourced everything that makes our lives possible to someone else, merely consuming what is grown and produced by others and never truly connecting to its origin.”

Kent is also the co-founder of the IGE-PEARL (Islamic Gift Economy — Program for Ethical Appropriate and Regenerative Livelihoods). He believes one of the most important ways of connecting to the Earth, to ourselves, and to God is through the cultivation of land. Kent shared that in the Islamic tradition, what we eat is often tied to our spiritual state. As modernity has deprived us from connecting with the Earth and fulfilling our responsibility to it, he believes that this has also resulted in a disconnection with each other, for the deepest bonds come from struggle and self-sufficiency as a community. His work aims to empower Muslims to retake this essential responsibility, knowing it not only reconnects humans with each other and all of creation, but most importantly with the Creator.  

Muslims and Indigenous Communities in Canada

The Muslim Association of Canada (MAC) is a charitable grassroots organization aimed at helping Muslims revitalize their faith to better serve society. It promotes local community building and education through various programs, all within Islamic ethical frameworks. One of MAC’s directors, Memona Hossain, focuses on community-based learning initiatives to help Muslims reconnect with nature through the lens of Islam.  She is also a lecturer at the University of Toronto and a current PhD candidate in Applied Ecopsychology.

Through conversations with Indigenous peoples, Hossain has come to learn that the centralization of God in the way Muslims see the world is what often allows Muslims and Indigenous communities to relate to and connect with each other. She has had opportunities to engage in dialogue with and to learn from Indigenous communities across Canada to understand how this Creator-centric worldview fundamentally changes conversations on environmental sustainability, as well as in the ways justice is addressed and perceived. 

While secular worldviews often face these issues with a sense of despair, Hossain noted that because a Muslim’s understanding of justice and success are not limited to worldly outcomes, it is profoundly hopeful. Muslims believe even the smallest of acts do not go unnoticed by God. It is this hope that distinguishes Islam’s understanding of the world, and according to Hossain is one of the most beautiful gifts Muslims can bring to the sustainability movement.

Environment in the Quran

In both of these examples, it is clear that the most essential part of the Islamic environmental worldview is its connection to God. Throughout the Quran, God mentions the miracles of creation as proofs and reminders of His existence, signs of His perfection and mercy, and expressions of His love and generosity. Verses that describe the life-giving properties of rain (16:65), the marvel of milk (16:66), and the healing of honey (16:69) are all examples. This creates a much deeper relationship with the land, a profoundly spiritual bond. God revealed in the Quran that humans are made from clay (15:26) and water (21:30), a reminder that human beings and the Earth are intimately related. Thus, in understanding the natural world, humanity is better able to understand and connect with ourselves.

Kent emphasized that when Muslims emulate the life of Prophet Muhammad (salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), it is at its core “modeling a behavioral pattern that permits us to benefit everyone and everything.” The way Muslims treat all of creation is based upon this lens. This seemingly small shift in worldview fundamentally alters everything. Instead of looking only at preventing harm, Muslims are asked to heal, to mend, and most importantly, to improve conditions. Muslims have been given a rich and deeply rooted tradition in building and maintaining relationships with the Earth and all that is in it. 

The world is in desperate need of alternative methods to connect with each other and all of creation. Islam provides a beautiful example centered around God and His attributes, rooted in ethics and sustained with soul. It is a gift too precious not to be shared. 

Dalia Rakha holds an MS in environmental engineering from UC Davis, is a graduate of Tayseer Seminary, and is pursuing a career in water quality and health within a spiritual framework.

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By Nana Firman

Sept/Oct 2023

I first met Ibrahim in New York City. Back then, I didn’t even know that I was going to move to the U.S. in the future. I still remember what he said when I was getting married.  “You know that it’s a double whammy to be Black and Muslim, right?” Perhaps he was referring to my husband, Jamal. Back then I didn’t know what it meant, but I am forever grateful for his words.

Ibrahim and I attended and spoke at many environment and climate gatherings organized by Muslims, multi-faith, or conventional non-religious groups. We collaborated at the local, national, as well as international level. In 2012, we were invited to the World Islamic Economic Forum in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. I remember he texted me, “What should we wear to dinner with the Sultan?” I replied “Batik!” Apparently, he loved the batik shirt that I had given him, and even wore it in his TV interview. I promised that I would get more batik shirts for him when I visited my family in Jakarta.

The funniest moment we had was when we were invited to speak at the 2019 Zero Waste International Summit in Istanbul, Türkiye. Ibrahim insisted that we could go in the same car. However, the organizer was firm that we had to ride in our assigned cars. Little that we knew, it was for security reasons. We were the guests of First Lady Emine Erdoğan, so each of us got our own guard. We laughed every time we thought about that trip.

Ibrahim and his wife, Fatima, along with their sons, Ismael and Yousuf, also participated in the 2014 Climate March in New York City. He agreed to be the keynote speaker when I told him that I was going to launch a Global Muslim Climate Network back in 2016. He even brought his amazing mother to that event.

Last year, he was diagnosed with a rare cancer. I cried the whole day when I found out. Al hamdu lillah, the treatment worked well. So, in October 2022, Ibrahim and I were able to share our journeys at the Green Festival in Kocaeli, Türkiye. He looked healthy and even extended his stay to visit some friends in Istanbul afterward.

In early June, my husband and I visited him and the family in their house near Pasadena, Calif. Fatima served us a delicious dinner. We ate and prayed together. We talked about so many things from the bear coming to their backyard to the green movement and world politics. Then my husband said, “You guys should come to our house before you leave for New York. I’ll cook, you’ll see!” We were so looking forward to their visit and I kept reminding myself to get halal marshmallows for their 3 boys so we could make smores in our firepit. Perhaps we could discuss GreenDeen, the book he wrote in 2010 that has inspired so many Muslims around the globe, including the Muslim youth in Indonesia. Every time I brought up the need for a sequel to his book, he kept telling me, “You’ll do it!” but I didn’t take it seriously. Instead, I was exploring any possibility to invite him to Indonesia this year.

On June 21, I was shocked and speechless when I found out that Ibrahim left this world. Innalillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’uun. As much as we love Ibrahim, Allah loves him more. Farewell, dear brother, and comrade. May Allah grant you among the highest levels of Jannah. Ibrahim’s legacy won’t end here. I and many Muslims will continue the GreenDeen journey and shape our strategies for a faithfully sustainable world, inshaAllah.

 Nana Firman has about two decades of experience working with advocacy and raising awareness about environmental degradation and climate crisis, advocating urban sustainability for a better future, and developing green economy concepts and strategies. She is a native Indonesian and resides in Southern California.

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Sept/Oct 2023

In about mid-July, the major news was not about the war in Ukraine or local politics. Rather, the headlines read, “History-making heat set to spread after weekend of triple-digit temperatures,” and “Heatwaves hit new heights across West and South.”

More than 100 million people, around a third of Americans, were under extreme heat advisories. The Southwest Heat Dome broke all-time records, which is also delaying the Southwest monsoon from getting going by blocking most moisture from pushing into the region from Mexico or the nearby eastern Pacific waters. The National Weather Service warned that a “searing heat wave was set to engulf much of the West Coast, the Great Basin, and the Southwest.” Canadian wildfires also affected the air quality in 11 states affecting nearly 60 million Americans.

Heat waves are not only impacting the U.S. but other parts of the world too. According to the European Space Agency “Temperatures were sizzling across Europe amid an intense and prolonged period of heat. Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and Poland are all facing major heat waves with air temperatures expected to climb to 118F on the islands of Sicily and Sardinia with potentially the hottest temperatures ever recorded in Europe.”

According to an Asian Development Bank blog, South Asia experienced its highest temperatures in the last 122 years, leading to at least 90 heat-related deaths in Pakistan and India. The People’s Republic of China suffered three consecutive heat waves, breaking long-standing records, with temperatures exceeding 107F.

The World Meteorological Organization said that such temperatures are highest since instrumental measures of air temperatures began in the 1850s. On top of these record-breaking temperatures, a growing El Niño event in the Pacific began to make its presence felt across the globe. El Niño is a periodic climatic event that occurs when the circulation of the equatorial Pacific Ocean shifts and its temperature rises, causing knock-on heat impacts around the world.

“We should not be surprised…This is all a stark reminder of what we’ve known for a long time,” said Prof. Richard Betts, climate scientist at the Met Office and University of Dexter, told the BBC. “We will see ever-more extremes until we stop building up more greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere.” Increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and an unusual band of strong winds that have hovered over the Atlantic have already triggered heatwaves.

As the world continues to use more fossil fuels and produce excess greenhouse gasses there is a continued possibility of climate anomalies as were in June 2023 shown in the map by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Consequences of extreme heat waves

Climate change caused by greenhouse gasses from burning fossil fuels will make heat waves longer, more intense, and more frequent. These heat waves are serious threats to health, agriculture, energy, and infrastructure, especially for the vulnerable population of poor countries. Such heat waves also set off other natural disasters such as drought, bushfires, and forest fires which consequently damage crops and livestock. This can lead to insufficient supply, price hikes and even food insecurity. During a heat wave, energy consumption often skyrockets to cool down the temperature. Air conditioning is constantly used where accessible, leading to power shortages in many places. Increased greenhouse gas emissions cause severe climate change impacts in the long term, triggering more heat waves.

Major causes of extreme heat waves

Most of the greenhouse gasses resulting from human activities include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gasses. Burning fossil fuels is the main culprit of increasing greenhouse gasses. Burning coal and oil produces carbon dioxide by combining oxygen in the air with carbon. Clearing land for agriculture, industry, and other human activities contributes carbon dioxide to a lesser extent than fossil fuels. Human activities often occur in a manner that multiplies negative effects on the atmosphere. The resources used by the larger population often involve burning fossil fuels, while more land may be cleared for agriculture. Carbon sinks, such as forested areas, decline as burning fossil fuels increase. Unless the major users of fossil fuels like the U.S, China, and India change to use renewable energy, the amount of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere will continue to increase.

Need to manage extreme heat waves

The ongoing heat waves around the world need to be managed sooner than later to save lives. Particular attention must be paid to communities that cannot rely on safe and affordable water or air conditioning to cool down. The underlying long-term causes also need to be addressed. If not, the heat waves of the future could be far more intense and disruptive than what we are experiencing today. Governments must invest in better urban planning and infrastructure to adapt to heat waves and reduce the urban heat island effect. This includes transitioning from conventional to cooling material for roofs and pavements that absorb less solar energy and reflect more sunlight and expand green spaces and green corridors.

Our Role as Muslims in reducing the production of greenhouse gasses

God has repeatedly reminded us to take care of the earth as designated caretakers.

“Corruption has appeared on land and sea because of people’s own hands have wrought. So that they may taste something of what they have done; So that hopefully they will turn back.”  (Quran 30:41)

Prophet Muhammad (salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “The world is sweet and green with vegetation and verily God has made you stewards in it, and He sees how you acquit yourself (Sahih Muslim).

The Islamic Declaration on Climate Change (Istanbul, August 2015) asks peoples of all nations and their leaders to aim in phasing out greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible to stabilize their concentration in the atmosphere and commit to adopting renewable energy sources. It also calls upon all Muslims to tackle the habits, mindset, and root causes of climate change, environmental degradation, and loss of biodiversity in their sphere of influence. The severe heat wave enforces upon all of us the necessity to do our share.

ISNA Green Initiative is your voice for protecting the climate. Contact your representatives in the city, state, and federal governments to take actions necessary to mitigate the effect of climate change and adopt an environmentally friendly way of life.

ISNA Green Initiative Team: Huda Alkaff, Saffet Catovic, Nana Firman, Uzma Mirza, S. Masroor Shah (Chair)

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By Fawzia Mai Tung

July/August 2023

“The real Garden of Eden (is) located in the Kazakh mountains,” said Philip Forsline, horticulturist at Cornell University. To taste and learn more about these wild forests of Sievers apples, Islamic Horizons traveled to their birthplace in southeastern Kazakhstan.

For thousands of years, immense stands of wild apple forests covered the Tian Shan mountain slopes around the city of Almaty. The forests stretched from the southeastern corner of Kazakhstan all the way northward to the foothills of the Dzungar Alatau. Today, only 1% retain Sievers apple forests. 

This apple was named by its “discoverer,” Johann August Carl Sievers, a German pharmacist and botanist who in 1790 joined a Russian expedition to the southern mountains of Siberia. Sievers became the first botanist to have ever reached the Tabargatai Mountains. He gave his name to the wild variety of apple he found there. 

Soviet scientist and geneticist Nikolai Vavilov postulated that a cultivated plant’s origin was in an area where the plant’s wild relatives displayed the most adaptiveness and genetic variety. In 1929, he came upon these extensive wild apple forests. However, it was his student, Dr. Aimak Dzangaliev, a Kazakh conservationist, who dedicated his life to the study of modern apples. He proved genetically that indeed, this area of Kazakhstan was the original source of the apple.

Beautiful Almaty, southeastern  Kazakhstan’s largest city, is nestled at the foot of the tall snowy peaks of the Tian Shan mountains. Before the country’s capital was moved 25 years ago to Astana, Almaty was the political and cultural capital of the world’s ninth largest country. Its name is derived from “Alma Ata” — grandfather of apples — for the slopes around it used to be covered with wild apple forests. However, in the 19th and 20th centuries, millions of apple trees, as well as the symbiotic eglantine and barberry shrubs that protected them from predators, were cut down to make way for pastureland and urban development. Around 70% of the wild apple forests in that region have been lost since the 1960s. In 2010, to help preserve the remaining wild apple forests, the Kazakh government created the Dzungar Alatau National Park. 

To explore this park, I arranged for a four-wheel drive, its driver, a translator, and a mountain ranger. Shopping for some groceries before setting off, I was stunned to find large red apples being sold as “American apples,” in the cradle of apple trees! These certainly did not look American in the sense that they were not washed, scrubbed, waxed, and polished. They looked quite “natural” with that whitish “bloom” or waxy coat secreted by the apple’s skin that meant they were just picked off the branch.

We drove for a few hours, stopping only for a picnic lunch. The highway gave way to an unpaved road. We rode, rather tumbled along, like laundry in a washer on the “heavy” setting. I hung desperately onto the handle above the window, trying to avoid hitting my head too much. The necessity of a ranger’s knowledge of the area became obvious when I realized that not only were we driving on what looked like invisible trails, but we also had to cross several creeks, before reaching the base camp guesthouse. 

Next morning, as my companions busied themselves cooking breakfast, I wandered outside and spotted my first apple tree, near the outhouse. The fruit were small and yellow. They were a little bitter and sour — wild apples indeed. We hiked up to Lake Zhasylkol, a stunning turquoise body of water formed by an earthquake several millennia ago.

The next day, I was over the moon. As we ascended beyond the poplars, and before reaching the spruces, we walked on trails of brown apple carpets, breathing in a sweet scent of cider-like apple juice. Everywhere on the slopes were apple trees, but also apricots, barberries, currants, and cherries, all happily growing among wild herbs and shrubs. Some trees had their bark scored horizontally so abundantly I thought they were some types of birch. Aida explained they were hand scored by sap collectors. “What do you do with the sap?” I asked ignorantly. “You drink it, like in Canada,” smiled Aida.

The lovely September sunshine allowed me to keep on clicking photos, for the views of mountains in the distance were absolutely superb. We did not meet anyone at all on the trail since this park is remote and primitive enough to discourage incidental tourists. 

Eventually, we reached our destination, a little clearing with a picnic table, next to a wide and gnarled tree. This, I was told, is the world’s oldest apple tree, estimated to be four hundred years old. This place was perfect for a little picnic. We had not brought any food with us, so we sipped from our water bottles, and snacked on the apples we’d collected on the way. The mountain ranges stretched in the distance, and we inhaled the sweet scent of apples permeating the air. 

Downslope, we stopped at a location where I’d spotted a grove of apple trees on the way up. The ranger gallantly cut us a path through the six-foot tall dry grass. Quite a number of trees stood there, each displaying fruit of varying colors and sizes. The men helped shake the branches so apples would fall off. We picked as many as we could. I asked Aida to record me while I carried out a taste test for the different varieties of apples. 

Some were as large as my open palm, others more the size of cherries. Some apples were a deep pinkish red, while others were yellow. Most had blemishes, definitely not marketable on account of their imperfect looks, but this did not detract from their taste. Some were tangy, others even slightly bitter. Most were quite sweet, each with a different flavor. Many were crunchy and juicy, while few were either dry or cottony. My favorite apple was around 1.5 inches in diameter, yellowish pink, very crunchy, juicy, and sweet. It took me a while to figure out the flavor. I can only describe it as somewhere between an apricot and a rose. It is amazing how many different colors, sizes, textures, and flavors of fruits are produced by cross pollination. 

With our bags and pockets full of apples, we rode back to the guesthouse to find two other vehicles parked. Apparently, this was the first time ever that this situation had arisen. There were too many tourists and not enough beds. My travel companions were not trained cooks, but everything they made tasted wonderful. It could be because of the invigorating apple-scented mountain air. 

The next morning, we packed up and started the rollercoaster drive back to the highway. We stopped under a single tree by a river for a picnic. I drank its crystal-clear water, and even refilled my water bottle with it, and did not feel any discomfort afterwards. A man in army fatigues on horseback stopped by and talked to the ranger. “What did he want?” I inquired. Aida said he was just checking our papers. I pondered a while on the convenience of having passport control ride up to you versus waiting in line in front of a booth. After brunch, we drove on across more creeks, and eventually reached the highway. The ranger parted ways and we managed to reach Almaty in the afternoon. 

Now that I had a harvest of Sievers in my bag, I set off in search of the Aport apple. They are yellowish green, with blushes of all shades of red. They are rather large in size and weigh around half a pound, the largest looking like small melons. Introduced to Kazakhstan in 1865 by Yegor Redko, a Russian, it was crossed with the Sievers, resulting in this unique huge apple with a delicate aroma. One of its characteristics is its long shelf life. An apple picked in September can easily stay fresh until January or February. During the Soviet era, Aport apples were delicacies shipped all the way to Moscow to delight government VIPs. 

Once numbering over three million, the Aport apple trees around Almaty have now been mostly razed to make way for urban development. Interest in Aport apples has declined, as has cultivation. Isolated groups of Aport apple trees can be found within a couple of hours’ drive from town, around Lake Issyk and up the slopes towards the Turgen Waterfalls. 

Today’s apple scientists and researchers have been traveling to this southeastern corner of Kazakhstan to collect specimens to add to their stock of genetic material. Wild apple trees born of natural selection show extremely strong resistance to many diseases such as blue mold, apple scab, fire blight, cedar apple rust, apple maggots, and apple leaf curling midges. Thus, they are used for breeding and improving today’s commercial apple varieties. Another unique ability of the Sievers apple is its use in the development of a red-fleshed apple with high anthocyanin content which is beneficial in its ability to prevent cardiovascular diseases and protect against liver damage.

A new development is worrying the nearly 100-year-old Dr. Dzangaliev. He is the same 15-year-old who led Vasilov on his legendary exploration of this area. The growing number of commercial apple orchards is now causing a natural crossing of cultivated and wild apples, and the high number of cultivated trees is now swamping the wild remnants.

Despite the establishment of the Dzungar Alatau National Park, the Malus sieversii remains listed as “Vulnerable” on the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List of Threatened Species.

Dr. Fawzia Mai Tung is executive director of Tung Education Resources; leader of Equity and Inclusion Team, the Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators Arizona Chapter (SCBWI-AZ). She is also the secretary of the executive board and translation team consultant, Dimash USA Fan Club. 

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