Research Area C Global Muslim Responsibility (C9)

Project Leader: Udo Simon

This project examined the emergence of Islamic approaches to environmental responsibility and the ways in which these are conceptualized and translated into practice. It sought to map the overlapping flows and backflows of ideas about the relationship of man and nature, and investigated in what ways representations of the ‘Green’ reflect the agendas of global and local actors in the Middle East and Europe. In the context of reflexive modernity, the re-appropriation of Islamic heritage responds to both the pressing need to solve the environmental problems, and a recognized asymmetry in view of the West’s conceptual leadership in this field. Today, the number of Islamic NGOs as actors in development cooperation is increasing while Muslims in the West take an active part in the debate over Islam as a foundation for environmental protection.