Description
Book SynopsisAnna M. Gade explores the religious and cultural foundations of Islamic environmentalisms. She blends textual and ethnographic study to offer a comprehensive and interdisciplinary account of the legal, ethical, social, and political principles underlying Muslim commitments to the earth.
Trade ReviewAnna M. Gade places her arguments within a rich exploration of historical and modern theoretical approaches to the environment and environmentalism. This book is theoretically sophisticated, lively, and interesting. -- Marion Katz, author of
Women in the Mosque: A History of Legal Thought and Social PracticeAnna Gade's
Muslim Environmentalisms is an instant classic. It is inspired and inspiring, a work that deserves to be read and internalized in scholarly communities, activist movements, and policy circles. Many previous works on the subjects have offered profound philosophical speculations on the theme, but have remained oddly disconnected from the activities of Muslims on the ground. Gade's work brilliantly guides us among the rich discursive terrains of Qur'an and ethics, to the environmentalist movements in Cambodia and Indonesia, and Malaysia. I cannot remember another work that moves with such grace and brilliance, benefitting from the insights of the best of religious studies, anthropology, and more.
Muslim Environmentalisms is more than simply a work that sums up or even challenges existing fields. It shines a light on the terrain that must be followed to save our only home. -- Omid Safi, author of
Progressive Muslims: On Justice, Gender, and PluralismAnna Gade’s original book pushes environmental humanities to open up to concepts and insights from Islamic thinking. Rather than an idealized and static theology, Islam, for Gade, is what Muslims say and do, in their relation to the Qur’an; this already moves us beyond stereotypes and exclusions.
Muslim Environmentalisms is a much needed addition to environmental thinking. -- Anna Tsing, author of
Friction: An Ethnography of Global ConnectionMuslim Environmentalisms is a must-read for anyone interested in religion and the environment, and the environmental humanities generally. In contrast to essentializing, monolithic approaches of 'Islam
and ecology,' Gade offers a nuanced and grounded portrait of Muslim environmentalism
s that advances the project of the environmental humanities beyond romantic, colonial, and Eurocentric frames and inheritances, while staking an original claim for 'the environment' as an inherently ethical category. -- Lisa Sideris, author of
Consecrating Science: Wonder, Knowledge, and the Natural WorldAn in-depth and all-encompassing critical survey of how some contemporary Muslims have sought to articulate environmental values in terms of Islamic ethics and norms. -- Richard Foltz Concordia University * AAR Book Review *
Recommended. * Choice *
A serious, sustained, and precious evaluation. . . . By re-situating the Islamic Humanities on a footing more representative of their actual practice, Gade invites us to comprehend them more accurately and compare them more profitably with other traditions. * Religion and the Arts *
This brilliant book...opens a path for scholars, students, and activists alike to focus on ethical commitments and the environmental justice. * Journal of Muslim Philanthropy and Civil Society *
An excellent work. It contributes to the existing literature on religious studies, Islamic studies, religious environmentalism, the anthropology of Islam, Southeast Asian studies, and environmental humanities. * Journal of Asian Studies *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
1. History of Religions, Islam, and Environmental Humanities
2. Islam and the Environment: Pluralism and Development
3. A Qur’anic Environment: Relating Creatures and Resources
4. Roots and Branches of Islamic Environmental Justice, Law, and Ethics
5. Islamic Humanities: Apprehending Symbol, Expression, and Natural Science
6. Muslim Environmentalism as Religious Practice: Accounts of the Unseen
7. From This World to the Next
Notes
Bibliography
Index
