An earlier version of the presentation made in 2008 and shared here has been widely appreciated. This presentation is for multiplying muslim responses for mitigation of climate while appealing on the commons across the faith groups.

1. Mitigating Climate Change through adoption
of inter faith monotheistic/Islamic commons
for Personal, Social ,Environmental, National
and Global Governance
Dr.Muhammad Mukhtar Alam
Centre for Ecological Audit, Social Inclusion and Governance (CEASIG),
a collaborative project of Sewa, Labour League Foundation and Sufi Trust
A presentation on the occasion of Oceanic group and IHC seminar on renewable energy
and Climate Change
5 August 2008
Gulmohar Hall, India Habitat Centre, New Delhi

2. Conventional wisdom!!
 Petro-modern systems have a short past
(how many years??)
 Petro-modern systems will have short future
(peak oil production has reached!!!)
 Need for basket of energy sources (Rahul
Gandhi addressing the debate on nuclear
deal)
 Climate action plan of the government of
India addresses the need of ecological safety
and social inclusion (not quite)

3. Non-renewable/ ecologically
unsustainable energy
 Fossil fuels (has a short future)
 Nuclear energy (has a short future)
 Thermal energy ( has a short future)

4. Renewable/ ecologically sustainable
energy (green energy)
 Solar energy ,Wind energy, Water based
turbines
 Geothermal energy
 Biofuels but we need food first
 Hydrogen powered cars
 But production systems must be green
too..40th
century standards

5. What is climate change
 It is a change in the climate with rise in temperature
of earth, change in rainfall patterns and others
caused due to emission of CO2 and other gases
known as Green house gases (GHGs),
 Everywhere with impacts beyond the national
boundaries
 Several recorded evidences
 UN intergovernmental panel on climate change
 National responses.. a security concern Brahmma
Chellaney

6. What is being done
 Lots of seminars and conferences
 Kyoto protocol emission targets
 National strategies
 International agreements
 Mobilization of civil society, youths groups
and governments
 Policy advocacy for R&D in renewable
energy –the era of innovations

7. What are the instruments that are
advocated
 Energy efficient technologies for reducing
consumption
 Replacement of non-renewable energy
 Treaties signed but not religiously followed
 More funding for research for globalizing
renewable energy based services and utilities
 Binding targets on emission reduction

8. Problems in the strategies
 Defeating strategies as GDP estimates does not
factor the costs on environments
 Quarterly reporting on the increase in the GDP does
not factor the increase in green house gas
emissions ( 7th
Generation Initiative in Canada with wellbeing
measurement Act factoring the ecological costs and cost of
women's work at home) we need this in India too urgently
 Most of the political parties continue to have short
term vision
 Reducing consumption of GHG emitting services is not
yet our national priority and we are waiting for attaining
the emission levels of ecologically hostile economies and
societies

9. Problems in strategies contd..
 Continued marketing of fossil fuel intensive
consumption patterns (ecologically hostile tourism,
long drives, fashion, culture of dancing and drinking
intoxicating drinks)
 Continued political support for atheistic neo-liberal
cultural products and processes that are inimical to
national and global ecological safety
 Absence of concerns for addressing the root causes
of ecological and man made disasters
 Marginalisation of the faith based groups by the
atheistic intelligentsia

10. Towards a solution/ preparing for end of
petromodern times
 Reduction in the emission of green house gases
through promoting measures and decision patterns
that moderate the consumption of services and
utilities based on the consumption of green house
emitting fossil fuels
 Personal, community, organisational, national and
international /global responses for reducing the
emission of green houses
 Adoption of faith based responses that are common
across the faith groups
 Campaigns for adoption of measures for
transforming consumption patterns through
seminars, discussion groups and so on

11. Personal faith based responses for
transforming consumption patterns
 Prayer 5/3+1 times a day for transforming leisure
use pattern recognising that leisure use patterns are
one of the key social engagements consuming fossil
fuel based services and utilities
 Command for prayer is common across the religious
texts
 Abstaining from avoidable travels
 Rejecting food and other properties bought from
ecologically hostile and socially inequitable usurious
money and other receipts ( bribery, commission and
so on)

12. How does adoption of prayer
transforms the consumption
 Men and women practicing prayer (salah in
Arabic) do not visit dancing halls and bars
 They abstain from exhibitionist consumption
 They abstain from adultery
 They donate out of the sustenance for poor
 They do not waste
 Their average ecological footprints are likely
to be very low

13. Reduction in the
consumption of fossil fuel
based services and utilities
through transformation of
leisure use pattern
Prayer 5 times a day for
transformation of
exhibitionist consumption
and leisure use patterns
Ecological safety with
ecologically sustainable
habitats and livelihoods
globally
Reduction in the emission
of green house gases

14. Inter faith commons
 Ishwar smarate panch awasare- shiv sankalp taru
 Establish prayer at the appointed hours 5 times (The Holy
Quran)
 Commands in Bible and Torah
 Buddhist monotheistic tradition fighting the ‘mara’
Dhammapada
 Gurus in the Sikhism and tirthankers in Jain traditions are
examples of austere life filled with prayer, penance, donation
 Prohibition of usury ,corruption, food bought from illegitimate
means, adultery, homosexuality ,dishonesty and several other
ecologically sensitive commands

15. Steps for ecologically safe and socially inclusive
economy with happiness for all
 Elimination of usury..RBI to lead. Stop payment of
interests
 Debt free credit and interest free loans leads to zero
debt distressed suicides and bankruptcies
 Ecologically sustainable habitats with renewable
resource based life support systems
 Freedom from worries of energy crisis affecting
energy intensive transportation systems and
habitats (urban areas with shopping malls will no
longer expand and remain within ecologically
sustainable limits)
 Equitable distribution of renewable resource based
livelihoods (land, water, forest)

16. Who will lead the charge
 Pious men and women across the world prohibiting
peacefully what is wrong and prescribing what is
right
 Youths and corporations who are market for non-
renewable energy intensive services and utilities
 Governments especially Ministries dealing with
education, finance, power seeking convergence
 signs of ecological distress affecting the lives of
billions are clear indicators for change and taking
corrective action locally and globally

17. Hurdles in the way
 Neo-liberal atheistic ideology
 Lack of coherent national and international
policy
 Lack of inter agency cooperation for example
UNDP works against UNEP mandate
 Environment assessments /ministries are
slighted for benefiting ecologically hostile
proposals/ policies SEZ

18. Geostrategics/Ecostrategics/ the Day
of Judgement
 Geostrategics must supersede nationalistic
aspirations based on the possession of non-
renewable resource based markers of development
ecologically hostile skyscrapers Olympics and
commonwealth games
 Ecostrategics call for sacrifice of desires for comfort
and services based on GHG emitting energy and
resources
 Our fate on the Day of Judgement/ interests of
children in 40th
century must be a pointer for shaping
our behaviour in here and now

19. Socially inclusive and ecologically safe
Governance frameworks
 A governance that is cognisant of the needs
of poor, rights of farmers and villages to
ecologically sustainable livelihoods and
habitats
 A governance that eliminates fictitious
inflationary money responsible for expansion
of ecologically hostile habitats
 A governance that promotes pious and
ecologically safe consumption and production
pattern

20. Ecologically safe and socially
inclusive governance-2
 A government that plans for ecologically safe
disaster free future for all
 A governance that ensures ecologically safe
distribution of natural resources
 A governance that works for the interests of
all
 A governance that ensures policy making for
the rights of children, future generations and
poor

21. Discouraging
exhibitionist
consumption patterns
Promotion of
neighborhood trade
and education
Debt free, interest free
ecologically safe
finance system
Ecologically
sustainable agriculture Ecologically safe
models of success
Promotion of
ecologically
sustainable transport
Systems
Faith based measures
for transformation of
leisure use pattern
Promotion of
ecologically
sustainable habitats
Marketing of
ecologically safe
consumption
production
Ecologically safe
strategy/
development
paradigm

22. Essential features of ecologically sustainable
and socially inclusive anti-inflationary
economy
 Debt free money and interest free loans with public
control on the creation of money
 Rights to renewable resource based habitats
 Ecologically sustainable leisure use patterns
 Distributive justice for renewable resource based
livelihoods
 Freedom from worried of energy crisis
 Protection of Renewable resource based
livelihoods

23. Protection of
Renewable resource
based livelihoods
Freedom from
worried of energy
crisis
Distributive justice
for renewable
resource based
livelihoods
Ecologically
sustainable leisure
use patterns
Rights to renewable
resource based
habitats
Debt free money
/interest free loans
with public money
Ecologically
Sustainable/
Contended reverent
economy

24. CEASIG /Sewa-LLF-Sufi Proposal
 Multiplication of carbon neutral neighbourhood
discussions across the cities and villages
 Multiplication of ecologically safe responses through
promotion of green journalism, green politics /open
politics, transformation of leisure use patterns
 Mandatory conduct of ecological audit, calculation of
ecological footprints , minimising ecological
rucksacks
 Policy advocacy for inclusion of a subject on climate
change for educating the children

25. Proposal..contd-2
 Ecological Audit of the consumption patterns
 Interfaith dialogue for addressing the climate
change, farmers suicides, social security for workers
in unorganised sector
 National Convention on Inter Faith common
responses for addressing the climate change
 Youth colloquiums ( Majlis-e-naujawan/ Yuvjan
Sabhas) for contributing in mitigation of the impacts
of climate change
 Preparing for the end of petromodern age and
planning for the children of 40th
century in India

26. Proposals contd..3
 Curriculum Renewal considering the demands of
climate change ( not merely tree planting but
concrete reduction in emission of green house
gases)
 Creation of a special ministry for dealing with climate
change and responses
 Creation of a discipline called Ecostrategics for
coordinating national and global best practice for
transition to renewable resource based ecologically
sustainable economy, polity and culture

27. Prayers / celebrations (!!!!) of the children
of 40th
century !!!! Preparing for
post-petromodern futures
 Let us think about the children of 40th
century
and their future
 Let us pray for their safe habitats with
renewable resources
 Let us download their interests and vibes in
here and now
 Let us ensure that they have a future with the
blessing of Almighty Allah/ God / Ishwar/
Elahom/…/..the creator, sustainer and master
of all universes

28. Karo bhalai zameen par
khuda khush hoga arsh-bareen par
Do good on earth ..Allah/ God/Ishwar/../../ will
be happy in the heaven
Thanks for viewing and thanking in anticipation
of support for endeavours for ecologically
safe future for our children in 40th
century and
beyond..80th
century…200th
century AH/AD/
…./../