Eleventh International Conference on Religion & Spirituality in Society

Abstract

Trends come and go, not just in fashion, but also in means and opportunities for poverty alleviation. The term sustainable development (SD) has been around 25+ years; the principle of ‘do no harm’ in humanitarian interventions is becoming increasingly prominent on paper (e.g. OECD’s Paris Declaration [2007] mentioning ‘Do no harm’ as second principle); there are significant humanitarian interventions in Muslim contexts (e.g. Yemen), and Islamic faith-based NGOs (who more or less profess to work by Islamic principles and values, includes principle of ‘la darar’ [do no harm], based on the hadeeth [narration from Prophet Muhammed] “harm may neither be inflicted nor reciprocated - la darar wa la dirar fi’l-Islam”). With increasing urgency of impacts of climate change on particularly poorest, what does this all suggest for humanitarian interventions by Islamic faith-based NGOs, for increased acceptance of humanitarian interventions by actors in an Islamic context, for true impact on or achievement of SD? This research looks beyond ‘tick box exercise’ of whether sustainability has been considered: analyses Islamic perspective on SD and what this implies for the work of Islam-inspired NGOs. Preliminary results foresee a requirement for more thorough engagement with the issues at stake, to invest time and energy to in more detail research an Islamic interpretation of SD and actual implementation of the outcomes, both for the sake of the poorest benefiting from more ethical, holistic and truly SD as a means to escape poverty, but also for Islam-inspired NGOs to be able to be more honest, truly Islamic.