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History of LINE and Islamic Environmentalism in the UK -
by Muzammal Hussain, Founder of LINE
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Before the Paradigm Shift
In the 1990's, there were very few people who were actively promoting awareness of environmental ethics amongst Muslim communities in the UK. There was the occasional public talk usually given by one of a couple of people in IFEES, at which after a bit of listening, the nodding of heads, questions and answers and momentary inspiration, the audience would return home and re-immerse themselves into their normal routine. Of course, whilst seeds would have been sown, the dispersed and rare nature of enthusiastic environmentalists in Muslim communities meant that any progress would confine itself to a small sphere of possibilities. For real progress to be made, it was clear that the paradigm in which Islamic environmentalism existed in the UK would need to transform.
Over the years, I began to hear more and more Muslims voice their frustration that they had not come across other Muslims, who like them, were interested in environmentalism. Whenever I came across such people, they were always shocked to hear that as well as myself, I knew others who shared their passion."I thought I was the only one" became a mantra that I began to hear frequently. The signs were encouraging, and the path seemed obvious: People had to meet up regularly, get to know one another, and thus be empowered to build their own networks within which they could work together and thus engage more creatively and effectively in their local communities. The paradigm shift was now ready to take place.
As one of a few Muslims who would speak on the environment at events and write an occasional letter to MP's, Ministers and various organisations, it was in recognising the above, coupled with my involvement in local group activism in Brighton, that I then reflected on the possibility of starting local Islamic environmental groups in the UK. I then discussed this with several people, and felt this could really work.
In Autumn 2003 I was invited to speak on GM foods at a conference on 'Islam and the Environment' in Reading. After gaining the green light from the organisers, Imaad and IMASE, I used my talk at this delightful event as an opportunity to encourage the more committed audience members to get together with the aim of focussing on starting a local Islamic environmental group in Reading. Afterwards, a small number of people did successfully meet up on one occasion in a room provided by Reading Council with myself also present, and whilst the potential and enthusiasm seemed strong and probably still remains, the effort within the group was not sustained long enough for the group to properly form.
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The Birth of LINE
Several months later in early 2004, I used an Islamic environmental elist I had developed over the years (now called Ecobites) as a vehicle to publicise my intention to form a network in London, which is where I felt there would be greatest potential, even though I was then living in Brighton. The first meeting of just three people took place on January 10th 2004 in my parents home, and with sustained effort the group became established. Eight months later on September 5th 2004, this new group decided on an official name: the London Islamic Network for the Environment, or LINE.
It should be added that whilst I was working with IFEES when I started LINE, LINE has always been autonomous. At the same time, with experience in local group activism lacking within IFEES, the foundation and soul of the group were instead inspired and nurtured by a diverse range of other sources without which I do not feel that the project would have stood much chance of success. For instance, the idea to set up a local environmental group at all was influenced by my experience with the highly competent 'World Development Movement' (WDM) in Brighton, an impressive group that I was actively involved with. I also discussed ideas and drew on the experience of other activists mostly from Brighton, in an attempt to consider what might work and what wouldn't, in the context of a group comprising of mostly Muslims. The lengthy conversations with these and other individuals continue to this day, as part of the ongoing process of drawing on expertise and sharing experiences from a wide range of sources for a constantly evolving network.
For a group to be empowered and established within a grassroots ideological basis, it is necessary for as many voices as possible to be heard within it, the quieter ones as well as the louder ones, and from the beginning, I had always felt it important for the committed members of LINE to also develop their awareness of group processes and thus be in a better position to facilitate the input and integration of these voices. This led me to look at group psychology and development as well as meeting facilitation skills and consensus decision making. I attended workshops and looked into resources on the web, such as on the Seeds for Change and People & Planet websites. I also tried to get a sense of whether there was sufficient interest within LINE for members to participate in formal group development training and when it was clear that there was, I consequently organised for Seeds for Change to deliver a workshop specifically for LINE members in the summer of 2005.
Awareness of social movements and social change especially through reading Nelson Mandela's inspiring autobiography, Gandhi's 'The Story of my Experiments with Truth', and the life of Abdul Ghaffar Khan also offered ideas that influenced my vision, as did Islamic teachings and Islamic history, through reflection on their relevance to effective environmental activism and social change now.
Despite the low priority given to the environment amongst Muslims and the low level of experience in local activism amongst many newcomers to the network, LINE nonetheless beat the odds and established itself as a competent, creative and self-aware activist group, which has demonstrated that it can deliver. Many thanks must go to all the sources mentioned above, for their invaluable support which helped LINE to become established in the solid form that it now takes as well as early members who helped support LINE getting off the ground.
Also, people of other faiths and beliefs gradually began to join in our forums, some of whom have now become regular, and too, have given valuable support and encouragement.
The journey for LINE has been challenging but fun, and truly rewarding. It's success has shown what is possible, and shortly after it's formation, it inspired effort from other individuals to also get together to form other local Islamic environmental networks in their own areas in the UK.
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UK-Wide Islamic Environmental Groups
There had been a couple of attempts at starting an Islamic environmental group in Birmingham that didn't quite take off. On the 11th June 2004, I introduced the idea to an audience at an event organised by the Birmingham City Circle. People were clearly interested but a meeting was yet to happen.
Next year, Fazlun Khalid, the director of IFEES and well known for his writings and Islamic environmental ethic workshops was now based back in Birmingham following some time abroad. Having heard about LINE, he was keen to try to set up a similar group in Birmingham. He thus organised a meeting which took place on Sunday 20th Feb 2005 at which I also presented my experience in setting up LINE. A number of keen people attended this event including a couple from the Birmingham City Circle meeting, and the possibility of a Midlands Islamic environmental group opened up. The efforts that followed were spear-headed by Rianne ten Veen who thus initiated MINE.
That Birmingham meeting was also attended by Nadeem Shah, who reported back to his home town, Sheffield, and with the leadership of Kate Fryer, a Sheffield Islamic environmental group, called ShINE, began.
Simultaneously, around the same period, a small number of individuals were also looking at the possibility of a group in Wales and had been communicating this to me via my elist, Ecobites. Masood Yousef took the idea forward with the support of Omer Williams and on June 5th 2005, WELCOME was initiated.
I had the honour of being invited to speak at the launch of both WELCOME and ShINE and was encouraged to see many enthusiastic people wanting to come together to take things forward.
Of course, whilst enthusiasm is often there at the start, the development of a strong group also depends on a number of other ingredients such as the following through of mundane tasks, having the tools to work through challenges that come up, open and sincere communication, as well as consistency. The ongoing development of one's own inner state and inner resources is also crucial as a means to remain centred and to prevent burn-out. It is my prayer that these networks can develop and become strong. The potential exists for amazing things to happen. Given the scale of the environmental challenge, the alternative is far too painful to even contemplate.
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LINE Official Positions
Acting Support to Chair: Shumaisa Khan
Chair: Muzammal Hussain
These are responsible positions that are assumed on a voluntary basis
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Set Up a Local Islamic Environmental Group
LINE is the first such group in the UK, and was established through the hard work of a small number of committed individuals. Having pioneered local Islamic environmental activism in the UK and developed a thorough grounding in group processes in a range of settings, LINE thus has considerable experience and expertise that we also offer to support newer groups. If you would like some general advice, or would like to to draw on our more in depth experience and support, then please contact us. Workshops are also offered.
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FAQ's
Is LINE a subsidiary of any other group or organisation?
No. Whilst LINE was set up by Muzammal Hussain who was working with IFEES at that time, both are distinct and autonomous, and have their own characteristics and structure. There has never been any formal affiliation of one with the other.
Also, whilst LINE inspired and started a pattern through it's name that was adopted by other newer groups, again whilst LINE is open to working on joint projects where there is common ground, there is nonetheless no formal alliance.
This autonomy coupled with openness allows LINE to work as a team with other networks, both inside and outside Muslim communities, whilst retaining a fluid and creative nature.
Is LINE affiliated to any political party?
No. Whilst LINE believes that just like any relationship learning can take place both ways, thus LINE also believes that politicians can learn from us, and we can learn from them. Simultaneously, we are not affiliated to any political party. This does not however prevent any LINE member from also being a member of a political party of their own choosing, if they so wish. This however is neither formally encouraged nor discouraged.
What kind of organisations does LINE work with?
LINE has built links and has worked with numerous organisations in a variety of ways. These include, (in alphabetical order): BTCV, Campaign against Climate Change, The Corner House, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, Hilfield Project, Rising Tide, St Ethelburga's Centre for Peace and Reconciliation, Tawhid Mosque, WELCOME & WDM (World Development Movement).
Why an 'Islamic' environmental group?
Islamic teachings offer profound principles that work in a holistic system which recognises the interactions between the diverse areas of life and society such as economics, health, peace and conflict for example and within which environmental care is also integrated. It also emphasises amongst a number of factors, the importance of spiritual development, on the journey through which our relationship with the world is affected, allowing us to recognise with increasing clarity that ultimately everything comes from one source, and is connected. The development of this experience presents a profound basis to environmentalism.
In this, as well as other regards, there are some similarities between Islamic environmentalism and other ideologies, and the beauty of these meeting points amongst ideologies is that they allow different groups to work together. Hence, being an Islamic group does not negate the probability of working with others that are not labelled Islamic. Indeed often there are far more similarities than differences. In addition an Islamic basis to environmentalism also touches people of the Islamic faith in an intimate way and offers them a realisation of the depth to their faith that they may not have had. This encourages motivation and opens up a greater human potential to meet the huge scale of the environmental challenge that humanity collectively faces.
Is there a formal membership structure to LINE?
Yes and No. There is a loose group of regular, committed volunteers who decide on key issues related to the running of the group, whilst taking into account the views of the wider network. This usually takes place at closed/review meetings. Within this group is a Chair and Support to Chair, whose role is fundamentally to ensure the group stays within its own ethos.
Essentially anyone who is regular at forums and who believes and works within the ethos of LINE, Muslim or of another belief, can consider themselves to be an informal member of the group. On the other hand, attending closed meetings requires a particularly strong commitment to LINE and resonance with its ethos. It also requires a certain amount of time for the closed meetings. Please discuss with the Chair, if you are interested in attending.
Do I have to pay to participate in the group?
No. However, there is an optional annual fee of £5, collected around the beginning of each year at our monthly forums, for any participant who wishes to offer their service in this way.
I don't have time to attend the forums. Can I still help?
Quite possibly. Get in touch with us and we can have a chat. If you would like to help financially, you may like to visit our donate page.
How can I find out more?
Please explore this website or feel free to contact us directly.
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