Islamabad: World-Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) President Dr Adil Najam has said that climate change can no longer be addressed through science and economics alone and thus integration of faith, ethics and values into climate discourse and action is the need of hour in this ‘Age of Adaptation’.
Dr Najam was delivering a lecture on “Faith and climate change in the Age of Adaptation” organised by Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) here Tuesday.
He described faith and climate change a difficult but necessary conversation, noting that a growing body of international literature now recognises the limits of purely technocratic responses. There are clear indications that our efforts towards climate resilience are not succeeding. Climate is no longer a future issue, it is a local and visible one, he said, citing record global temperatures including the hottest year on record in 2020 and unprecedented surface air temperatures recorded since July 2023.
He highlighted the WWF’s pioneering role as among the oldest organisations to initiate structured work on belief systems and climate change, including joint research conducted at Oxford University and Boston University of which Prof Najam is a Dean Emeritus.
He argued that if climate change is fundamentally a behavioural problem, then reluctance to address it through faith-based frameworks needs serious rethinking.
“The Age of Adaptation has arrived because mitigation has not happened on time,” he said, adding that adaptation becomes necessary when mitigation fails, while loss and damage represents the failure of adaptation itself. He cautioned that no credible science today could guarantee limiting global temperature rise below 1.5°C stressing that mitigation remains essential to avert catastrophic impacts even as societies adapt.
He challenged environmentalists’ hesitation to engage with religion, referencing longstanding debates on morality and environmental stewardship. He said that while early Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports were firmly science-driven and later linked climate action to economic incentives, moral values are an equally powerful driver of human behaviour.
“Religion, including Islam, contains rich environmental ethics, and empirical evidence shows faith can influence behaviour,” he said.
Prof Najam outlined seven core concepts relevant to climate adaptation drawn on Islamic principles: balance (Meezan), trust (Waqf), avoidance of waste (Israaf), conservation of natural landscapes (Heema), stewardship (Khilafat), justice (Adal), and harmony with nature (Fitra).
He argued these principles align closely with modern environmental policy goals such as better economics, institutional innovation, efficient natural resource management, climate justice and reduced waste.
He cited the example of ablution (wuzu) amid illustrating faith-based behavioural change, performed by billions of Muslims daily. While average water use ranges between 3.5 to 10 liters per ablution. He noted that one-third to half of this water goes unused, contrasting it with the practice of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) of performing ablution with just 0.66 liters.
He also pointed to emerging models of Islamic green finance, particularly in Malaysia and emphasised the role of local green financing and waste reduction as national priorities.
During the question-and-answer session, Prof Najam highlighted growing international initiatives such as UNEP’s Faith for Earth Initiative and increasing youth focus on values-driven climate action. He clarified that faith-based approaches are not a substitute for state policy or international mitigation commitments, but can play a crucial role at the national and individual levels by shaping behaviour.
“Internationally, mitigation remains the responsibility of nations. Nationally especially in Pakistan, he said, we must also work with individuals and communities,” he said. He concluded by noting that religion remains a major social constituency globally, including in the United States and while faith, values and ethics are complex and sometimes emotive, they offer an underutilised pathway for strengthening environmental conservation alongside law, infrastructure, technology and governance.
