Green Fatwas in Bahtsul Masail: Nahdlatul Ulamas Response to the Discourse of Environmental Crisis in Indonesia

Abstract

This article aims to discuss Nahdlatul Ulama (NU)s responses to the environmental crisis in Indonesia. It portrays social context beyond the birth of NU fatwas concerning with ecological issues and the follow-up steps to build eco-literacy among nahdliyyin. The results of the study indicate that the emergence of ecological or green fatwas was based on the concern of NUs Executive Boards who are aware of the increasing scale of the Indonesian environmental crisis. The idea to respond to this environmental crisis has appeared since the 29th NU Congress in Cipasung, Tasikmalaya, West Java. NU contributed by issuing ecological fatwas through Bahtsul Masail forum from the fiqh perspective as a guide for nahdliyyin to manage the environment in a friendly and sustainable manner. As for the examples of follow-up steps on those fatwa were through a program called Bank Sampah Nusantara (Archipelago Garbage Bank) with its campaign for Nusantara Bebas Sampah (Zero Waste Archipelago) under the management of NUs Lembaga Penanggulangan Bencana dan Perubahan Iklim (Agency for Disaster Management and Climate Change).