The Dynamics of Religion and Ecology in Indonesia: An Overview of Environmental Social Movements from 1990-2022

In the longstanding debate over the relationship between religion and ecology, there are two major camps. One side argues that religion contributes to ecological destruction, while the other side argues that religion is a force for saving the environment. Yet both sides tend to view religion as a f...

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Main Authors: Ronald Adam, Jonathan D. SMith, Samsul Maarif
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta 2025-08-01
Series:Jurnal Sosiologi Agama
Subjects:
Online Access:https://ejournal.uin-suka.ac.id/ushuluddin/SosiologiAgama/article/view/4737
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author Ronald Adam
Jonathan D. SMith
Samsul Maarif
author_facet Ronald Adam
Jonathan D. SMith
Samsul Maarif
author_sort Ronald Adam
collection DOAJ
description In the longstanding debate over the relationship between religion and ecology, there are two major camps. One side argues that religion contributes to ecological destruction, while the other side argues that religion is a force for saving the environment. Yet both sides tend to view religion as a fixed set of beliefs or practices. This article argues that the relationship between religion and ecology is contested and changing. It provides evidence from an empirical study of how social movements use lived religion, meaning everyday practices instead of doctrines or expert definitions. The study used framework synthesis to select and analyze 244 qualitative studies on Indonesian environmental social movements active between 1990 and 2022, resulting in data about 208 movements spread across 38 provinces. 167 of these movements involved lived religion in some way, leading to four findings about religion and ecology: 1) structural factors influencing social movements to include religion in their ecological responses; 2) dynamic relationship between religion and ecology both within each religious community and throughout history; 3) usefulness of lived religion to show how Indonesian religions and traditions provide resources for environmental movements; and 4) extensive creative responses used by social movements to address environmental crises.
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spelling doaj-art-6e401c391d7f4f49bc0de12f11a79b972025-08-25T21:15:41ZengUniversitas Islam Negeri Sunan Kalijaga YogyakartaJurnal Sosiologi Agama1978-44572548-477X2025-08-0119110.14421/jsa.2025.191-06The Dynamics of Religion and Ecology in Indonesia: An Overview of Environmental Social Movements from 1990-2022 Ronald Adam0Jonathan D. SMith 1Samsul Maarif2Center for Religious and Cross-Cultural StudiesCenter for Religious and Cross-Cultural Studies, Universitas Gadjah Mada Center for Religious and Cross-Cultural Studies, Universitas Gadjah Mada In the longstanding debate over the relationship between religion and ecology, there are two major camps. One side argues that religion contributes to ecological destruction, while the other side argues that religion is a force for saving the environment. Yet both sides tend to view religion as a fixed set of beliefs or practices. This article argues that the relationship between religion and ecology is contested and changing. It provides evidence from an empirical study of how social movements use lived religion, meaning everyday practices instead of doctrines or expert definitions. The study used framework synthesis to select and analyze 244 qualitative studies on Indonesian environmental social movements active between 1990 and 2022, resulting in data about 208 movements spread across 38 provinces. 167 of these movements involved lived religion in some way, leading to four findings about religion and ecology: 1) structural factors influencing social movements to include religion in their ecological responses; 2) dynamic relationship between religion and ecology both within each religious community and throughout history; 3) usefulness of lived religion to show how Indonesian religions and traditions provide resources for environmental movements; and 4) extensive creative responses used by social movements to address environmental crises. https://ejournal.uin-suka.ac.id/ushuluddin/SosiologiAgama/article/view/4737Agama dan ekologiGerakan sosial lingkunganKreativitas eko-religiusKehidupan keagamaan sehari-hari
spellingShingle Ronald Adam
Jonathan D. SMith
Samsul Maarif
The Dynamics of Religion and Ecology in Indonesia: An Overview of Environmental Social Movements from 1990-2022
Jurnal Sosiologi Agama
Agama dan ekologi
Gerakan sosial lingkungan
Kreativitas eko-religius
Kehidupan keagamaan sehari-hari
title The Dynamics of Religion and Ecology in Indonesia: An Overview of Environmental Social Movements from 1990-2022
title_full The Dynamics of Religion and Ecology in Indonesia: An Overview of Environmental Social Movements from 1990-2022
title_fullStr The Dynamics of Religion and Ecology in Indonesia: An Overview of Environmental Social Movements from 1990-2022
title_full_unstemmed The Dynamics of Religion and Ecology in Indonesia: An Overview of Environmental Social Movements from 1990-2022
title_short The Dynamics of Religion and Ecology in Indonesia: An Overview of Environmental Social Movements from 1990-2022
title_sort dynamics of religion and ecology in indonesia an overview of environmental social movements from 1990 2022
topic Agama dan ekologi
Gerakan sosial lingkungan
Kreativitas eko-religius
Kehidupan keagamaan sehari-hari
url https://ejournal.uin-suka.ac.id/ushuluddin/SosiologiAgama/article/view/4737
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