Faith-Integrated Environmental Education in a Muslim-Majority Rural Community: A Qualitative Case Study South Sulawesi, Indonesia

Rudhi Rudhi 1 Indonesia , Herianti Herianti 1 Indonesia , Nurdin Nurdin 1 Indonesia , Nursyamsidar Nursyamsidar 2 Indonesia , Nurhaliza Nurhaliza 2 Indonesia , Nia Kartika Putri 2 Indonesia , Sita Damayantih 2 Indonesia , Indo Aco 2 Indonesia , Rahman Rahman 2 Indonesia , Naufal Fajrul Ihsan 2 Indonesia , Agung Setia Budi Wahid 2 Indonesia
1 Universitas Islam As'adiyah Sengkang
2 Universitas Islam As’adiyah Sengkang
Link Copied!
Published 2026-07-17
Vol. 5 No. 4 (2026) PAGES 2489-2505
DOI 10.51574/ijrer.v5i4.5349
Views / Downloads 49 23

Education for Sustainable Development increasingly recognizes that durable environmental behavior is rooted in intrinsic motivation rather than information provision alone. In Muslim-majority communities, Islamic ecotheology offers a culturally authentic foundation for environmental education, yet empirical research on its operationalization in real community settings remains limited. This qualitative case study investigates how Islamic ecotheological values function as a framework for non-formal and informal environmental education in Ganra Village, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, examining the factors sustaining community-wide environmental learning. Data were collected through purposive semi-structured interviews, participatory observation, and document analysis, then analyzed using the Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña interactive model. Three principal findings emerged: first, environmental awareness is grounded in Islamic faith, framing environmental care as ibadah (worship) through khalifah (vicegerency) and mizan (balance); second, ecotheological values are operationalized through five structured educational channels, including communal rituals and the BERGEGAS waste management program; third, six interdependent factors sustain learning, notably strong leadership, village regulations, and a deep Islamic heritage. The Ganra Village case demonstrates that faith-integrated environmental education, when institutionally scaffolded, produces highly persistent pro-environmental outcomes. This ProKlim-awarded model offers a replicable template for faith-based environmental education globally, advancing scholarship by demonstrating how ecotheology functions as a pedagogically coherent framework.

Rudhi, R., Herianti, H., Nurdin, N., Nursyamsidar, N., Nurhaliza, N., Putri, N. K., … Wahid, A. S. B. (2026). Faith-Integrated Environmental Education in a Muslim-Majority Rural Community: A Qualitative Case Study South Sulawesi, Indonesia . ETDC: Indonesian Journal of Research and Educational Review , 5(4), 2489–2505. https://doi.org/10.51574/ijrer.v5i4.5349
More Citation Formats
Download Citation

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.
  1. Adams, S., Farrelly, T., & Holland, J. (2020). Non-formal education for sustainable development: A case study of the ‘children in the wilderness’ eco-club programme in the Zambezi region. Journal of Education for Sustainable Development, 14(2), 117-139. https://doi.org/10.1177/0973408220980871 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0973408220980871
  2. Anwar, S., & bin Ali, M. H. (2025). Islamic Ecotheology, Green Radicalism, and SDGs: Ecological Ideology in the Political Islam Movement in Indonesia. Profetika: Jurnal Studi Islam, 26(02), 667-678. https://doi.org/10.23917/profetika.v26i02.11893 DOI: https://doi.org/10.23917/profetika.v26i02.11893
  3. Baldwin, E., Thiel, A., McGinnis, M., & Kellner, E. (2024). Empirical research on polycentric governance: Critical gaps and a framework for studying long‐term change. Policy Studies Journal, 52(2), 319-348. https://doi.org/10.1111/psj.12518 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/psj.12518
  4. Basri, S., Adnan, Y., Widiastuty, L., Syamsul, M. A., & Indar, I. (2025). Islamic environmental ethics: A cultural framework for sustainable resource management and global ecological stewardship. Diversity: Disease Preventive of Research Integrity, 86-93. DOI: https://doi.org/10.24252/diversity.v5i2.52342
  5. Bensaid, B., & Bensaıd, B. (2023). An overview of Muslim spiritual eco-education. Journal of Dharma, 48(4), 465-494.
  6. Boeve-de Pauw, J., Gericke, N., Olsson, D., & Berglund, T. (2015). The effectiveness of education for sustainable development. Sustainability, 7(11), 15693-15717. https://doi.org/10.3390/su71115693 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su71115693
  7. Cheema, A. M. (2025). Exploring the Islamic Eco-Theology to Address Environmental Crisis: A Pathway to Global Sustainability. Al-Tabyeen. https://journals.uol.edu.pk/al-tabyeen/article/view/4055
  8. Gatto, A. (2022). Polycentric and resilient perspectives for governing the commons: Strategic and law and economics insights for sustainable development. Ambio, 51(9), 1921-1932. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-022-01719-x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-022-01719-x
  9. Gelderblom, D. (2018). The limits to bridging social capital: Power, social context and the theory of Robert Putnam. The Sociological Review, 66(6), 1309-1324. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038026118765360 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0038026118765360
  10. Gnyawali, B., Sapkota, K., & Paudel, D. (2024). Place-Based Education: A Critical Review. The Geographic Base, 11(01), 84-95. https://nepjol.info/index.php/tgb/article/view/88628 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3126/tgb.v11i01.88628
  11. Gulzar, A., Islam, T., Hamid, M., & Haq, S. M. (2021). Environmental ethics towards the sustainable development in Islamic perspective: A Brief Review. Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 22, 1-10. https://ethnobotanyjournal.org/index.php/era/article/view/3231 DOI: https://doi.org/10.32859/era.22.39.1-10
  12. Hajar, A. (2024). Transforming Islamic education for environmental and social sustainability. Sinergi International Journal of Islamic Studies, 2(2), 82-95. https://doi.org/10.61194/ijis.v2i2.601 DOI: https://doi.org/10.61194/ijis.v2i2.601
  13. Hakim, B. R., Beck, H. L., & Makruf, J. (2026). From Spiritual Crisis to Ecological Ethics: Ecosufism, Religious Authority, and Environmental Governance in Indonesia. Teosofi: Jurnal Tasawuf dan Pemikiran Islam, 16(1), 166-195. https://doi.org/10.15642/teosofi.2026.16.1.114-143
  14. Hamdan, H. (2026). Islamic education with an ecological perspective: Quranic foundations, environmental ethics, and pathways toward sustainable development. Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 16(1), 91-106. https://doi.org/10.38073/jpi.4545 DOI: https://doi.org/10.38073/jpi.4545
  15. Hidayat, M. (2023). Islamic Eco-theology: Religious narratives in the climate crisis in Indonesia. Bulletin of Indonesian Islamic Studies, 2(2), 197-212. https://doi.org/10.51214/biis.v2i2.678 DOI: https://doi.org/10.51214/biis.v2i2.678
  16. Jordan, A., & Huitema, D. (2023). Polycentric governance. In Routledge Handbook of Environmental Policy (pp. 55-67). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003043843-6 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003043843-6
  17. Karim, A. (2022). Integration of religious awareness in environmental education. QIJIS (Qudus International Journal of Islamic Studies), 10(2), 415-442. http://dx.doi.org/10.21043/qijis.v10i2.14404 DOI: https://doi.org/10.21043/qijis.v10i2.14404
  18. Kopnina, H. (2014). Revisiting education for sustainable development (ESD): Examining anthropocentric bias through the transition of environmental education to ESD. Sustainable development, 22(2), 73-83. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2013.802159 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.529
  19. Mariyono, D., & Wiyono, D. F. (2026). Transformative islamic education as a resource for religious education in the anthropocene: an eco-social synthesis. British Journal of Religious Education, 1-24. https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2026.2691221 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2026.2691221
  20. Marouli, C. (2021). Sustainability education for the future? Challenges and implications for education and pedagogy in the 21st century. Sustainability, 13(5), 2901. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13052901 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su13052901
  21. Marshall, H. (2025). Integrating sustainability into religious education. Journal of Beliefs & Values, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/13617672.2025.2504983 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13617672.2025.2504983
  22. Meng, L., & Si, W. (2022). Pro-environmental behavior: Examining the role of ecological value cognition, environmental attitude, and place attachment among rural farmers in China. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(24), 17011. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192417011 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192417011
  23. Mohamed, N. (2014). Islamic education, eco-ethics and community. Studies in Philosophy and Education, 33(3), 315-328. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11217-013-9387-y DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11217-013-9387-y
  24. Morselli, D., & Kakouris, A. (2022). Teaching entrepreneurship to undergraduates: a Vygotskian perspective. Theorising undergraduate entrepreneurship education: Reflections on the development of the entrepreneurial mindset (pp. 49-68). Cham: Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-87865-8_4 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-87865-8_4
  25. Munawar-Rachman, B., Aminulloh, A., Nopasari, D., & Nisak, K. (2026). Islamic ecotheology in education: Institutional practice and contestation at Ma’had Al-Zaytun. Focus, 7(1), 23-38. https://doi.org/10.26593/8hby5d02 DOI: https://doi.org/10.26593/8hby5d02
  26. Shiferaw, A., Hebo, M., & Senishaw, G. (2023). The spiritual ecology of sacred landscapes: Evidence from sacred forests of the Sebat Bête Gurage, Central-South Ethiopia. Cogent Social Sciences, 9(1), 2210900. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2023.2210900 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2023.2210900
  27. Singer-Brodowski, M. (2025). The potential of transformative learning for sustainability transitions: moving beyond formal learning environments. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 27(9), 20621-20639. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-022-02444-x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-022-02444-x
  28. Suárez-Perales, I., Valero-Gil, J., Leyva-de la Hiz, D. I., Rivera-Torres, P., & Garces-Ayerbe, C. (2021). Educating for the future: How higher education in environmental management affects pro-environmental behaviour. Journal of Cleaner Production, 321, 128972. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.128972 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.128972
  29. Stein, S., Andreotti, V., Suša, R., Ahenakew, C., & Čajková, T. (2022). From “education for sustainable development” to “education for the end of the world as we know it”. Educational philosophy and theory, 54(3), 274-287. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131857.2020.1835646 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00131857.2020.1835646
  30. Sterling, S. (2011). Transformative learning and sustainability: Sketching the conceptual ground. Learning and teaching in higher education, 5(11), 17-33.
  31. Sterling, S. (2025). Truly transformative? Why ESD falls short in epochal times. Journal of Education for Sustainable Development, 19(2), 235-247. https://doi.org/10.1177/09734082251336543 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/09734082251336543
  32. Syafaruddin, B. (2025). Ecotheology in the perspective of Islamic education: A conceptual review. ETDC: Indonesian Journal of Research and Educational Review, 4(3), 720-731. https://doi.org/10.51574/ijrer.v4i3.3253 DOI: https://doi.org/10.51574/ijrer.v4i3.3253
  33. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (2020). Education for sustainable development: A roadmap.
  34. Vahlepi, S., Soleh, W., & binti Aliudin, N. S. U. (2025). Green Spirituality in The Qur'an: Integration of Spiritual Values and Environmental Conservation Education. Jurnal Progress: Wahana Kreativitas dan Intelektualitas, 13(1), 91-107. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31942/pgrs.v13i1.12693
  35. Wals, A. E. (2012). Shaping the education of tomorrow: 2012 full-length report on the UN decade of education for sustainable development.
  36. Wani, N. H., & Azhar, A. (2024). Islamic environmental ethics: Preserving the sacred balance. International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research (IJFMR), 6(3), 1-8. DOI: https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2024.v06i03.20924
  37. Watoni, M. S., & Rasyidi, A. H. (2025). Faith-Based Environmental Stewardship as Informal Education: Lessons from Rural Muslim Communities in Lombok, Indonesia. Journal of Educational Studies, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.58218/jes.v3i1.3357 DOI: https://doi.org/10.58218/jes.v3i1.3188
  38. Yemini, M., Engel, L., & Ben Simon, A. (2025). Place-based education–a systematic review of literature. Educational Review, 77(2), 640-660. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2023.2177260 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2023.2177260
  39. Zikargae, M. H., Woldearegay, A. G., & Skjerdal, T. (2022). Empowering rural society through non-formal environmental education: An empirical study of environment and forest development community projects in Ethiopia. Heliyon, 8(3). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09127 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09127

Copyright (c) 2026 Rudhi Rudhi, Herianti Herianti, Nurdin Nurdin, Nursyamsidar Nursyamsidar, Nurhaliza Nurhaliza, Nia Kartika Putri, Sita Damayantih, Indo Aco, Rahman Rahman, Naufal Fajrul Ihsan, Agung Setia Budi Wahid

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Similar Articles

<< < 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 > >> 

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.

Dimension Badge

Downloads

Downloads
Crossmark Badge
Crossmark Badge
Section
Articles
Keywords
Environmental Learning ESD Islamic Ecotheology Pro-Environmental Behavior Rural Indonesia