Salma Arastu - Our Earth

My project, Our Earth: Embracing All Communities, is inspired by a verse from the Quran-“There is not an animal in the earth, nor a flying creature flying on two wings, but they are communities like you” (Al-Anaam 6:38). Understanding this verse serves as a Divine invitation to follow the concerns of ecologists in our present times. We have been informed and warned again and again that we must honor and preserve and not abuse Nature. According to Dr. Fred Denny, “The verse presents a paradigm of interconnectedness. Communities necessarily interact with one another, and we are enjoined by the Qur’an to view the animal world not merely as parallels to us and organized into communities but signals interconnectedness between their existence and well-being and our own. As no community on earth exists in isolation of others and what affects one community ultimately affects other communities.” -Salma Arastu