Taking Care Of Needs And The Problem Of Scarcity Of Environmental Wealth A Controlled, Objective Approach To Environmental Consumption

Abstract

If the environment created by God Almighty is suitable for man’s life and a nurturing ground for his efforts and succession, then he is obliged to manage it in such a way as to bring about his interests, avert his harm and fulfil the purposes of its creation. However, in the pursuit of his livelihood and the fulfilment of his inheritance, man may engage in actions that lead to the disruption of environmental balances, damage to its resources, and the depletion of its wealth and bounty. This is a manifestation of the current human civilisation and the resulting acute crisis of the environment, which has created the problem of scarcity and depletion of resources, and the inability of the environment to respond to the growing needs of the consumer, in the face of the selfish and uncontrolled actions of the individual in his consumption of environmental wealth and his handling of it.

Since consumption has a natural function, which is recognised and respected by Islam, and which is a basis for the management of the universal blessings of God, which are manifested in the consideration of the great purposes and goals of creation, it is necessary for us to clarify the meaning of need and the level of its satisfaction in accordance with the purposes of creation. Even though we find that the Islamic economic doctrine gives man the freedom of choice in what he wants to consume of various goods and services, it regulates this consumption with numerous controls that can achieve the greatest benefit and the desired goals of this consumption, and determines the level and priorities of consumption of environmental wealth associated with legally based objectives, so that we can get out of the circle of extravagance and indiscriminate consumption, which is in accordance with the purposes of creating wealth and preserving its renewable and permanent resources.