Muazu U Shehu | Gombe State University, Gombe State, Nigeria (original) (raw)
Address: Gombe State University
Department of Sociology
PMB 127
Gombe, Nigeria
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Current research on the connection between religion and the environment indicates that religious ... more Current research on the connection between religion and the environment indicates that religious beliefs may provide a form of motivation for environmental stewardship and serve to rationalize environmental activism. This study used data from the profoundly religious region of northeast Nigeria to explore the various ways in which religious ideas inform pro-environmental action and to investigate whether motives for pro-environmental action differ between Christians and Muslims in the region. The study used both qualitative analysis of interviews with leaders of some selected congregations and statistical analysis of questionnaire data collected from members of those congregations to achieve these objectives. Overall, there is strong evidence that religious values contribute to three broad motives for proenvironmental action-namely, ecocentrism, anthropocentrism, and theocentrism. Although the study did not find significant variations in the religious motives for pro-environmental action among the two groups, some differences have been observed in the concepts used by the groups to explain their motives for environmental stewardship. The implications of these findings for researching religious environmentalism and environmental reform policy in religiously conservative societies are discussed.
The International Journal of Environmental Sustainability, 2014
This study examines religious influence on both environmental concern and behaviour, and percepti... more This study examines religious influence on both environmental concern and behaviour, and perceptions and strategies of adaptation to environmental degradation in Northeast Nigeria. A good understanding of both dimensions of religion-environment connection is critical to theorising on the role of religion in current environmental crisis. The region provides a strong opportunity for study due to the severity of environmental degradation and the powerful role religion continues to play in all spheres of individual and community life. Drawing on sociological perspectives, the study combines statistical analysis with qualitative techniques to achieve its goals. Lynn White's hypothesis, which proposes that religion predisposes individuals to engage in negative environmental behaviours, was used as a starting point to explore the links between religion and environmental attitudes and behaviour. While the hypothesis as formulated refers to patterns of behaviour in the Judeo-Christian we...
World religions have, in recent years, become increasingly concerned with the issues of environme... more World religions have, in recent years, become increasingly concerned with the issues of environmental sustainability. As a result, religious environmentalism is fast becoming an important feature of the global environmental movement. To understand how religious communities in one of the regions severely affected by environmental degradation define human-environment relations and perceive their role in dealing with the crisis, I interviewed leaders of some Christian and Muslim congregations in northeast Nigeria. The interviews reveal substantial evidence of religiously-inspired environmental concern. Religious resources have been identified as valuable assets in mitigating environmental degradation and achieving sustainable communities given the powerful role religion is playing in shaping people‟s social life across Nigeria. However, the study found limited evidence of conscious actions to protect the environment. The practice of religious environmentalism is limited by the „conflic...
Journal of International Humanitarian Action
This study seeks to contribute to the knowledge of linkages between humanitarian actions in confl... more This study seeks to contribute to the knowledge of linkages between humanitarian actions in conflict situations and sustainable development. We analysed data generated from qualitative interviews and focus group discussions with encamped and self-settled internally displaced victims (IDPs) of the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeastern Nigeria. Our analysis searched for themes that summarise their preferences and desires of durable solutions. Overall, the majority of the IDPs were more inclined to local integration or resettlement than return. More than males, female IDPs were likely to cite personal experience of violence as a reason for rejecting voluntary repatriation. Feelings of vulnerability, experience of violence and hope of economic and social empowerment were major reasons given in support of local integration or resettlement. Self-settled IDPs are more disposed to returning to their places of origin than encamped IDPs. The need to rebuild livelihoods and restore social ...
Current research on the connection between religion and the environment indicates that religious ... more Current research on the connection between religion and the environment indicates that religious beliefs may provide a form of motivation for environmental stewardship and serve to rationalize environmental activism. This study used data from the profoundly religious region of northeast Nigeria to explore the various ways in which religious ideas inform pro-environmental action and to investigate whether motives for pro-environmental action differ between Christians and Muslims in the region. The study used both qualitative analysis of interviews with leaders of some selected congregations and statistical analysis of questionnaire data collected from members of those congregations to achieve these objectives. Overall, there is strong evidence that religious values contribute to three broad motives for proenvironmental action-namely, ecocentrism, anthropocentrism, and theocentrism. Although the study did not find significant variations in the religious motives for pro-environmental action among the two groups, some differences have been observed in the concepts used by the groups to explain their motives for environmental stewardship. The implications of these findings for researching religious environmentalism and environmental reform policy in religiously conservative societies are discussed.
The International Journal of Environmental Sustainability, 2014
This study examines religious influence on both environmental concern and behaviour, and percepti... more This study examines religious influence on both environmental concern and behaviour, and perceptions and strategies of adaptation to environmental degradation in Northeast Nigeria. A good understanding of both dimensions of religion-environment connection is critical to theorising on the role of religion in current environmental crisis. The region provides a strong opportunity for study due to the severity of environmental degradation and the powerful role religion continues to play in all spheres of individual and community life. Drawing on sociological perspectives, the study combines statistical analysis with qualitative techniques to achieve its goals. Lynn White's hypothesis, which proposes that religion predisposes individuals to engage in negative environmental behaviours, was used as a starting point to explore the links between religion and environmental attitudes and behaviour. While the hypothesis as formulated refers to patterns of behaviour in the Judeo-Christian we...
World religions have, in recent years, become increasingly concerned with the issues of environme... more World religions have, in recent years, become increasingly concerned with the issues of environmental sustainability. As a result, religious environmentalism is fast becoming an important feature of the global environmental movement. To understand how religious communities in one of the regions severely affected by environmental degradation define human-environment relations and perceive their role in dealing with the crisis, I interviewed leaders of some Christian and Muslim congregations in northeast Nigeria. The interviews reveal substantial evidence of religiously-inspired environmental concern. Religious resources have been identified as valuable assets in mitigating environmental degradation and achieving sustainable communities given the powerful role religion is playing in shaping people‟s social life across Nigeria. However, the study found limited evidence of conscious actions to protect the environment. The practice of religious environmentalism is limited by the „conflic...
Journal of International Humanitarian Action
This study seeks to contribute to the knowledge of linkages between humanitarian actions in confl... more This study seeks to contribute to the knowledge of linkages between humanitarian actions in conflict situations and sustainable development. We analysed data generated from qualitative interviews and focus group discussions with encamped and self-settled internally displaced victims (IDPs) of the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeastern Nigeria. Our analysis searched for themes that summarise their preferences and desires of durable solutions. Overall, the majority of the IDPs were more inclined to local integration or resettlement than return. More than males, female IDPs were likely to cite personal experience of violence as a reason for rejecting voluntary repatriation. Feelings of vulnerability, experience of violence and hope of economic and social empowerment were major reasons given in support of local integration or resettlement. Self-settled IDPs are more disposed to returning to their places of origin than encamped IDPs. The need to rebuild livelihoods and restore social ...