Everywhere you look, the conversation keeps circling back to the same thing:
The environment is changing, and it’s affecting how we live, work, and even how we feel.

Shifts in natural systems, damaged landscapes, stressed water and food resources, and disrupted communities are all part of what we now call climate change and impact. The effects of climate change are not only physical; they’re emotional and spiritual too.

A large global survey published in The Lancet Planetary Health found that nearly 60% of young people (16–25) described themselves as very or extremely worried about climate change, and many said it affects their daily functioning. This heavy, constant concern is often called eco-anxiety.

For Muslims, that anxiety raises deeper questions:

Islam offers a framework that is:

1. Climate anxiety and the Muslim heart

Eco-anxiety is more than “being worried about the weather.” Research shows it’s linked to sadness, anger, guilt, insomnia, and a sense that the future is frightening especially among younger generations who feel they are inheriting problems they didn’t create.

Many Muslims feel a mix of:

Islam does not dismiss these feelings. Instead, it gives us:

2. Qur’anic framing of climate change and impact

2.1 Corruption on land and sea

Allah says:

“Corruption has spread on land and sea as a result of what people’s hands have done, so that Allah may cause them to taste ˹the consequences of˺ some of their deeds and perhaps they might return ˹to the Right Path.” (Qur’an 30:41)

Classical and contemporary scholars explain that fasād (corruption) here includes many forms: injustice, oppression, moral decay, and also the disruption of natural systems as a result of human misbehavior.

From this lens, climate change and impact can be seen as:

2.2 Balance in creation

Allah describes the universe as finely balanced:

“And the sky He has raised high, and He has set the balance, so that you may not transgress in the balance. So establish weight in justice and do not fall short in the balance.” (Qur’an 55:7–9)

This mīzān (balance) applies not just to scales in the marketplace, but to all of creation:

When humanity transgresses that balance overusing, wasting, polluting the effects of climate change are one way that imbalance shows up.

2.3 Human beings as khalīfah (stewards)

Allah says:

“It is He who has made you successors upon the earth and raised some of you above others in rank, so that He may test you through what He has given you.”(Qur’an 6:165)

We are khalīfah successors, caretakers, stewards. The earth is an amānah (trust):

So climate change and impact are not random or meaningless; they sit right inside the Qur’anic themes of fasād, mīzān, and khilāfah.

3. Restraint: pulling back from excess

A key Islamic response to the effects of climate change is to address the mindset that contributed to their creation : unchecked consumption.

The Prophet ﷺ passed by Sa‘d (ra) while he was making wuḍū’ and said:

“What is this extravagance?”
Sa‘d asked, “Can there be extravagance in ablution?”
The Prophet ﷺ replied, “Yes, even if you were on the bank of a flowing river.”

Abundance does not give permission for waste.

Allah says:

“O children of Adam, dress properly at every place of worship, and eat and drink, but do not be excessive. Indeed, He does not love those who are excessive.” (Qur’an 7:31)

“Indeed, the wasteful are brothers of the devils, and ever has Satan been to his Lord ungrateful.”(Qur’an 17:27)

From an Islamic perspective:

When we choose moderation:

Even if the global system is complex, the believer asks: “What is under my control?” and starts there.

4. Planting hope: action in the face of fear

One of the most powerful Prophetic teachings for eco-anxiety is the famous hadith:

The Prophet ﷺ said, “If the Final Hour comes while one of you has a sapling in his hand, and he is able to plant it before the Hour comes, then let him plant it.”

Look at the logic:

This hadith crushes the thought: “It’s too late, so why bother?”

It teaches that:

Modern research on climate anxiety echoes this: people who engage in collective, meaningful climate action report lower distress than those who only worry in isolation.

So the sunnah says:

Planting can be literal (trees, gardens) or symbolic (projects, habits, learning, advocacy). The point is to take hopeful action instead of succumbing to helpless panic.

5. Mercy and stewardship: caring for all creatures

Islamic teachings on mercy are not limited to humans. They extend to animals, plants, and the wider environment.

The Prophet ﷺ told us of a woman forgiven because she gave water to a thirsty dog, and another who was punished for imprisoning and starving a cat.

These narrations show:

When we think about the effects of climate change stress on wildlife, forests, soil, and water we see clearly that mercy must shape how we relate to the natural world.

Being khalīfah means:

Environmental stewardship in Islam is not just “being green”; it is an extension of raḥmah (mercy) and ‘adl (justice).

6. Solidarity: connecting people and planet

The story of climate change and its impact is also a story of inequality. Often, those who contribute least to global emissions face the strongest effects of climate change through damaged livelihoods, displacement, and instability.

Islam insists that we link environmental care with social justice. Allah says:

“And cooperate in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression.”(Qur’an 5:2)

And:

“The believing men and believing women are allies of one another; they enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong…” (Qur’an 9:71)

So a Muslim response includes:

Solidarity lightens eco-anxiety because it turns “my private fear” into shared responsibility and collective effort.

7. Prophetic hope in an age of anxiety

At the root of eco-anxiety is a feeling that everything is spiraling beyond control. Islam brings us back to a central truth:

“To Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and to Allah all matters are returned.”
(Qur’an 57:5)

We are commanded to act, but we are not in charge of ultimate outcomes. That balance is called tawakkul:

For climate anxiety, that means:

  1. Learning about climate change and its impact with honesty, not denial.
  2. Adjusting your lifestyle to reduce harm and waste.
  3. Joining or supporting efforts that protect people and the environment.
  4. Making sincere du‘ā and placing your heart’s final rest in Allah, not in human systems.

The believer’s mindset becomes:

“I am responsible for my intentions and actions, not for controlling the entire planet. My Lord sees, records, and rewards every effort.”

8. Practical steps: living an Islamic response to climate change

Here are some grounded, non-seasonal habits that align with Qur’an and Sunnah and respond to the effects of climate change:

8.1 In your worship and mindset

8.2 In your personal consumption

8.3 In your home and family

8.4 In your community

Join conversations about environmental responsibility from an Islamic perspective, so that faith is part of the public solution.

Support local clean-up, tree-planting, or environmental projects where possible.

Encourage mosques and Islamic centers (if you’re involved) to reduce waste at events and use resources wisely.

From fear to faithful responsibility

The reality of climate change and impact can be overwhelming, and the effects of climate change are already touching lives and hearts. Eco-anxiety is a natural reaction but it doesn’t have to end in despair.

Islam teaches us that:

You may not be able to rewrite global policies by yourself. But you can choose to live as a khalīfah who refuses to contribute to corruption on land and sea, and who plants “saplings” of goodness until the very end.

That is the Prophetic cure to eco-anxiety:
a heart that feels the weight of the crisis,
a life that responds with restraint and mercy,
and a soul that rests its hope in the One who created the heavens, the earth, and every changing sky.