Cultural da'wah approach to environmental conservation on the local wisdom of Javanese communities, Indonesia

Abstract

Abstract. Chandrasari N, Izdihar RS, Risyafa ZA. 2025. Cultural da'wah approach to environmental conservation on the local wisdom of Javanese communities, Indonesia. Dakwah & Islamic Outreach 1: 26-37. This study investigates the integration of Javanese cultural wisdom into Islamic da’wah as a contextual and strategic approach to promoting environmental conservation. Rooted in an interpretive and thematic analysis, the research explores how indigenous practices such as rituals, symbols, oral proverbs, sacred sites, and artistic expressions encode ecological values that resonate with key Islamic principles, including khil?fah (stewardship), m?z?n (cosmic balance), and shukr (gratitude). Cultural elements like sedekah bumi, nyadran, ancestral forests, and batik patterns are examined not merely as folklore but as vehicles of moral and ecological meaning, capable of being reinterpreted through Islamic ethical frameworks. The study highlights how such traditions, when engaged respectfully and theologically, can serve as effective platforms for da’wah that is both spiritually grounded and environmentally responsive. While acknowledging the dialectical tensions between faith and tradition—such as issues of syncretism, doctrinal rigidity, and generational shifts the findings suggest that cultural da’wah fosters a participatory and empathetic model of Islamic outreach. This model promotes ethical reflection, strengthens community cohesion, and revitalizes environmental stewardship in ways that align with both local cosmologies and Qur’anic teachings. In doing so, the study contributes to the growing discourse on Islamic environmentalism by emphasizing the relevance of cultural resilience and local wisdom in shaping a more inclusive, sustainable, and spiritually rooted approach to ecological ethics and da’wah praxis.