Welcome to ecoSikh!

Ten years ago, Sikh communities around the world celebrated the inauguration of the Cycle of Creation. The three hundred year long cycle will be a time for Sikhs to reflect upon and celebrate their relationship with the environment and all that Waheguru has provided. The past ten years have borne witness to remarkable steps taken by Sikhs around the globe. Sikhs are leaders in practicing organic and natural farming, building support for recycling programs, and targeting the socio-economic roots that plague the systemic nature of environmental injustice, among other things. Most, if not all of these efforts, share common inspiration that began with the revelations of Guru Nanak Dev Ji and continued through history up to the launch of Bhagat Puran Singh’s environmental awareness campaign over fifty years ago and the continued efforts of today’s Sikh eco-pioneers.

EcoSikh is an initiative that aims to build on this history and enable Sikh communities around the world to connect their efforts and work in solidarity with one another. The condition of our planet continues to deteriorate and unsustainable environmental practices are affecting every community worldwide. Punjab is among those areas being hit hardest by unsustainable practices and environmental exploitation, while at the same time hosting some of the best crafted and innovative responses to contemporary ecological crises. We hope that EcoSikh will provide a plan that we can all implement over the next five years to cultivate best practices, inspire on-the-ground activism, address the issues that each of our communities face, and celebrate the ways in which being Sikh is being green.

Our connection to the environment is an integral part of our identity as Sikhs. Thus, EcoSikh is not the project of any one individual, organization, or community, it is something that always has and always will belong to us all. As Sikhs we are called to defend the weak and to uphold justice for all being. We recognize that our natural world is facing new and grave challenges as its resources deplete and we hope that together we may craft a plan to help us answer the call to protect our natural ecology, and to celebrate and prosper as Sikhs through our efforts.

The plan that we present here has been prepared by a small group of Sikh environmentalists and leaders from around the world. None of us claim to speak for all Sikhs or to presume that we have the answers. EcoSikh will only grow if it is adopted and used by communities, families, gurdwaras and individuals and if its ideas lead to action. What we humbly submit is a beginning.