The role of religion, education and policy in Iran in valuing the environment

Iran faces many environmental challenges, including air pollution in cities and sand storms exacerbated by progressive drying out of the land. As a result, the government now has more sympathy for environmental concerns and there are some active green non-governmental organisations. The picture is complicated by varying interpretations of the Qur’an advice on human responsibility for the Earth. School textbooks refer very little to nature and with a dominant Islamic political ideology. Little space is left to discuss the environment in the classroom.