'Sermons elevate concerns'

KUALA TERENGGANU: In November last year, 482 imams throughout Terengganu preached about turtle conservation at the Friday sermon in a bid to raise awareness of the species.
The one-off sermon follows the efforts by the Ma'Daerah Heritage Community Association (Mekar) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Malaysia to use mosques as a medium to spread the message of saving the turtles.

Formed in 2004, Mekar is a local community group aimed at raising awareness on turtle conservation.

The text for the sermon was peppered with help from the Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia.

A report by the WWF Malaysia stated that Islamic sermons could elevate public concerns on issues of conservation.
The report also said since Friday prayers were mandatory for Muslim men, it appears worthwhile to replicate such events in other predominantly Muslim areas with different conservation contexts, such as human and wildlife conflicts and poaching hotspots.

The report was based on questionnaires handed out to the congregation at the mosque statewide.

However, further studies are needed to establish if an increase in awareness translates to conservation actions.