Daria Malovich - 2021

Religio-Environmentalism

It’s a rivalry as old as cat versus dog, Yankees versus Red Sox, and sweet versus salty: religion versus science. In an age of ever-increasing technological advancements and an increase in secularity, one has to ask themselves, can science and religion ever be compatible? In a world where ecological disaster appears to be the imminent future, where does religion stand?

Growing up in a religious environment, I’ve been exposed to many different interpretations of God’s commandments and how we should view our place in the natural world. Some views have seemed to be incongruent with what the doctrine teaches, and some views seem to completely refute any and all climate science. To rectify this cognitive dissonance, I sought to understand where religious doctrines across the major world religions stood, as well as understand how we, as humans, reflect reverence for that doctrine.

My presentation is a visual representation of quotes and teachings from seven major world religions superimposed over scenes from Cache Valley and Logan Canyon in my native Utah. Some of the scenes show the beauty of the natural world, while others show how it has been abused contrary to the teachings of the major religions. The quotes superimposed over these scenes are from Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, and Navajo religious traditions.

From taking these pictures, to finding these teachings, to working to marry them together, I’ve found that all major religions deeply and inherently reverence the natural world. It is my hope that these pieces can provoke reflection and reconsideration about the apparent rivalry, divide, and disconnect between religiosity and environmental responsibility.