Handbook of Traditional Spirituality and Sustainability

This book explores the intersection of indigenous wisdom, spiritual traditions, and ecological sustainability. It brings together diverse perspectives from scholars and practitioners, highlighting how ancient spiritual practices foster environmental stewardship. Covering themes like sacred ecology, ritual-based conservation, and ethical living, this book demonstrates how traditional beliefs can promote harmony with nature. By bridging spirituality and sustainability, it offers valuable lessons for addressing modern ecological crises.
Ideal for researchers, environmentalists, and spiritual custodians, including traditional knowledge holders and faith leaders, this book is a vital resource for understanding the role of cultural heritage in creating a sustainable future. Themes explored include the spiritual connection between humans and nature in indigenous traditions, how religious ceremonies and practices promote environmental protection, moral teachings rooted in traditional worldviews that encourage sustainable living, and the integration of belief systems with ecological activism.
Drawing on contributions from every inhabited continent, the book offers a uniquely global perspective on the intersections of spirituality, culture, and sustainability.

Johannes M. Luetz is Professor of Sustainability and Religion at Alphacrucis University College (AC), Brisbane, Australia, specialising in research that examines ecological concerns from spiritual perspectives. He has lived and worked across countries and continents and conducts interdisciplinary research at the science-faith, interfaith, and science-policy interface. He is based in Brisbane and serves AC’s Graduate Research School as its Director of Graduate Research and Research Development and as the AC Chair of Research Ethics. As an interdisciplinary social scientist, Johannes has affiliations with the University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney), where he is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the School of Social Sciences, and with the University of the Sunshine Coast (USC Maroochydore), where he is an Adjunct Professor in the School of Law and Society.
Walter Leal Filho is a Senior Professor and Head of the Research and Transfer Centre "Sustainable Development and Climate Change Management” at Hamburg University of Applied Sciences in Germany, and Chair of Environment and Technology at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK. He is the initiator of the Word Sustainable Development Symposia (WSSD-U) series, and chairs the Inter-University Sustainable Development Research Programme. Professor Leal Filho has written, co-written, edited or co-edited more than 800 publications, including books, book chapters and papers in refereed journals.
Patrick D. Nunn is Professor of Geography and Director of the Sustainability Research Cluster at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia. He is also Honorary Professorial Fellow at the University of Melbourne in Australia. He has almost 400 published outputs, most within the past two decades focused on livelihood sustainability in rural Asia-Pacific contexts. His parallel interest in understanding the scientific meaning of ancient 'stories' has featured research in Australia, Europe and India and resulted in three books.