In 2008, Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairman of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, inaugurated the Qur’an Botanical Garden as an exceptional project to become the first botanical garden to take care of plants mentioned in the Holy Qur’an and the noble Prophet’s hadiths, documenting the environmental terms in them. It is keen to preserve the civilizational and faith heritage of the Islamic nation, and spares no effort in preserving the wild and natural plants in Qatar’s environment by raising awareness of the importance of their sustainability and protecting them from the dangers that threaten them, such as overgrazing, climate change and pollution arising from urban and industrial activities, in recognition of the importance of Plants as a source of biological diversity on the surface of the earth in addition to the importance of having gardens and trees which are among the blessings that God bestowed upon His servants, making them a pleasure for sight and a joy for the soul and making them a sign for contemplation and reflection. You would not have sprouted its trees God be with God but they are a people who make adjustments. [Ants: 60]. The team of the Qur’an Botanical Garden – led by Prof. Dr. Kamal Al-Din Hasan Al-Batanouni, a former scientific advisor to the Qur’an Botanical Garden (may God have mercy on him) – has been monitoring the plants mentioned in the Holy Qur’an and tree species with their explicit names, studying their meanings from books of interpretation and language, then approaching them and developing scientific names for them. In an illustrated publication to enrich the Arab and Islamic library with this science along with its various other publications, the team also collected and explained the environmental and botanical terms as well as enriching the botanical museum’s holdings with the heritage tools mentioned in the hadiths of the Prophet in an achievement that had an impact on distinguishing the park as a unique initiative. In addition to the basic work of the garden in the proliferation of plants mentioned in the Holy Qur’an and the noble hadiths of the Prophet, the Qur’an Botanical Garden has taken care of indigenous plants of natural origin by planting them in its nurseries equipped for this purpose and then reviving the nursery within the framework of its goals aimed at preserving biological diversity and preserving the environment as one of the most important foundations. Underpinning the botanical gardens. In order to ensure that the park has an active and influential role in its community environment, based on its capacity as an active member of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, we have launched a variety of targeted awareness initiatives and educational programs targeting students and society to enhance environmental awareness, food security and sustainability, in compliance with what the Islamic Sharia law calls for. Environment and in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030, especially the fourth pillar of environmental development. Thus, the Qur’an Botanical Garden is not an ordinary garden that collects plants only, but rather a comprehensive entity that adopts a future vision to preserve the natural, cultural and spiritual heritage of the Islamic nation and calls for awareness of the importance of appreciating it, reviving its noble values ​​and principles, and urging its preservation and protection. With this concern for raising awareness and spreading awareness in various environmental fields, the garden and its tireless efforts to enrich the Arab and Islamic cultural heritage in the field of plants and the preservation of the environment and nature, however, lay a continuous bridge between Islamic heritage and contemporary reality and transmit new energy in national efforts to enhance responsibility towards the environment and preservation.
Fatima Saleh Al-Khulaifi,
QBG Director