Ismaili CIVIC Day will harness the potential and capacity of tens of thousands of volunteers, serving hundreds of thousands of beneficiaries around the world, with passion, energy, and enthusiasm, while working alongside governments and civil society organisations to enrich lives.
The initiative will be commemorated throughout the weekend of 25 and 26 September, with the aim of engaging 20,000 volunteers and offering 100,000 hours of voluntary service to communities via a diverse array of activities that will occur simultaneously across the globe.
During the weekend, CIVIC initiatives will focus on two themes: Pandemic Response and Relief, and Environmental Stewardship. Country teams will draw awareness to global efforts towards caring for the natural environment, and conducting relief efforts to alleviate the situation created by the Covid-19 pandemic. Activities will include tree planting, parks and shoreline clean-ups, food bank collection efforts, blood donations, vaccination drives, and more.
Ismaili CIVIC is a global programme under which the Shia Ismaili Muslim community has united around its centuries-old tradition of serving humanity by rendering voluntary service to improve the quality of life of the communities in which they live. This service is offered to those in need, regardless of faith, gender, or background, and has represented a beacon during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The international endeavour reflects the community’s ethic of civic engagement and good citizenship, exemplifying Islam’s core values of service, peace, compassion, and care for the vulnerable.
Speaking about this ethic in an interview with Architectural Record in 2001, Mawlana Hazar Imam said, “There are many, many interpretations of Islam within the wider Islamic community, but I think one on which there is greatest consensus, is the fact that we are trustees of God's creation, and we are instructed to seek to leave the world a better place than it was when we came into it.”
The inaugural Global Ismaili CIVIC Day, bringing together volunteers, civil society partners, and other stakeholders, aims to contribute to bettering the state of the world, and the lives of all.
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For more information and to register to participate in the inaugural Ismaili CIVIC Day, look out for updates from your National Council, subscribe to The Ismaili newsletter, visit the Ismaili CIVIC website, and follow us on social media.
