Contributing to Ihsan Agile

Join the Contributor Community

Ihsan Agile is a living framework, developed through shirkah fī al-khayr (partnership in good). We welcome contributions from practitioners, scholars, and communities who want to help refine and expand this work.

Why Contribute?

The framework's strength comes from collective wisdom (shūrā). Your experience piloting Ihsan Agile, your insights from Islamic scholarship, your adaptations for specific contexts, these all help the framework better serve the ummah.

Contributions might include:

• Practice refinements: Improvements to existing practices based on real implementation

• New overlays: Adaptations for additional Agile methods or contexts

• Translations: Making the framework accessible in other languages

• Case studies: Documented experiences from pilot organisations

• Clarifications: Better explanations of Islamic concepts or Agile applications

• Additional resources: Templates, facilitation guides, training materials

How to Contribute via GitHub

The Ihsan Agile framework is maintained as an open-source project. Here's how to get involved:

1. Review the Framework

Start by reading the Ihsan Agile Guide and exploring the GitHub repository. To contribute via GitHub, you'll need a free GitHub account. All contributions are publicly attributed, which means your improvements to the framework will be credited to you, a visible record of your service to the ummah.

2. Identify Your Contribution

What could be improved? What's missing? What have you learned from practice?

Common contribution types:

• Issue: Report a problem, suggest an improvement, or ask for clarification

• Discussion: Propose a significant change or start a conversation

• Pull Request: Submit specific changes to documentation or resources

3. Open an Issue or Discussion

Before making changes, start a conversation:

For small fixes (typos, broken links, minor clarifications):

• Open an Issue describing what needs fixing

• We'll review and you can submit a Pull Request

For substantial changes (new practices, significant rewrites, conceptual shifts):

• Start a Discussion to gather input

• Ensure alignment with Islamic principles and Agile fundamentals

• Collaborate on approach before implementation

4. Submit a Pull Request

When you're ready to contribute specific changes:

1. Fork the repository: Create your own copy

2. Create a branch: Name it descriptively (e.g., improve-niyyah-practice or add-kanban-template)

3. Make your changes: Follow existing formatting and style

4. Commit with clear messages: Explain what and why

5. Submit Pull Request: Reference any related Issues or Discussions

6. Engage in review: Respond to feedback with openness

5. Review Process

All contributions go through collaborative review:

• Alignment check: Does this serve the framework's purpose?

• Islamic soundness: Are Islamic concepts represented accurately?

• Agile compatibility: Does this work with established Agile practices?

• Practical value: Will this help real teams?

• Quality: Is it clear, well-documented, and accessible?

We approach review as shūrā, collective refinement toward maṣlaḥah (public good).

Contribution Guidelines

Respect the Foundation: The Three Pillars (Niyyah, Iḥsān, Maṣlaḥah) and Five Principles are grounded in The Qur'an and Sunnah. Contributions should work with this foundation while drawing on additional sources like but not limited to:

• Fiqh and Islamic legal scholarship across different schools of thought

• The Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah (higher objectives of Islamic law)

• Islamic ethics and philosophy

• Agile scholarship and evolving best practices

• Implementation experience from diverse contexts

We welcome contributions that enrich the framework through additional Islamic sources, contemporary scholarship, or refined Agile practices, as long as they align with the core Islamic principles and serve the framework's purpose of embedding iḥsān into daily work.

Cite Sources: When referencing Islamic concepts, cite Qur'anic verses or hadith using the existing citation format (Sources) or well-known standards. When building on Agile frameworks, acknowledge sources appropriately.

Write Accessibly: The framework serves diverse audiences, from developers to scholars to community organisers. Write clearly, define terms, provide examples.

Maintain License Compatibility All contributions must be compatible with CC BY-SA 4.0. By contributing, you agree your work can be shared under these terms.

What We're Especially Looking For

As an early-stage framework, we particularly welcome:

Pilot Experiences: Have you implemented Ihsan Agile? What worked? What was challenging? What needed adaptation? Document and share.

Context-Specific Adaptations: How does this work in different settings? Islamic charities? Fintech startups? Volunteer teams? Educational institutions?

Facilitation Resources: Templates, scripts, visual aids, training materials that help teams actually implement the practices.

Scholarly Input: Feedback on Islamic concepts, alternative perspectives from different schools of thought, additional relevant Qur'anic or hadith references.

Translations: Help make Ihsan Agile accessible to non-English speaking Muslim communities.

Recognition

Contributors will be acknowledged in the framework documentation. Significant contributions, such as developing new practices, major theoretical refinements, comprehensive case studies, or translations, may be recognised as co-authors in future versions of the Guide.

More importantly, you're contributing to the spiritual and professional growth of Muslim teams worldwide, an act of khidmah (service) that we pray brings barakah.