Anglican Agencies Gather in Halifax to Strengthen Shared Mission Across the Communion
From 11-14 May 2026, leaders of Anglican agencies from across the Communion gathered in Halifax Canada, for a meeting hosted by Alongside Hope. The gathering brought together representatives from organisations working across the Anglican Communion to reflect on their shared mission, deepen partnerships, and consider how the Church can respond more effectively to the pressing challenges facing communities worldwide.
Participating organisations included the Anglican Alliance, Anglican Board of Mission (Australia), Anglican Missions (Aotearoa New Zealand), E-CARE Foundation (Philippines), Episcopal Relief & Development (USA), Alongside Hope (Canada), Mothers’ Union, and USPG.
This has been a great opportunity to gather and reflect on the ways in which sisters and brothers across the Anglican Communion come together to respond to humanitarian crises and seek to work alongside communities facing the challenges of food insecurity, conflict and climate change.
explained the Revd Canon Dr Duncan Dormor, General Secretary USPG who was also accompanied by Dr Paulo Ueti, USPG Theological Advisor and Regional Manager for the Americas and the Caribbean.
The gathering also served as a space for shared learning, for strengthening relationships, and for deepening a collective commitment to collaborative action in support of communities around the world.
Adding to this, the group received a message of encouragement from the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd and Rt Hon Dame Sarah Mullally, who thanked the agencies for their work and affirmed its central role in the life of the Church.
Let me simply say: thank you.
Your work is not peripheral to the life of the Church; it is central. Through your leadership, prayer becomes action; through your partnerships, the Communion becomes visible; and through your service, the love of Christ is made known in the world.
The meeting in Halifax also offered an opportunity to learn about local history and the legacy of residential schooling in Nova Scotia, as well as the resilience and ongoing work of communities seeking truth, healing and justice.
Warning: Reading about Residential Schools might be triggering or distressing.
At the site of the former Shubenacadie Indian Residential School, the group learnt that many Mi’kmaq, Wolastoqiyik and other Indigenous children were removed from their families and made to attend between 1929 and 1967. Established by the Canadian government and operated by the Catholic Church, the school was part of a wider colonial system designed to suppress Indigenous languages, cultures and identities. The site stands as both a memorial to the lives lost and a witness to the resilience of survivors and descendants, many of whom continue to feel the effects of this violent history today.
Reflecting on the visit, the Revd Canon Dr Duncan Dormor said:
It has been a privilege to spend time learning from leaders of the Mi’kmaw people; about their culture, their deep commitment to the land, and the ways in which they continue, with dignity and resilience, to advocate for their rights. They have much to teach us.
An Indigenous art installation along the Shubenacadie River, near the former site of the residential school. This sculpture, among others, is part of a broader effort of Mi’kmaw cultural reclamation.
Overall, the Halifax meeting reaffirmed a shared commitment among Anglican agencies to work collaboratively in service of communities worldwide. It also served as a strong reminder of the Church’s calling to justice, compassion and hope in a complex and bruised world.
For more on the Anglican Church of Canada and its work with survivors and communities affected by residential schooling, please visit: https://www.anglican.ca/reconciliation/.