The Anglican Communion’s Representative to the United Nations, Jack Palmer-White, calls for senior and prophetic leadership to speak into the major international issues of the day.

In late September, leaders from most of the 193 member states of the United Nations gathered in New York for the opening of the 73rd Session of the General Assembly (UNGA). The centrepiece of the UN calendar, full of pageantry and the formality of high-level debates, it is a reminder that the UN is led and directed by states.

But, running alongside the high-level events were hundreds of side- and parallel-events, drawing diverse groups and organisations together. The global Anglican Communion has been recognised by the United Nations for over 30 years. It participates in a wide range of conferences, meetings and events held under the auspices of the United Nations, including events around the UN General Assembly.

But this year, the Anglican Communion’s presence at UNGA felt different. Two reasons for this difference stand out – both of which say much about the role of the Anglican Communion around the world.

This year’s UNGA came just a few weeks after the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, became the first holder of his office to address the UN Security Council. A year earlier he had been appointed as the sole religious leader on the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Advisory Board on Mediation. Twelve months on, he spoke during a debate on the role of mediation in the peaceful resolution of conflict, explaining how churches and religious leaders are playing an increasingly important role in this, particularly in intra-state conflicts.

The Archbishop also challenged the assembled member states to look beyond current ways of working, invest in reconciliation as a framework for conflict resolution and make its peace-building efforts more joined up, both within the UN structures and with other actors, including faith-based ones. Because the church is often on the forefront of conflicts the voices of church leaders are becoming increasingly credible and respected when it comes to conflict resolution and peacemaking.

The Archbishop’s presence at the United Nations was complemented by the presence of a number of senior local Anglican leaders, drawn from across the African continent, who used the opportunity of the assembled leaders, ministers, UN staff and other non-governmental organisations to share their experience and their expertise on a range of issues.

One bishop from a part of central Africa facing conflict, corruption, exploitation of resources and serious health issues told of the profound impact that church-led reconciliation initiatives had had on the local community. Using sport to bring the community together and running workshops on peace and reconciliation, the church can be a convenor in communities where government, NGOs and the UN have limited reach or influence.

Another group of bishops, working collaboratively on a project to prevent cross-border malaria infections, were able to demonstrate the very active ways that churches meet the immediate needs of local communities, share information and develop long-term strategies to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. These testimonies are a powerful example of why partnership with faith actors is absolutely crucial if states and international organisations are to achieve their aims.

These examples demonstrate how religious institutions like the Anglican Communion can have an impact on the work of the United Nations. This presence at the global and the local level is not unique to faith actors, but the reach that they often have at the local level very often goes beyond that of other actors, including states themselves.

Across all of the policy areas in which the Anglican Communion Office at the UN engages, there is both a role for senior and prophetic leadership to speak into the major international issues of the day, and a vital voice that expresses local expertise and experience to these issues on the micro level. When churches operate in this way – walking the walk at the local level whilst recognising and responding to the geopolitical forces at work in forum like the Security Council – their impact can be profound.