The Association of Colleges and Universities of the Anglican Communion (CUAC) met in January at St Stephen's College, Delhi, India, for its second International Conference. One of the four major topics for discussion was the Anglican heritage which links these institutions together.

Indian context

India was chosen as the venue so that CUAC might gave tangible support to member colleges in a developing country. Another goal was to enable the experience itself to provide a case study for understanding cultural differences and commonalities. St Stephen's, established in 1881 by a mission from Westcott House, Cambridge, has played an important role in India.

The theme of the conference was Putting CUAC to work by translating the ideas and interests of members into practical programmes. Workshops addressed the Anglican heritage of member institutions, student exchange programmes, faculty exchange and resource development and vision.

CUAC II was attended by 71 delegates from 48 institutions and 17 countries. These included Haiti, Israel, Kenya, the Republic of China, Japan, Uganda, India, the UK and USA (13 people each) and one from Australia. Representatives from six dioceses in India and the US, and one from the Board of Education of the Church of England were present.

Pilot projects

The conference heard reports on two pilot projects that had been conducted following the initial conference in Canterbury.

These were a service learning project in the Philippines, and a pilgrimage to Taize in France. The goals of the former were to provide opportunities for learning through community service. The latter was an international/intercultural experience for the students who attended.

Steering Committee

An ongoing Steering Committee was established to continue the development and implementation of the programmes considered in the four workshops.

It will also consider CUAC's role as a clearing house for statements and ideas, as a fund-raising body, and will also encourage member institutions to review their corporate lives, to ensure:

• that there is a deepened consciousness of the positive dimension that the Anglican heritage and dynamic can bring; that the maintenance and expansion of chapels and chaplaincies are encouraged along with their witness to the explicitly spiritual dimension of human existence through imaginative and ordered public worship; that curricula be developed in the light of our Anglican tradition; and that institutions explore their Christian potential in speaking on behalf of academic freedom where narrow ideologies have intruded or restricted human life.

The third International Conference of CUAC is scheduled to be held in Toronto, Canada, in 2000.