The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, has expressed his delight at the support for the Anglican Communion gathering starting on Sunday, Stewardship of Creation, taking place at Hartebeespoort Dam near Pretoria, South Africa. Representatives from throughout the Communion will use the gathering to prepare for their participation in the UN's World Summit.

"I am delighted that so many Anglicans are gathering in South Africa to promote our concerns over global issues and to discuss the means by which resources can be used to save the people and the planet. This is the first time that the Anglican Communion has organised such a meeting and it is a measure of the importance of these issues that so many are coming.

"The Anglican Communion is remarkable - a body of 70 million people in 165 countries, both rich and poor, from north, south, east and west. Those who will come to represent our churches in South Africa come as people of faith and hope, to share their experiences of earth stewardship in different regions of the Church, and to organise themselves effectively across the Anglican Communion. They will gather not only as Anglicans, but also as citizens of a global community, needing to learn to live as one, not as many competing communities and individuals" he said.

Dr Carey's message to the Congress will be published next week.

Notes for editors:

• Representatives from the 38 provinces of the Anglican Communion will be in South Africa at the end of this week. The Congress is being staged to prepare delegates for the World Summit and will produce a statement which will be made to the Summit itself by the Anglican Communion's UN Observer.
• The Bishop of Hereford, the Rt Revd John Oliver and Claire Foster will be representing the Church of England, and will join representatives of churches from the Anglican Communion's 39 provinces including Australia and New Zealand, Bangladesh, Brazil, Burundi, Ethiopia, India, the USA and many African countries.
• The 1998 Lambeth Conference resolved to address environmental concerns. The Congress in South Africa will review work undertaken so far and look forward to the Lambeth Conference of 2008 thus ensuring continuity of approach since 1998 and for the future.
• The Congress will be considering issues similar to those of the UN Summit on Sustainable Development, under the following headings:- Economic and Human Justice, Health, Energy, Water, Food, Biodiversity, Habitats and Urbanisation. In addition, time will be spend reviewing a variety of projects now underway throughout the Communion, launching the Communion's world-wide environmental network and looking at local environmental initiatives in the area around Hartebeespoort where the event will be held.