General Council Equity Support Team

Description

The General Council 46 Equity Support Team

We are searching for people to form a team to support General Council 46 as it strives to be a space of equitable participation and decision-making.

Vacancies: Three vacancies, including one appointed by the Indigenous Church

Key skills: An understanding of equity and diversity and how these play out in meetings and decision-making; knowledge of the church’s governance process; compassion, grace and non-anxious presence

Meeting expectations: Online team meetings every two months (frequency may increase closer to General Council). Attending General Council events, including online pre-Council sessions, in-person at General Council 46, and annual online meetings in 2029 and 2030

Mandate

The General Council 46 Equity Support Team is part of the General Council’s leadership. It has responsibilities before, during, and after each regular and any special meetings of General Council 46, including:

• General Council 46 Learning, Discussion, and Decision sessions (June 2028, online)
• General Council 46 in-person meeting (July 31–August 4 2028, St. Catharines, Ontario)
• General Council Annual Meeting (October 2029, online)
• General Council Annual Meeting (October 2030, online)

Equity realizes that in order to ensure fair treatment, access, opportunity, and advancement for all peoples, we need to identify and eliminate barriers that have prevented the full participation of some people and groups; particularly people from marginalized identities. Equity moves closer to justice, and it is part of the work of the whole church. While working toward equity is everyone’s collective responsibility, the members of the Equity Support Team have a particular role in helping to highlight equity issues at governance gatherings. 

Membership

The Equity Support Team will consist of five members who reflect the diversity of The United Church of Canada—for example, in Indigenous identity, ethnocultural identity, racial identity, gender identity, sexual orientation, francophone and linguistic diversity, age, ability, neurodiversity, and geographic diversity. Lay people and ministry personnel are sought, as well as people with additional identities and life experiences.

Two members will be appointed by the General Council Executive, and one by the National Indigenous Church; two co-chairs will be appointed by the General Secretary. Those appointed by the General Council Executive cannot be General Council 45 commissioners. 

Member Skills and Experience

Equity Support Team members will:

• have an understanding of equity and diversity and how these play out in meetings and decision-making 
• be able to listen carefully to questions and concerns from meeting participants 
• have experience as a member of a committee or working group 
• understand the governance processes of the church 
• have a willingness to offer proactive strategies or make recommendations to advance equity and challenge discrimination on committees 
• be the non-anxious presence in difficult situations 
• bring grace and compassion to the difficult reality of human failings, as well as conflict resolution skills or experience

This team would additionally be strengthened by someone who brings an intercultural lens to this work, based on: 

• lived experience as an Indigenous, racialized, or francophone person, or  
• leadership with Indigenous, racialized, or francophone communities, or those that include a diversity of cultures 

The Equity Support Team members for General Council 46 will need to become familiar with the United Church’s equity commitments, the church’s Equity Aspirations, as well as United Church governance processes. Education and training will be provided for Equity Support Team members to assist with learning more about these. 

United Church Relationship: Active participant

Expectations and Term

• Online meetings: Once every two months; meeting frequency may increase closer to General Council
• In-person meetings: General Council 46, with pre- and post-events: July 29–August 6, 2028 (St. Catharine’s, Ontario)
• Appointment term: December 2026–December 2030

For more information about this opportunity, please see the complete description, below.

To Express Interest

To apply for this vacancy, please express interest or nominate someone.

All submissions will be acknowledged by e-mail. If you do not receive acknowledgement, please contact Member Engagement. Incomplete or late submissions cannot be considered.

For further information or assistance in expressing interest or nominating someone, please contact:

Member Engagement
Toll-Free: 1-800-268-3781
E-mail: 

Downloads

• GC Equity Support Team Description (296.67 KB) (PDF)