Top international figures from the World Evangelical Alliance are meeting in San Francisco this week to hammer out its vision and identify key points of engagement for the future.

The Mar. 20-22 Regional Secretaries meeting is the latest in a series of international conferences aimed at strengthening and refocusing the voice of the 160-year-old alliance, which underwent massive structural and leadership changes since its last general secretary prematurely stepped down from office in early 2005.

Despite the rocky circumstances, the WEA made great leaps in the last year through the selection of a new international director and the establishment of a revised leadership structure.

Some developments for the WEA include the addition of several new member bodies in the Middle East, the establishment of international service centers across North America, and increased involvement in large social and civic issues such poverty reduction, HIV/AIDS prevention and religious freedom.

During its last international leadership team and international council meeting in Bad Blankenburg, Germany, key WEA stakeholders celebrated these developments and cast aggressive visions for the future. The San Francisco meeting gives continental representatives the chance to fine-tune those goals and lay out the “strategic objectives” of the Alliance in globally and synergistically.

“We are going deeper in some of the issues we raised in Germany,” said Geoff Tunnicliffe, the International Director for the WEA. “We’ll look at best practices and concentrate on how to continue strengthening the work we have been doing through our regions and national alliances.”

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The World Evangelical Alliance is a global network of seven regional and 127 national evangelical alliances, 104 international member organizations and six WEA commissions serving the worldwide church.