Anglican Communion News Service

The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd Rowan Williams, is to lead a series of dialogues on some of the major ethical and moral issues facing the world today. The series is entitled ‘The Worlds We Live In’ and will be held at St Paul's Cathedral in London this September. He will be joined for the discussions by leading international experts in politics, economics, the environment and world health. This will be the second major series of talks organised by the St Paul's Institute, which was founded in 2002.

The dialogues – ‘The Worlds We Live In: Governance, Economy, Ecology and Health in the Global Context’ – will start on Wednesday 8 September 6.30 - 8pm with “How should the world be governed?” chaired by Sir Mark Tully. Dr Rowan Williams will be in conversation with Lord Owen, former UK Foreign Secretary and Co-chair of the International Conference on the former Yugoslavia, and Professor Philip Bobbitt, Professor of Constitutional Law, University of Texas.

On Wednesday 15 September: ‘Is there an alternative to global capitalism?’ chaired by Baroness Williams. The Most Revd Rowan Williams with Muhammad Yunus, the Founder and Director of the Grameen Bank, and Professor John Kay, economist, author and Fellow of St John's College Oxford.

On Tuesday 21 September: ‘Environment and humanity - friends or foes?’ chaired by Baroness Williams. The Most Revd Rowan Williams in dialogue with Dr Ricardo Navarro, former Chair of Friends of the Earth International and Professor Mary Midgley, philosopher and author.

On Thursday 30 September: ‘Is humanity killing itself?’ chaired by Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss. The Most Revd Rowan Williams in dialogue with Dr Ian Smith, Advisor to the Director-General of the World Heath Organisation and Dr Russell Greig, the President of Pharmaceuticals International at GlaxoSmithKline.

The St Paul’s Institute was founded in 2002 to create a forum for reflection, open debate, education and action on the spiritual and ethical challenges facing business, finance and global economics, and for addressing related environmental, social and political issues. It aims to foster an academically distinguished and respected Christian response, and seeks to influence opinion, both in the Christian world and beyond.

Philip Bobbitt is a historian of nuclear strategy, and has served in the White House, the State Department, and on the National Security Council. He is perhaps best known for his book ‘The Shield of Achilles: War, Peace and the Course of History’ (2002) described as 'one of the key texts at the birth of the new century'. He holds the chair in constitutional law at the University of Texas.

David Owen was UK Foreign Secretary from 1977-79, EU negotiator during the Balkans conflict, and Co-Chair of the International Conference for the Former Yugoslavia, working towards the formation of a peaceful solution for the area. One of the founders of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and its leader for four years, he now sits in the House of Lords as a cross-bench life peer.

Mark Tully was for 22 years the BBC's India and South East Asia correspondent covering and interpreting such events as the Russian occupation of Afghanistan, the Bangladesh war and Mrs Ghandi's State of Emergency. He is now a freelance broadcaster and writer based in New Delhi, and the author of highly acclaimed books including ‘The Heart of India’ (1996) and ‘India in Slow Motion’ (2003).

Muhammad Yunus is the only economist to have won the UNEP's World Food Prize. He is the founder and chief executive of the revolutionary Grameen Bank, which loans money on trust to the poorest people of his native Bangladesh for self-help, and has enabled millions to become self-sufficient. He is a former Professor of Economics at the University of Chittagong and author of ‘Banker to the Poor: the story of the Grameen Bank’ (2003).

John Kay held his first permanent teaching post at the University of Oxford at the age of 21. He has been Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, Chair of the London Business School, Professor of Management at Oxford University, and his work has had a profound effect on economic and governmental thinking. His latest book is ‘The Truth about Markets: their genius, their limits, their follies’ (2003).

Shirley Williams was Secretary of State for Education from 1976 - 79 and one of the founders of the SDP. She was Public Service Professor of Elective Politics at Harvard University from 1988 - 2000, and is now the Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords. Her publications include ‘God and Caesar: Personal Reflections on Politics and Religion’ (2003).

Ricardo Navarro founded CESTA (now his country's largest NGO) in the middle of El Salvador's 13-year civil war, to promote grass roots conservation strategies. His many achievements include preventing toxic waste dumping in his country and working with young people to plant a 'forest of reconciliation' on war-damaged land. Formerly Professor of Engineering at the State University in San Salvador, he was until this year Chair of Friends of the Earth International and has received numerous awards, and death-threats, for his work.

Mary Midgley is a moral philosopher who has been described as 'our foremost scourge of scientific pretension'. Formerly Professor of Philosophy at Newcastle University, she has written extensively on the relationship between humanity and nature, and is a staunch defender of religion although she does not believe in God. Her numerous books include ‘Wickedness’ (1992) and ‘The Myths We Live By’ (2003).

Ian Smith spent ten years as a medical missionary in a remote rural hospital in Nepal, and six in Kathmandu with the National Tuberculosis Program. Now Advisor to the Director-General of the World Health Organisation, in 2001 he established and then managed the Global TB Drug Facility, a ‘virtual’ facility based at WHO which has made grants of drugs to treat almost two million TB patients in 49 countries.

Russell Greig is President of Pharmaceuticals International for GlaxoSmithKline. Formerly one of the company's Research Directors and UK Vice President and Director of Advanced Technologies in Genetics, he had responsibility for integrating new technologies, in particular genomics. He has played a central role in the company's scientific and commercial relationship with Human Genome Sciences.

Elizabeth Butler-Sloss is Head of the Family Division, Court of Appeal at the Old Bailey and the UK's most senior woman judge. She has ruled on many of the most morally complex and controversial cases of our times, including the separation of conjoined twins, the patient's right to die and the right to anonymity of released murderers.

All the dialogues are free, non-ticketed and open to the public. St Paul's Cathedral, EC4. Nearest tube: St Paul's, Mansion House, Bank

www.stpauls.co.uk/institute

For press enquiries about the dialogues:

Anya Matthews
Press Officer
The Chapter House
St Paul's Churchyard
London EC4M 8AD
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7246 8321

For press enquiries about the Archbishop of Canterbury:

Revd Jonathan Jennings
Archbishop's Press Secretary
Lambeth Palace
London SE1 7JU
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7898 1280