Uniting Peoples Vision Team

The Uniting Peoples Vision Team's function is to facilitate unity, witness, communication and justice, and to work toward intercultural competency in all areas of conference life. The UMC disciplinary responsibilities of the Uniting Peoples Vision Team [UPVT] are the areas of Christian Unity and Interreligious Relationships, Religion and Race, the Status and Role of Women, Communications, and Disability Concerns.

During 2025–2026, the Uniting Peoples Vision Team is reflecting on the question: Over the next three years, what actions can we take to foster connection, trust, and unity within the Rio Texas Conference structures, congregations, and communities? In response to the question, the Uniting Peoples Vision Team focus areas for the conference are:

1. Build Relationships and Connection through practicing intentional listening across the conference, convening regularly (lay leader lunches, table talks, district gatherings), launch a monthly dinner church model, strengthen networking across the connection and with ecumenical partners.
2. Develop Shared Formation through deepening Christian and Methodist identity (Social Creed, justice, discipleship), providing formation addressing intersectionality, expanding mental-health training and access to professional counseling, and equipping leaders for inclusive worship.
3. Strengthen Accountability and Transparency through training advocates to accompany individuals through the complaint process, identifying a dedicated staff resource for support and guidance, monitoring and publicly report participation and inclusion at Annual Conference, and establishing a confidential support hotline.
4. Unify Through Worship and Shared Experience through creating cross-cultural worship opportunities, hosting a conference-wide Great Methodist Gathering, and center belonging through shared meals (family meals and clergy worship).
5. Advance Inclusion and Representation through advocating for full participation of youth, non-English speakers, people with disabilities, and queer persons, integrating United Women in Faith across conference life, amplify marginalized and unheard voices, and establish formal LGBTQIA+ representation and an advocacy committee on sexuality.
6. Support Cross-Racial / Cross-Cultural Ministry through forming an accompaniment cohort for cross-racial/cross-cultural appointments and sustaining a peer support group for clergy serving in these contexts.
7. Improve Accessibility and Bridge-Building through expanding bilingual children and youth resources, providing American Sign Language interpretation and technological accessibility, and deepen connectional relationships with other faith communities.
8. Provide Ongoing Vision and Learning through developing a “North Star” report to guide Annual Conference life, ensure the ongoing role of the Uniting Peoples Vision Team, and identify and address emerging learning needs related to inclusion.

The Uniting Peoples Vision Team has bridged with the ministry of the Rio Texas Conference Anti-Racism and Equity Coalition, now incorporating the work into the ministry of the vision team.

During the Annual Conference 2026 sessions, the vision team is initiating a Diversity and Inclusion Monitoring process to support the conference, its members, and its leaders in creating the most inclusive sessions possible, one where every voice is respected and given the opportunity to be heard. This process will help increase awareness of how we engage with one another and encourage intentional efforts to include all voices equitably in our discussions and as a community of diversity, inclusivity, and equity gathered during the annual conference sessions.