What is Rotary

WHAT IS ROTARY ROTARY BASICS FOR THE BEGINNERS COMPILED BY: RTN. RAKESH CHATTER

What is Rotary?

(Compiled by Rtn. Rakesh Chatter, Secretary (2008-09) Rotary Club Jaipur Round Town, from internet and other materials & sources)

Rotary International, the world's first service club organization, is made up of nearly 33,000 clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas. Its members form a global network of business and professional leaders who volunteer their time and talents to serve their communities and the world.

Rotary enjoys a rich and sometimes complex tradition and organizational structure, with many programs that can be confusing to new and even not-so-new members.

The following pages offer a basic Rotary education — the fundamental knowledge that will make every member better informed about Rotary and proud to be a Rotarian.

As said by Michael P. Slevnik, USA — "The more I learn about Rotary, the more I love Rotary."

Definition of Rotary

Rotary is an organization of business and professional leaders united worldwide,

	who provide humanitarian service,
	encourage high ethical Standards in all vocations, and
	help build goodwill and peace in the world.

There are approximately 1.2 million Rotarians, members of more than 29,000 Rotary clubs in 161 countries.

Object of Rotary

The Object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and, in particular, to encourage and foster:

FIRST.

The development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service.

SECOND

High ethical standards in business and professions, the recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations, and the dignifying of each Rotarian's occupation as an opportunity to serve society.

THIRD.

The application of the ideal of service in each Rotarian's personal, business and community life.

FOURTH.

The advancement of international understanding, goodwill, and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.

Avenues of Service

For seventy years (since 1927), The program of Rotary has been carried out on four Avenues of Service (originally called channels). These avenues — club service, vocational service, community service and international service — closely mirror the four parts of the Object of Rotary:

Club Service includes the scope of activities that Rotarians undertake in support of their club, such as serving on committees, proposing individuals for membership, and meeting attendance requirements.

Vocational Service focuses on the opportunity that Rotarians have to represent their professions as well as their efforts to promote vocational awareness and high ethical standards in business. For decades, Rotarians having been applying the "4-Way Test" to their business and personal relationships and in recent years, a "Declaration of Rotarians in Businesses and Professions" has given expression to their concern for ethical standards in the workplace. From offering career guidance in high schools, to seeking ways to improve conditions in the workplace, Rotarians and their clubs engage in many different kinds of vocational service.

Community Service includes the scope of activities which Rotarians undertake to improve the quality of life in their community. Many official Rotary programs are intended to meet community needs, whether it be to promote literacy, help the elderly or disabled, combat urban violence or provide opportunities for local youth.

International Service describes the activities, which Rotarians undertake to advance international understanding, goodwill and peace. The spread of Rotary clubs across the globe allows for the concerted Rotary support of humanitarian efforts worldwide.

4-Way Test

One of the most widely printed and quoted statements of business ethics in the world is the Rotary 4-Way Test. It was created by Rotarian Herbert J. Taylor in 1932 when he was asked to take charge of a company that was facing bankruptcy. Taylor looked for a way to save the struggling company mired in depression-caused financial difficulties. He drew up a 24-word code of ethics for all employees to follow in their business and professional lives. The 4-Way Test became the guide for sales, production, advertising and all relations with dealers and customers, and the survival of the company is credited to this simple philosophy.

Herb Taylor became president of Rotary International in 1954-55. The 4-Way Test was adopted by Rotary in 1943 and has been translated into more than a hundred languages and published in thousands of ways. Here it is in English:

"Of the things we think, say or do:

	Is it the Truth?
	Is it Fair to all concerned?
	Will it build goodwill and better friendships?
	Will it be beneficial to all concerned?"

Declaration of Rotarians in Businesses and Professions

The Declaration of Rotarians in Businesses and Professions was adopted by the Rotary International Council on Legislation in 1989 to provide more specific guidelines for the high ethical standards called for in the Object of Rotary:

As a Rotarian engaged in a business or profession, I am expected to:

Consider my vocation to be another opportunity to serve;

Be faithful to the letter and to the spirit of the ethical codes of my vocation, to the laws of my country, and to the moral standards of my community;

Do all in my power to dignify my vocation and to promote the highest ethical standards in my chosen vocation;

Be fair to my employer, employees, associates, competitors, customers, the public and all those with whom I have a business or professional relationship;

Recognize the honor and respect due to all occupations which are useful to society;

Offer my vocational talents: to provide opportunities for young people, to work for the relief of the special needs of others, and to improve the quality of life in my community;

Adhere to honesty in my advertising and in all representations to the public concerning my business or profession;

Neither seek from nor grant to a fellow Rotarian a privilege or advantage not normally accorded others in a business or professional relationship.

Mission Statement

The mission of Rotary International is:

	To support its member clubs in fulfilling the Object of Rotary;
	To globally promote the concept of service as a worthy endeavor;
	To strengthen and expand Rotary to communities around the world;
	To foster unity among member clubs of the association.

Mottoes

The enthusiasm with which Rotarians embraced the ideal of service is evidenced by Rotary's principal motto, "Service Above Self" and its other official precept, "He Profits Most Who Serves Best." The roots of both of these adages, adopted as official mottoes at the 1950 RI Convention, can be traced back to the first decade of Rotary's existence, when "He profits most who serves his fellows best and Service not self were both put forth as slogans. In 1989, the RI Council on Legislation designated "Service above Self" as the principal motto.

Rotary "Firsts"

• The first Rotary club meeting was in Chicago, Illinois, on 23 February 1905.
• The first regular luncheon meetings were in Oakland, California, chartered in 1909.
• The first Rotary Convention was in Chicago in 1910.
• The first Rotary club outside of the United States was chartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, in 1910.
• The first Rotary club outside of North America was chartered in Dublin, Ireland, in 1911.
• The first Rotary club in a non-English-speaking country was in Havana, Cuba, in 1916.
• The first Rotary club in South America was chartered in Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1918.
• The first Rotary club in Asia was chartered in Manila, Philippines, in 1919.
• The first Rotary club in Africa was chartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1921.
• The first Rotary club in Australia was chartered in Melbourne in 1921.

More Rotary Firsts

• Rotary established the Endowment Fund in 1917, which became the forerunner of The Rotary Foundation.
• Rotary first adopted the name "Rotary International" in 1922, when the name was changed from the International Association of Rotary Clubs.
• Rotary first established Paul Harris Fellow Recognition in 1957 for contributors of US$1,000 to The Rotary Foundation.
• The Rotary emblem was printed on a commemorative stamp for the first time in 1931 at the time of the Vienna convention.
• The first Rotary club banner (from the Houston Space Center Rotary club) to orbit the moon was carried by astronaut Frank Borman, a member of that club.
• The first Rotary Convention held outside the United States was in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1921.
• The first head of state to address an RI Convention was U.S. President Warren G. Harding in 1923 at St. Louis, Missouri, USA.

Rotary International

Rotary International Logo
Formation	1905
Type	Service club
Headquarters	Evanston, Illinois
Membership	1.2 million
Official languages	English
President	Dong Kurn lee (2008-2009)
Key people	Paul P. Harris (Founder)
Website	www.rotary.org

Rotary International

Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. It is a secular organization open to all persons regardless of race, color or creed. There are nearly 33,000 clubs and over 1.2 million members world-wide. The members of Rotary Clubs are known as Rotarians. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world. Members usually meet weekly for breakfast, lunch or dinner, which is a social event as well as an opportunity to organize work on their service goals.

Rotary's best-known motto is "Service above Self", and its secondary motto is "They profit most who serve best".

Room 711 — Rotary's Birthplace

The number 711 has a very special significance for Rotary. Room 711 of the old Unity Building, formerly located at 127 North Dearborn Street in downtown Chicago, Illinois, USA, was the birthplace of Rotary. It was in that historic room, which was the office of engineer Gus Loehr, where Paul Harris first met with several friends to discuss his new idea of a club for professionals and businessmen.

It took extensive research and dedication by a few Chicago Rotarians to preserve the room and restore it to its 1905 authenticity. For years, Room 711 was preserved as a miniature Rotary museum by Rotarians around the world who voluntarily belonged to and contributed annually to the Paul Harris 711 Club, which provided funds for leasing, maintenance, and preservation. In 1989, when the Unity Building was about to be torn down, members of the 711 Club carefully dismantled the landmark room and placed its contents in storage. There it stayed until 1994, when the re-created Room 711 found a permanent home at the RI World Headquarters in Evanston, where this piece of Rotary's heritage is preserved

History

Early years

The first Rotary Club was formed in Chicago by attorney Paul P. Harris on February 23, 1905, Harris held the first meeting with three friends, Silvester Schiele, coal merchant, Gustave E. Loehr, mines engineer and Hiram E. Shorey, tailor. The members chose the name Rotary because they rotated club meetings to each member's office each week.

The National Association of Rotary Clubs was formed in 1910. The same year, Rotary chartered a branch in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, marking the first establishment of an American-style service club outside the United States. This was followed in 1911 by the founding of the first club outside North America in Dublin, Ireland.

During World War I, Rotary in Britain increased from 9 to 22 clubs and other early international branches were Cuba in 1916 and India in 1920.

In 1922, because branches had been formed in six continents, the name was changed to Rotary International. By 1925, Rotary had grown to 200 clubs with more than 20,000 members.

Paul Harris — First but not First

Was Paul Harris the first president of a Rotary club? No.

Was Paul Harris the first president of Rotary International? Yes.

There is an easy explanation to this apparent contradiction. Although Paul Harris was the founder and organizer of the first Rotary club in Chicago in 1905, the man selected to be the first president was one of the other founding members, Silvester Schiele.

By the year 1910, there were 16 Rotary clubs, which linked up as an organization called the National Association of Rotary Clubs. Two years later, the name was changed to the International Association of Rotary Clubs, as Rotary was organized in Winnipeg, Canada, and then in England, Ireland, and Scotland. In 1922, the name was shortened to Rotary International.

When the first organization of Rotary clubs was created in 1910, Paul Harris was selected as the first president. He served in this position for two years, from 1910 until 1912. Thus, the founder of the Rotary idea, who declined to be president of the first club, became the first president of the worldwide organization, Rotary International.

ADMINISTRATION

Club level

Each club elects its own president and officers among its active members for a one year term. The clubs enjoy considerable autonomy within the framework of the standard constitution and the constitution and bylaws of Rotary International. The governing body of the club is the board of directors, which consists of president-elect, vice president, club secretary and treasurer, chaired by club president. The immediate past president is a de facto member of the board. The club president appoints the chairmen of the four main task groups for club service, vocational service, community service and international service.

District level

A district governor, who is an officer of Rotary International and represents the RI board of directors in the field, leads Rotary districts, the governor is nominated by the clubs of the district and elected by all the clubs meeting in the annual RI Convention held in a different country each year. To assist him with his duties, the district governor appoints assistant governors from among the Rotarians of the district.

Zone level

Approximately 15 Rotary districts form a zone. A zone director, who serves as a member of the RI board of directors, heads two zones. The zone director is nominated by the clubs in the zone and elected by the convention for the terms of two consecutive years.

Rotary International

Rotary International Headquarters in Evanston, Illinois, USA.

Rotary International is governed by a board of directors composed of 17 zone directors, a president-elect and an international president. The nomination and the election of the president are based on zones. The international president, the highest officer of the organization, is elected for a term of one year. The board meets quarterly to establish policies.

The chief administrative officer of RI is the general secretary, who heads a staff of about 600 persons working at the headquarters and in seven international offices around the world.

Membership

According to its constitutions ("Charters"), Rotary defines itself as a non-partisan, non-sectarian organization. It is open to business and professional leaders of all ages and economic status. Its membership tends towards the middle-aged and wealthy. This is often because people who join Rotary do so for life and become wealthy and middle-aged through time and with the help of the inter-personal skills developed as a Rotarian. The clubs have some exclusivist membership criteria: reputation and business or professional leadership is a specific evaluation criterion for issuing invitations to join, and they limit representation from a specific profession or business to a percentage of a specific club's membership. One can contact a Rotary club to enquire about membership but can join a rotary club only if invited; there is no provision to join without an invitation as each prospective Rotarian requires a sponsor who is an existing Rotarian. In the 1980s, Rotary was the subject of lawsuits which forced it to admit women.

Active membership

Active membership is by invitation from a current Rotarian, to professionals working in diverse areas of endeavor. Each club can have up to ten per cent of its membership representing each business or profession in the area it serves. The goal of the clubs is to promote service to the community they work in, as well as to the wider world. Many projects are organized for the local community by a single club, but some are organized globally.

Honorary membership

Honorary membership is given by election of a Rotary Club to people who have distinguished themselves by meritorious service in the furtherance of Rotary ideals. Honorary membership is conferred only in exceptional cases. Honorary members are exempt from the payment of admission fees and dues. They have no voting privileges and are not eligible to hold any office in their club. Honorary membership is time limited and terminates automatically at the end of the term, usually one year. It may be extended for an additional period or may also be revoked at any time. Examples of honorary members are heads of state or former heads of state, famous scientists, or other famous people.

Female membership

From 1905 until the 1980s, women were not allowed membership in Rotary clubs, although Rotarian spouses, including Paul Harris's wife, were often members of the similar "Inner Wheel" club. Women did play some roles and Paul Harris's wife made numerous speeches. In 1963, it was noted that the Rotary practice of involving wives in club activities had helped to break down female seclusion in some countries. Clubs such as Rotary had long been predated by women's voluntary organizations, which started in the United States as early as 1790.

Interestingly, the first Irish clubs discussed admitting women in 1912 but the proposal floundered over issues of social class.

Gender equity in Rotary International was first publicly raised by the Duarte Rotary Club affair. In 1976, the Duarte California club allowed three women to join. Rotary International expressed alarm but requests to terminate the women's memberships were rejected by the club. As a result, Rotary International revoked the club's charter in 1978. The Duarte club filed suit in the California courts, claiming that Rotary Clubs are business establishments subject to regulation under California's Unruh Civil Rights Act, which bans discrimination based on race, gender, religion or ethnic origin. Rotary International then appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. The RI attorney argued that "... [The decision] threatens to force us to take in everyone, like a motel". The Duarte Club was not alone in opposing RI leadership; the Seattle-International District club unanimously voted to admit women in 1986. The United States Supreme Court, on May 4, 1987, confirmed the Californian decision and, since that time, women have been allowed to join Rotary. The Elks, the final holdout among service clubs in prohibiting female membership, voted in 1995 to allow women. By 2007, there was a female trustee of Rotary's charitable wing The Rotary Foundation while female district governors and club presidents were common. Women accounted for 15% of international membership (22% in North America).

The change of the second Rotarian motto in 2004, from "He profits most who serves best" to "They profit most who serve best", 99 years after its foundation, illustrates the move to general acceptance of women members in Rotary.

Minority membership

Rotary and other service clubs in the last decade of the 20th century became open to homosexual membership. Other minorities, in the face of general changes in demographics and declining membership, are also encouraged to join. There have been efforts to reach out to minority communities, such as Oakland, California's $10,000 scholarships for students in inner-city schools.

There have been some individual exceptions; as early as 1963 a Hindu Bengali, Nitish Chandra Laharry, served as Rotary International's first Asian president. The past tendency to favor the "old boys club" has also passed; so it is no longer just legislation or membership pressures driving these trends: A study has shown that only 2% of middle aged men interested in joining a club were interested in joining exclusive male-only clubs.

First Names or Nicknames

From the earliest days of Rotary, members have referred to each other on a first-name basis. Since personal acquaintanceship and friendship are cornerstones of Rotary, it was natural that many clubs adopted the practice of setting aside formal titles in conversations among members. Individuals who normally would be addressed as Doctor, Professor, Miss, the Honorable, or Sir are regularly called Joe, Bill, Mary, Karen, or Charley by other Rotarians. The characteristic Rotary club name badge fosters the first-name custom.

In a few areas, such as Europe, club members use a more formal style in addressing fellow members. In other parts of the world, mainly in Asian countries, the practice is to assign each new Rotarian a humorous nickname which relates to some personal characteristic or which is descriptive of the member's business or profession. A member nicknamed "Oxygen" is the manufacturer of chemical gas products. "Trees" is the nickname for the Rotarian in the lumber business, "Building" is the contractor, "Paper" is the stationery or office supply retailer. Other members might carry nicknames like "Muscles' "Foghorn' or "Smiles" as commentaries on physical characteristics.

The nicknames are frequently a source of good-natured fun and fellowship. But whether a Rotarian is addressed by a given first name or a nickname, the spirit of personal friendship is the initial step that opens doors to all other opportunities for service.

International Responsibilities of Rotarian

As an international organization, Rotary offers each member unique opportunities and responsibilities. Although each Rotarian has first responsibility to uphold the obligations of citizenship of his or her own country, membership in Rotary enables Rotarians to take a somewhat different view of international affairs. In the early 1950s, a Rotary philosophy was adopted to describe how a Rotarian may think on a global basis. Here is what it said:

"A world-minded Rotarian:

• looks beyond national patriotism and considers himself - as sharing responsibility for the advancement of international understanding, goodwill, and peace;
• resists any tendency to act in terms of national or racial superiority;
• seeks and develops common grounds for agreement with peoples of other lands;
• defends the rule of law and order to preserve the liberty of the individual so that he may enjoy freedom of thought, speech, and assembly, and freedom from persecution, aggression, want, and fear;
• supports action directed toward improving standards of living for all peoples, realizing that poverty anywhere endangers prosperity everywhere;
• upholds the principles of justice for mankind;
• strives always to promote peace between nations and prepares to make personal sacrifices for that ideal;
• urges and practices a spirit of understanding of others' beliefs as a step toward international goodwill, recognizing that there are certain basic moral and spiritual standards which will ensure a richer, fuller life."

That is quite an assignment for any Rotarian to practice in thoughts and actions!

'When this philosophy was developed, Rotary was still an all-male organization. The description of a world-minded Rotarian today would obviously include all women members as well

Standard Rotary Club Constitution

Rotary International exists in 163 countries and cuts across dozens of languages, political and social structures, customs, religions, and traditions. How is it that all of the more than 31,000 Rotary clubs of the world operate in almost identical style? The primary answer is the Standard Rotary Club Constitution.

One of the conditions to receive a charter to become a Rotary club is to accept the Standard Rotary Club Constitution, originally adopted in 1922. This document outlines administrative techniques for clubs to follow in holding weekly meetings, procedures for membership and classifications, conditions of attendance, payment of dues, and other policies relating to public issues and political positions.

When the Standard Rotary Club Constitution was accepted, it was agreed that all existing clubs could continue to follow their current constitution. Although most of those early clubs have subsequently endorsed the standard constitution, a few pre-1922 clubs still conduct their club affairs according to their former constitutional provisions.

The Sponsor of a New Member

The bylaws of Rotary clearly outline the procedure for proposing someone for Rotary club membership. The "proposer" or sponsor is the key person in the growth and advancement of Rotary. Without a sponsor, an individual will never have the opportunity to become a Rotarian. Individuals must be asked to join Rotary; thus, it is every member's responsibility to identify and invite prospective members.

The task of the sponsor should not end merely by submitting a name to the club secretary or membership committee. Rotary has not established formal responsibilities for sponsors; however, these procedures are recommended in many clubs.

The sponsor should

• Invite a prospective member to several meetings prior to proposing the individual for membership
• Accompany the prospective new member to one or more orientation/informational meetings
• Introduce the new member to other club members each week for the first month
• Encourage the new member to become involved in any club service projects underway
• Invite the new member to attend meetings of the Interact or Rotaract clubs sponsored by the club
• Provide opportunities for the new member to get involved in international program efforts, such as Group Study Exchange or Youth Exchange
• Invite the new member to accompany the sponsor to neighboring clubs for the first make-up meeting to learn the process and observe the spirit of friendship
• Ask the new member and spouse to accompany the sponsor to the club's social activities, dinners, or other special occasions
• Urge the new member and spouse to attend the district conference with the sponsor
• Serve as a special friend to assure that the new member becomes an active Rotarian

When a new member becomes involved and connected, both Rotary and the new member become stronger.

The Rotary Foundation

The Rotary Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation that supports the efforts of Rotary International to achieve world understanding and peace through international humanitarian, educational, and cultural exchange programs. It is supported solely by voluntary contributions from Rotarians and friends of the Foundation who share its vision of a better world.

The Foundation was created in 1917 by Rotary International's sixth president, Arch C. Klumph, as an endowment fund for Rotary "to do good in the world." It has grown from an initial contribution of US$26.50 only to more than US$55 million.

Programs

PolioPlus: Rotarians have mobilized by the hundreds of thousands to ensure that children are immunized against this crippling disease and that surveillance is strong despite the poor infrastructure, extreme poverty and civil strife of many countries. Since the PolioPlus program's inception in 1985 more than two billion children have received oral polio vaccine. To date, 209 countries, territories and areas around the world are polio-free. As of June 2004, Rotary has committed more than US$500 million to global polio eradication.

PolioPlus Partners is a program that allows Rotarians to participate in the polio eradication effort by contributing to specific social mobilization and surveillance activities in polio-endemic countries. In 2003-2004, grants were approved in Africa and South Asia for a total of $330,000.

3-H Grants logo

Health, Hunger and Humanity (3-H) Grants fund large-scale, one- to three-year projects that enhance health, help alleviate hunger, or improve human development. Since 1978, projects in 74 countries have been funded at a cost of US$74 million. 3-H program is recently in moratorium.

3-H Planning Grants subsidize the advance planning activities of Rotary clubs and districts designing 3-H projects of a significant size and impact. Also in moratorium in conjunction with 3-H Funds program.

Matching Grants provide matching funds for international service projects of Rotary clubs and districts. Since 1965, more than 20,000 Matching Grants projects in 166 countries have been funded at a cost of more than US$198 million.

District Simplified Grants support the short-term service activities or humanitarian endeavors of districts in communities locally or internationally. This program began in 2003-2004 and, projects in 44 countries at a cost of US$5.2 million were awarded.

Individual Grants support the travel of individual Rotarians, spouses of Rotarians. Rotaractor's, and qualified Foundation alumni who are planning or implementing service projects. This replaced Discovery Grants and Grants for Rotary Volunteers and began in 2003-2004. Program awards were US$1.1 million.

Rotary World Peace Fellows: Each year up to 70 fellows at the master's degree level are sponsored to study at one of the six Rotary Centers for International Studies in peace and conflict resolution. In 2003-2004, 62 new scholars from 26 countries received grants totaling US$3.9 million for the two-year program.

Ambassadorial Scholarships: The Foundation supports the largest non-governmental and most international scholarship program in the world. Scholars study in a country other than their own where they serve as unofficial ambassadors of goodwill. Since 1947, over 37,000 scholars from some 110 countries have received scholarships at a cost of almost US$446 million.

Rotary Grants for University Teachers are awarded to faculty members to teach in a developing nation for three to ten months. Since 1985, 377 university teachers have shared their expertise with a college or university in a developing country.

Group Study Exchange (GSE): These annual awards are made to paired Rotary districts to provide travel expenses for a team of non-Rotarians from a variety of vocations. Rotarian hosts organize a four- to six-week itinerary of educational and cultural points of interest. Since 1965, almost 48,000 individuals in more than 11,000 teams from more than 100 countries have participated at a cost of US$85 million.

Exchanges and scholarships

Some of Rotary's most visible programs include Rotary Youth Exchange, a student exchange program for students in secondary education, and the Rotary Foundation's oldest program, Ambassadorial Scholarships. Today, there are six different types of Rotary Scholarships. More than 38,000 men and women from 100 nations have studied abroad under the auspices of Ambassadorial Scholarship, and today it is the world's largest privately funded international scholarships program. In 2006-07 grants totaling approximately US$15 million were used to award some 800 scholarships to recipients from 69 countries who studied in 64 nations. The Exchange Students of Rotary Club Munich International publish their experiences on a regular basis on Rotary Youth Exchange with Germany.

Rotary Fellowships, paid by the foundation launched in honor of Paul Harris in 1947, specialize in providing graduate fellowships around the world, usually in countries other than their own in order to provide international exposure and experience to the recipient[37] Recently, a new program was established known as the Rotary peace and Conflict Resolution program which provides funds for two years of graduate study in one of eight universitites around the world. Rotary is naming about seventy five of these scholars each year. The applications for these scholarships are found on line but each application must be endorsed by a local Rotary Club. Children and other close relatives of Rotarians are not eligible.

Rotary Centers for International Studies

Starting in 2002, The Rotary Foundation partnered with eight universities around the world to create the Rotary Centers for International Studies in peace and conflict resolution. The universities include International Christian University (Japan), University of Queensland (Australia), Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (Sciences Po) (France), University of Bradford (United Kingdom), Universidad del Salvador (Argentina), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (U.S.), Duke University (U.S.), and University of California, Berkeley (U.S.) Rotary World Peace Fellows complete two year masters level programs in conflict resolution, peace studies, and international relations. The first class graduated in 2004[38] . In 2004, Fellows established the Rotary World Peace Fellows Association [39] to promote interaction among Fellows, Rotarians, and the public on issues related to peace studies.

Other Rotary sponsored organizations

Rotaract — is a service club for young men and women aged 18 to 30 with around 185,000 members in 8,000 clubs in 155 countries;

Interact — a service club consisting of more than 239,000 young people aged 14–18 with over 10,700 clubs in 108 countries;

Rotary Community Corps (RCC) — a volunteer organization with an estimated 103,000 non-Rotarian men and women in over 4,400 communities in 68 countries.

Individual club efforts

While there are numerous Rotary-wide efforts, Rotary clubs are also encouraged to take part in local ventures;

Meetings

Various meetings and seminars are held regularly at all Rotary organization levels to develop Rotary leaders, to prepare and motivate incoming leaders and officers for their administrative and service responsibility roles. Assemblies and conferences are organized for conferring on the Rotary program and club activities. For legislative purposes, a council is provided.

Club level

• Club meeting

  Every Rotary club holds a regular weekly meeting on a workday in a public venue, which can be a hotel, a restaurant or a clubhouse within its locality. The location is determined, so that any member of another Rotary club can also attend the meeting. The club meeting lasts one to one-and-a-half hours and is held with catering, at noon or evening hours, while -although very rare- there are also early morning meetings. The club president, assisted by the club secretary, conducts the meeting. Attendance for all active club members at the club meetings is mandatory. Guests are invited to the meetings in order to inform non-Rotarian community members about the aim and the object of the Rotary and of the club.

• Club Assembly

  The Club Assembly is a meeting of all club members, including the club's officers, directors, and committee chairs, held for the purpose of conferring on the program and activities of the club or for membership education. It is held four to five appropriate times a Rotary fiscal year in place of the weekly club meeting. The club president presides at the club assembly. One club assembly is held at the governor's annual official visit to the club. Clubs usually hold a club assembly immediately after the district assembly and the district conference in order to receive reports on the programs and activities throughout the district.

  District level

• District Team Training Seminar

  The District Team Training Seminar is a one-day meeting, held in February, to prepare incoming assistant governors, district committee members and chairs for their year in office and to give district governors-elect the opportunity to motivate and build their district leadership team in order to support clubs.

• Presidents-elect Training Seminar (PETS)

  The purpose of this one-and-a-half-day seminar, held in March, is to prepare incoming club presidents for their role.

• District Assembly

  The District Assembly is a one-day seminar, held in April or May, to prepare incoming Rotary club leaders and officers for their roles.

• District Leadership Seminar

  The District Leadership Seminar is held on a full-day immediately before or after the district conference to develop Rotarian leaders within the district, who have the necessary skills, knowledge, and motivation to serve in Rotary beyond the club level.

• District Membership Seminar

  The purpose of this half- or one-day seminar, preferably held after the district assembly, is to develop club and district leaders, who have the necessary skills, knowledge, and motivation to support the clubs in the district to sustain or increase the membership base.

• District Rotary Foundation Seminar

  The District Rotary Foundation Seminar is a one-day-seminar to educate Rotarians about the programs of The Rotary Foundation and to motivate them to be strong participants and advocates of the Foundation. The seminar is the primary means of increasing awareness of TRF at the club level.

• District Conference

  A conference of Rotarians is held for two to three full days once a year in each district with the purpose to further the "Object of Rotary" through fellowship, inspirational addresses, and the discussion of matters relating to the affairs of clubs in the district and RI generally. The district conference showcases Rotary programs and successful district and club activities, and encourage interaction and dialog among clubs.

  Zone level

• Governors-elect Training Seminar (GETS)

  The Governors-elect Training Seminar is a two-day training program for governors-elect at the zone level to be held in conjunction with Rotary institutes once a year. The training programs integrate topics approved by the RI Board and the trustees of The Rotary Foundation. Attendance at the GETS is mandatory for district governors-elect.

• International Assembly

  The International Assembly is a mandatory six-day training meeting for governors-elect with the purpose to provide Rotary education, instruction in administrative duties, motivation, and inspiration to governors-elect, and to afford them and other attendees an opportunity to discuss and plan how to implement Rotary's programs and activities during the succeeding year.

• Rotary Institutes

  Rotary institutes are zone-level meetings designed for the attendance and participation of past, present, and incoming RI officers residing within the area the institute is to serve. Institutes are informational meetings with no administrative responsibility or authority. The purpose of a Rotary institute is to inform current and past RI officers accurately concerning the policies and programs of RI and TRF; inspire, motivate, and inform governors for leadership. The RI president and president-elect participate in some institutes each year in order to enhance their knowledge and experience of the Rotary world and to provide opportunities for zone-level Rotary leaders to gain greater knowledge and insight into the current and future directions of Rotary.

  International level

• Rotary International Convention

  The Rotary International Convention is an annual meeting, held in the last three months of the fiscal year (April, May, or June) each time in a different country. The primary purpose of the annual convention is to inspire and inform all Rotarians at an international level, particularly incoming club presidents, governors-elect, and other incoming club and RI officers, so that they will be motivated to further develop Rotary at club and district levels. The convention also constitutes the annual meeting and conducts the business of the association. Since the convention constitutes a worldwide gathering of the Rotary family, the celebration of fellowship with social and entertainment features is appropriate to the extent such activities do not detract from the convention's primary purpose. It is the duty of each club to participate in the voting at each convention and to arrange to do so by having its delegates in attendance at each convention. At the worldwide event participate tens of thousands of Rotarians from hundreds of nations. At the 2005 Chicago Convention, a record was set with more than 39,460 attendees from 161 countries.

• Council on Legislation

  The Council on Legislation is a strenuous meeting, typically a week in length, where representatives from every Rotary district debate and vote on legislation proposed by clubs, districts, the RI Board, and the Council itself. The Council meets once every three years in April, May, or June, but preferably in April in the vicinity of RI World Headquarters, in the Chicago area. The council is the legislative body of RI, which has the authority to amend the RI constitutional documents. The voting members of the council are representatives selected by the clubs in each district in the Rotary year two years before each council.

  Publications

  Official and regional Rotary magazines

  Rotary International's unique communications media are the official monthly magazine named The Rotarian published in English language by the headquarters, and 30 other regional Rotary World Magazine Press periodicals that are independently produced in more than 20 different major languages and distributed in 130 countries.

  The first official magazine The National Rotarian, predecessor to The Rotarian, was started in January 1911. The first regional magazine was issued 1915 in Great Britain and Ireland.

  The official and regional magazines are circulated to Rotarian and non-Rotarian subscribers. The combined circulation is more than 700,000 copies.

  Club bulletin

  Rotary clubs issue weekly a bulletin full of Rotary news from recent meetings. Aside from meeting information and the name list of club directors and officers, the club bulletin contains club president's message, a summary of guest speaker's presentation, club projects and service activities, upcoming events, announcements and reminders for the members. It is circulated to the club members in printed form, however more and more clubs go paperless by publishing the club bulletin electronically.

  District governor's newsletter

  District governors publish monthly a newsletter reporting service activities conducted by the clubs within the district and various district level meetings. The newsletter contains also district governor's message and lists also the membership and attendance figures of all district clubs. It is circulated to every Rotarian in the district.

  Rotary Club banners.