Changes coming to Rotary!

IMPORTANT NEWS!  At its November meeting, the RI Board approved a number of recommendations and actions to reinforce the priorities and goals of the RI Strategic Plan.

The changes, which include endorsing the concept of flexible attendance and meeting requirements and allocating US$4 million for Public Relations Grants, are designed to keep Rotary vibrant and attractive to current members and prospective members from younger generations.

Read more about these changes:

Rotary.org: News

Time to be Thankful

Past RI President Frank Devlyn shares his "thankful" list.
Rotary: "Thankful to be a Rotarian"


What are YOU thankful for this Holiday season?

Earn $50 for your Rotary Club and $75 for Polio!

Use the Rotary credit card to help eradicate polio and receive US $50 for your club!

U.S. Rotarians can apply for the Rotary MasterCard and if they charge US$75 in the first 90 days, they will receive a check payable to their Rotary club, which can be used for any club program. In addition, The Rotary Foundation will receive $75 from the Bank of America, which will be used to support Rotary’s $200 Million Challenge to eradicate polio.

Read about this and other important Rotary Updates by linking to:

Weekly Update - 19 November 2010

Foundation Updates

From Eddie Blender, editor for Our Foundation Newsletter:

Dear Colleagues:

It sent shivers up my spine when the newspaper headlines recently shouted: "Polio Outbreak in the Congo".  Thankfully, RI responded immediately with calming reassurances.  But there is still a monetary shortfall. It is important for Rotarians to stay focused - for the eradication of Polio is in sight.

Please read "Smallpox Zero to Polio Zero" (pages 16 to 25).

While traveling in the Pacific Northwest I was bringing Rotarians up-to-date and sharing with them the incredible progress and power of the Rotary Peace Program.

Not only was the outpouring of support for the program wonderful, it was quite fruitful... with new commitments and new donations. Rotary and Peace are alive and well and thriving in Washington and Oregon!  (pages 2 to 11)

There is a wonderful story about ten year old who is forgoing holiday presents while raising money for an educational project in Cambodia.  The tie-in is that I presented Adam with a Paul Harris Fellow Recognition Award when he was younger.  He says he feels good.. doing good (page 12).

 Our Foundation Newsletter for December, 2010, contains important updates on Peace Scholars, Polio and a reminder of the history of smallpox.  It's a great read!

2010_102_12EB.pdf (application/pdf Object)

Training and Help for Clubs and Districts

"If I don't learn something new every day, I'm probably just not paying attention!" What new thing will you learn today?

• Clubs around the world have reported on their best practices - find out what they said.
  
• Learn how to make weekly club meetings, club assemblies, and club board meetings more effective.
• New Future Vision e-learning module - The Developing Global Grants e-learning module focuses on how to identify global grant projects and activities.

All this and more will be found in: Rotary Training Talk

Rotary Peace Centers

I'm looking forward to meeting  Brad Lauman who is the manager of the Rotary Peace Centers Department when he visits Districts 5100 and 5110 this week.

Read the following article where Brad talks about "Peace in action around the world..."

Peace Net November

Tips for Publicizing Your Rotary Club Activities

With so many opportunities to publicize your club’s projects and activities, it may be difficult to know where to begin. Rotary International offers many outlets through which you may be able to publicize your club’s success stories to an international audience. Before you submit a story, ask yourself these questions:

• Was our project or activity a success?
• Can other clubs learn and be inspired by our story?
• Can other clubs replicate our success? 

A story that includes the following elements has a greater chance of receiving coverage in an RI publication:

• Demonstrates a unique or innovative approach to addressing a problem or challenge
• Focuses on action and hands-on participation by Rotarians
• Explains why the activity was undertaken and what positive outcomes resulted from it
• Includes high resolution, action-oriented photos of the activity 

Please send concise descriptions of newsworthy activities, along with action-oriented photos, to your RI staff liaisons. They can share your submissions with RI’s communications and editorial staff for consideration as a story in one of RI’s publications or on the RI website.

• View a reference list of RI’s publications and media outlets 

Another easy way to share your project success stories with Rotarians around the world is to submit a description of your project for possible inclusion in RI’s database of model projects on ProjectLINK. Simply fill out the ProjectLINK Model Project Submission Form, and e-mail it to Rotary International. If selected for inclusion as a model project, Rotarians will be able to read about your club’s success and may choose to replicate your strategies in their own communities.  

For tips and resources to help you promote your club activities and enhance Rotary’s image through other media, please visit the Public Relations section of the RI website.

Best regards,

Kathryn Nichols

Coordinator, Programs & Presidential Initiatives

Rotary International

programs@rotary.org