Author Archives: Rotary International

Building professional skills across borders

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By Mona Mousa, past president of Rotaract Stockholm and its international representative

Mona Mousa
Mona Mousa

I don’t have a professional background in social media management, but I have managed several social media accounts such as Rotaract Stockholm and Rotaract Oceania. In advance of the Global Citizen Live event in Paris in September, the rest of my team decided I should handle the Rotary Instagram page, as they have followed me for a long time.

It was an exciting and a scary opportunity because there are thousands of followers, but I went in with an open mind.

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Ukrainian describes leaving Kyiv, using Rotary network to help others

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By Iryna Bushmina, District 2232 (Ukraine) Rotaract Representative

Iryna Bushmina
Iryna Bushmina

I left Kyiv in the first hours of the war. My sister, her husband, her 3-month-old baby and a cat were in the car. When we reached the border, men were already not allowed to leave the country, so I went on with my sister and a little nephew. We were five days in the car, six days until we got to Vienna.

We stayed for the night in different countries three times. These were not hotels but homes of Rotary and Rotaract families. I used to just say that Rotary International is a big family, now I really believe it. And I am convinced that this is a family that will stand by you. These are no longer beautiful words to me, this is reality.

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Nonprofits need to embrace strategies for success from the for-profit world

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Lisa Greer
Lisa Greer

By Lisa Greer, Rotary Club of Beverly Hills, California, USA

“WE ARE NON-PROFIT. We are not a business!” As someone who has served as a board member, adviser, and donor for nonprofits, I’ve heard a version of this sentiment more times than I can count. At a meeting, it might be someone’s response while discussing a financial or organizational governance issue of the nonprofit. The statement often carries a whiff of disdain.

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How Rotary Community Corps help refugee communities

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By Tom Gump, organizer of The Rotary Community Corps (RCC) for the Afghan Community in Minnesota, USA, and a past district governor

If you want to create positive peace in the world, you do not need to go all the way to Afghanistan or Ukraine, you can, together with others, have an impact from your own backyard. Positive peace is not only the absence of violence, but also includes a state of collaboration and support between states, nations, or members of a society.

Rotary and The Rotary Foundation are invested in creating positive peace. But what can we do in our local area to contribute to positive peace?

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Challenging the status quo in Rotary

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Mohan Kumar
Mohan Kumar

By K V Mohan Kumar, charter president, Rotary Club of Bangalore Prime, India

Rotary is constantly in the process of change. Change is essential to stay relevant, as Rotary’s founder Paul Harris noted with his famous quote:

“This is a changing world, we must be prepared to change with it. The story of Rotary will have to be written again and again.”

Paul Harris, This Rotarian Age, Circa 1935

Many things drive that change in Rotary:

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Peace within, peace between, peace among

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Brian Rusch

Editor’s Note: In September 2020, Rotary formed a task force charged with assessing the current status of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in Rotary and shaping a comprehensive action plan to help us further value and live those principles throughout the organization. This is the fifth in a series of blog posts from DEI Task Force members reflecting on their work on the committee and why it is critical for the organization.

Brian Rusch has managed organizations for Nobel laureates Archbishop Desmond Tutu and the Dalai Lama. With the knowledge he learned from them, he has created programs to inspire youth to explore ethics and how to reshape conversations on peace, equality, and forgiveness. A Rotary Youth Exchange student, he became a Rotary member in his 20s and helped create Rotary’s first LGBT-cultured club. Read his full bio.

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Six tips for enjoying fundraising

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By Maria Molina, Philanthropy Advisor for Latin America Zones 25A/23B

Maria Molina shows off some of the resources available to help you share the impact we have with donors.
Maria Molina shows off some of the resources available to help you share the impact we have with donors.

As you know, we are one of the largest nonprofits in the world and our commitment to humanity continues this year with the theme “Serve to change lives.” And that is why we need to be even more creative in our fundraising strategies.

Raising money for local and international projects should be an essential part of every Rotarian’s life. Consider this example from the world at large. A recent article in Giving USA reported that contributions by service organizations hit a record high in 2020 at $47.7 billion dollars.

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Paws for thought

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Editor’s Note: Jeremy Opperman is a member of Rotary’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion taskforce and a regular contributor to this blog on issues related to disability inclusion.

By Jeremy Opperman, Rotary Club of Newlands, Cape Town, South Africa

“Ok, left, left, good boy!”
“Find the pole, find the pole, good boy!”
“Wait, ok, forward.”
“Find the kerb (curb), good boy.”
Find the pole, good boy!”
“Forward, find the kerb, good boy!”
“Straight on, no, find the kerb, forward, good boy!”
“Left, left, good boy.”
“Straight on, good boy!”
“No, we are not going right here, straight on, good boy.”
“Clever boy!” “Good boy!”
“Yes! Good boy!”
“Yes, you are such a clever boy!”

And with that, we had arrived at our destination. This is the exact conversation I have with my guide dog Ronnie when we are walking to a Rotary friend’s home every Tuesday and Thursday.

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Restaurant venue dilemma

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By Rotary staff

Your club has been meeting at a restaurant for 35 years. Your meeting contract extends for another five years, and your members like the venue and say the location is convenient. You recently learned that several restaurant staff members resigned and that the management is being investigated for serious discrimination allegations. What would you do?

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The power of the Rotary logo

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By Charles Pretto, 2022-23 governor of District 5340 (California, USA)

I like the Rotary logo — the one with the wheel and the word “Rotary” next to it. It’s not always a popular opinion though. Some members prefer the old Rotary wheel and continue to use it, even though it was retired nearly a decade ago. In some ways, I get it. We Rotary members can be traditionalists.

The modern Rotary logo has something that the old one doesn’t though: name recognition — literally. The word “Rotary” (or Rotaract) is in big letters. It’s easy to read and most importantly, it’s easy to identify. I experienced that difference first-hand when I started wearing the modern Rotary logo on my lapel pin.

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