Rotary Programs for Youth and Young Adults: New Generations

Interact is Rotary International’s service club for young people ages 12 to 18. Interact clubs are sponsored by individual Rotary clubs, which provide support and guidance, but [Interact clubs] are self-governing and self-supporting.

Each year, Interact clubs complete at least two community service projects, one of which furthers international understanding and goodwill. Through these efforts, Interactors develop a network of friendships with local and overseas clubs and learn the importance of
Developing leadership skills and personal integrity
Demonstrating helpfulness and respect for others
Understanding the value of individual responsibility and hard work
Advancing international understanding and goodwill
Rotaract clubs for men and women aged 18-30 foster leadership and responsible citizenship, encourage high ethical standards in business and promote international understanding and peace.

Under the guidance of a Rotarian advisor, Rotaract clubs conduct formal meetings, usually every two weeks, which feature speakers, tours of local businesses, cultural activities, discussions, and visits to other clubs. Each year, Rotaract clubs conduct at least one service project in each of three areas of service: vocational, community and international. In addition to their service agenda, Rotaract clubs also focus on professional development, organizing career-related programs to assist members and peers outside the club in making informed career choices.

RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) programs consist mainly of presentations, activities, and workshops. These three components are supplemented by group work, which can enhance presentations and facilitate team building.

Though each RYLA event is tailored to participants’ ages and interests, … a core curriculum should reflect community issues and be presented in a manner consistent with local customs … [and] cover the following topics:
Fundamentals of leadership
Ethics of positive leadership
Importance of communication skills in effective leadership
Problem solving and conflict management
What Rotary is and what it does for the community
Building self-confidence and self-esteem
Elements of community and global citizenship
Rotary Youth Exchange students… spend up to a year living with host families and attending school in a different country. …[Students] learn a new way of living, a great deal about [themselves], and maybe even a new language. [Students are] ambassadors, teaching people … about [their] country, culture, and ideas.

For over 75 years, students and host families have broadened their horizons through Rotary Youth Exchange. More than 80 countries and over 8,000 students each year participate in the program, which is administered at the regional level by Rotary districts and at the local level by Rotary clubs.

New York club honors heroes in 9/11 anniversary remembrance

The Rotary Club of New York will commemorate the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks with a remembrance ceremony on 12 September, honoring the victims as well as the first responders who heroically spent days afterward looking for survivors.

The tribute luncheon at 11:30 a.m. at the Harvard Club will feature speeches by a New York firefighter, individuals who lost loved ones, and a representative of New York Downtown Hospital, which received a new ambulance funded by club contributions in the aftermath of the attacks.

It also will include readings of condolence and support letters from Rotarians worldwide, a screening of two tribute videos, and a harp and piano rendition of “Amazing Grace.”

In the video below, members of the Rotary Club of New York recall how the club took action after the attacks on the World Trade Center ten years ago.

 

How “America’s Host Club” Responded to 9-11 from Rotary International on Vimeo.

How “America’s Host Club” Responded to 9-11 from Rotary International on Vimeo.

Stand by me/Playing for change/Song around the world

“All of us in Rotary are looking to change the world – why else would we be Rotarians? We believe that our world can be happier, healthier, and more peaceful, and that we can create that better world through our service…….We must understand that true change can only begin with each of us, and start within us. We cannot share peace with others if we do not have it to give. We cannot look after the whole world without first looking after those closest to us: our families, our clubs, and our communities.”

Kalyan Banerjee
President, Rotary International

Thanks to Sandy Springs Rotary for the clip.

Shots from the heart RI Annual Photo Competition

B y the time the 2011 photo contest closed at the end of March, we had received hundreds of entries, all striving to capture, in their way, the spirit of Rotary. We narrowed the field to several dozen and sent them to photographer Art Wolfe, best known for his PBS series Travels to the Edge, for the final judging. We awarded Canon cameras to the top three winners: an EOS 60D, a PowerShot G12, and a PowerShot S95. Then we picked a handful of others to feature here on the web as our Best of the Rest. See the full gallery:

SHOTS FROM THE HEART


RIPE Kalyan Banerjee’s Address @ NOLA

Rotary International President Elect Kaylan Banerjee and Binota Banerjee

The following text is only a small part of this inspirational man’s presentation at the recent Rotary International Convention held last week in New Orleans.

“Yes, my brothers and sisters in Rotary, the time has come for us to change . change from our pallor of gray and go green, to embrace our new generation of newer, younger members. They are all out there waiting to come in, and we need to open our doors and give them space. And I don’t know how you feel, but I have always believed that the younger generation of today is perhaps more committed to the ideas of service and friendship than many of us were at that age. And we must understand the reality of the new generation of Rotary and help them balance expectations with realities. They are under pressure constantly, being involved in multiple endeavors, and yet have a strong work-life balance. And I understand too that even though they may be constantly on call with their careers and managing multiple responsibilities, they are as dedicated and passionate about being a Rotarian as you and I are.”

Here is the full address:

RIPE Kaylan Banerjee

 

News From Hout Bay Rotary in Cape Town

Hout Bay Rotary Meeting 2007 Kilimanjaro

From left to right: Susan and John Glassford (Coolamon Rotary), Anna Khuzwayo (Imizamu Yethu), Michael Dorrian (Coonabarabran Rotary), Sharon Daishe (Forbes Ipomoea Rotary), Craig Corrigan (Coolamon Rotary),  Mandy Watson (Burleigh Heads Rotary), Patrick McLaughlin (Hout Bay Rotary), Peter Sparks (Griffith Avanti Rotary), “Babu” Bob Kendell (Lockhart Rotary), Peter Johnston (Hout Bay Rotary).

President Patrick McLaughlin has sent us the latest news from Hout Bay Rotary Club our Centennial Twin Club below:

Hout Bay Newsletter