Rotarians Connect the World for Peace
The new Presidential theme for Rotary International in 2019 – 2020 is “Rotary Connects the World.” It offers Rotarians a vision to expand community connections and embrace new and innovative Rotary membership models.
Rotarian peacebuilders know making connections is essential to paving a path to peace in every community around the world. Our Peacebuilder Clubs program offers every Rotary club the tools and examples of how they can make such connections for peace in their community and region. Incoming RI President Maloney believes these connections are at the heart of the Rotary experience.
“(Rotary) allows us to connect with each other, in deep and meaningful ways, across our differences,” he says. “It connects us to people we would never otherwise have met, who are more like us than we ever could have known. It connects us to our communities, to professional opportunities, and to the people who need our help.”
He stresses that Rotary connects all Rotarians to the great diversity of our human family. These connections provide deep friendships and “lasting ties in the pursuit of a common goal.” He wants all Rotarians to embrace new and alternative ways for Rotarians to meet around the world as a way to forge new connections, and even embrace children at Rotary Meetings. “We need to foster a culture where Rotary (involvement and activities) does not compete with family but rather compliments it.” Maloney believes it is up to all Rotarians to remove any barriers so our connections can extend the reach of Rotary International worldwide. This includes a call for Rotary clubs to identify diverse community populations and find new ways to welcome them into the Rotary family.
He also wants to strengthen Rotary’s connection and relationship with the United Nations, as the UN celebrates its 75 anniversary in 2020. “Rotary shares the UN’s enduring commitment to a healthier, more peaceful, more sustainable world,” he says. “And Rotary offers something no other organization can match: an existing infrastructure that allows people from all over the world to connect in a spirit of service and peace, and take meaningful action toward the goal (of a more peaceful) world.”
“In this ever more divided world, Rotary connects us all.”