Service in Action

By Rotary Service and Engagement

Through our service and peacebuilding projects, peace fellowships, and other various peace programs, our members are taking action to address the underlying causes of conflict, including poverty, inequality, ethnic tension, lack of access to education, and unequal distribution of resources.

During February, Rotary Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention Month, build peace and mitigate conflict by:

1. Incorporating conflict resolution and mediation strategies into service projects involving local schools, orphanages, workplaces, and community centers. Contact the Rotarian Action Group for Peace for assistance.
2. Supporting marginalized groups in risk of violence or persecution by providing relief to those who have fled areas of conflict.
3. Participating in fellowship and service activities with Rotary clubs in other parts of the world to promote greater international understanding.
4. Recruiting candidates for a Rotary Peace Fellowship. Up to 100 peace fellowships are offered annually at Rotary Peace Centers at universities around the world.
5. Supporting your district’s participation in the Rotary Youth Exchange program, where youth between 15 and 19 years of age study abroad while building international bridges as ambassadors of their country and culture.
6. Joining your district’s Rotary Friendship Exchange program to experience service, fellowship or a profession in a different culture while making new life-long friends and fostering international awareness and understanding.
7. Working with your district to start a new Intercountry Committee: a relationship between two or more international districts that strengthens cooperation for global understanding, goodwill and service.
8. Completing the Positive Peace Academy: a digital course on the Positive Peace framework to help you improve peacebuilding and development work in your own community.
9. Becoming a Peacebuilding District by supporting the Rotary Peace Centers by allocating a minimum of US $25,000 annually in District Designated Fund donations.
10. Celebrate Rotary and the United Nation’s 75-year legacy of humanitarian cooperation on 5 June immediately before the RI Convention in Honolulu, Hawaii.
11. Explore local partnership opportunities with Rotary’s partners working in the peacebuilding sector: Peace Corps, Mediators Beyond Borders International, and ShelterBox.

Gain more ideas by joining the conversation in a peace-related discussion group or post your club’s completed project on Rotary Showcase to inspire others. Comment below and let us know how you are taking action!