The 2020–21 RI Board of Directors met virtually on October 26 and on November 18-19, 2020. At these meetings, the Board reviewed nine committee reports and recorded 27 decisions......
Programs and Awards
The Board clarified its September decision removing the past governor qualification for serving in the positions of Rotary coordinator or Rotary public image coordinator to further stipulate that such a non-past governor must have “strong relationships with the district and zone leadership” to qualify for serving in these positions;
- agreed, in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, to restrict long- and short-term youth exchanges through 30 June 2021;
- amended the Standard Rotaract Club Constitution to encourage a recommended number of 12 charter members to start a new Rotaract club;
- recognized the Rotary Action Group for Refugees, Forced Displacement, and Migration.
Meetings
The Board agreed that the 2021 International Assembly is to be held virtually between 1–11 February 2021 and further agreed that subject to the 2021 RI Convention being held onsite in Taipei, Taiwan, to hold a two-day, in-person event in Taipei as a continuation of the Assembly program;
- recognizing the successful shift of Rotarians’ use of online training resources due to the COVID-19 pandemic, recommended that after the pandemic clubs and districts adopt a flexible training approach that uses a combination of online and in-person learning options;
- extended the current Taipei convention registration fee structure for all registration categories through 15 February 2021.
Administration and Finances
The Board following the nomination by President Knaack, elected Hendreen Dean Rohrs to fill the unexpired term of Jennifer Jones as a Rotary Foundation Trustee;
- reviewed President-elect Mehta’s 2021–22 committee structure, which includes four Board committees: Executive, Administration, Programs, and Council on Legislation Advisory; and 12 standing committees: Audit, 2022 Houston Convention, 2023 Melbourne Convention, Communications, Constitution and Bylaws, Districting, Election Review, Finance, Membership, Operations Review, Rotaract, and Strategic Planning. President-elect Mehta further planned five other committees to advise the Board: 2022 International Assembly, Interact Advisory Council, Leadership Development and Training, Shaping Rotary’s Future, and Young Past Governors;
- continued its discussion of a possible new structural model for Rotary and requested the Shaping Rotary’s Future Committee to continue developing this structure in discussion with Rotary senior leaders and with feedback from Rotarians and Rotaractors via virtual focus groups;
- encouraged districts to adopt and use, where beneficial, virtual and virtual/in-person district conferences, for efficiency, efficacy, cost-savings, and inclusiveness;
- in its ongoing response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, continued restrictions on Rotary-funded travel through 31 March 2021;
- adopted the 2021–22 annual goals for Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation as follows:
GOALS FOR PRIORITY 1 – INCREASE OUR IMPACT
1. Eradicate polio and highlight Rotary’s role.
2. Increase contributions to the Annual Fund and PolioPlus while building the Endowment Fund to $2.025 billion by 2025.
3. Improve and effectively communicate the measurable impact of:
a. Service projects by clubs;
b. District grants, global grants, programs of scale, PolioPlus and the Rotary Peace Centers.
4. Build new partnerships, including opportunities with government agencies, to enhance the global foot print of humanitarian projects.
5. Focus our program efforts to increase our impact.
GOALS FOR PRIORITY 2 – EXPAND OUR REACH
6. Grow Rotary membership to 1.3 million by:
a. Emphasizing “Each One, Bring One” as the call to action for attracting new and more diverse members into our existing clubs;
b. Increasing and diversifying participant base by starting new and innovative clubs and participant engagement channels.
c. Increasing the coordination and accountability of the directors, regional leaders and district membership chairs.
7. Strengthen Rotary’s brand and image including increased focus on social media.
GOALS FOR PRIORITY 3 – ENHANCE PARTICIPANT ENGAGEMENT
8. Enhance engagement with an emphasis on leveraging technology among Interact, Rotaract and Rotary club members and other Rotary participants.
9. Increase collaboration between all participants, in particular between Rotary clubs and Rotaract clubs.
10. Use our core values as a focus for engagement.
11. Enhance engagement through business networking opportunities amongst Rotary participants.
GOALS FOR PRIORITY 4 – INCREASE OUR ABILITY TO ADAPT
12. Support and encourage the use of virtual connectivity to optimize in-person meetings, trainings, fundraising and service projects.
13. Review our volunteer leadership structure and improve responsibility and accountability.
14. Support regionalization of governance and service delivery.
Source: Rotary International