The Rotary Foundation Trustees and RI Board of Directors both unanimously approved adding a new area of focus: supporting the environment. Creating a distinct area of focus for the environment will give Rotary members even more ways to bring about positive change in the world and increase our impact. More details will be announced soon.....
The Rotary Foundation Trustees and Rotary International Board of Directors have both unanimously approved adding a new area of focus: supporting the environment.
More than $18 million in Foundation global grant funding has been allocated to environment-related projects over the past five years. Creating a distinct area of focus to support the environment will give Rotary members even more ways to bring about positive change in the world and increase our impact.
Mark Daniel Maloney, 2019-20 RI president, said that during his Rotary travels, he met many Rotarians and Rotaractors who advocated for the environment as an area of focus. "I believe strongly that our Rotary Foundation programs now have a valuable added dimension to our efforts," Maloney said.
As the global population approaches 8 billion, protecting the environment is increasingly important, said 2019-20 Foundation Trustee Chair Gary C.K. Huang. "It is time for us to use our collective resources to invest in a smart and efficient way to protect our environment," he said. "We are qualified to take on this initiative because we are a global group of problem solvers with diversified talents."
In 1990-91, RI President Paulo V.C. Costa made the environment one of his primary causes, creating the Preserve Planet Earth Committee, which looked at opportunities for clubs and members to conduct environmental projects. "We have finally caught up to [the vision of] Costa," said 2017-18 RI President Ian H.S. Riseley, chair of the Environmental Issues Task Force, which championed the new area of focus.
"As a lifelong environmentalist, I’m delighted that our great organization has recognized that the environment is a worthy and appropriate destination for our project activity," Riseley said. "This is an exciting moment in Rotary history."
Supporting the environment becomes Rotary's seventh area of focus, which are categories of service activities supported by global grants. It joins peacebuilding and conflict prevention; disease prevention and treatment; water, sanitation, and hygiene; maternal and child health; basic education and literacy; and community economic development.
Grant applications for projects will be accepted beginning on July 1, 2021. Gifts and commitments from Rotarians and others will be sought to provide global grant support for the new area of focus.
More information about this new cause will be announced soon.