Announcements:
24Apr21 Our club will help Railway City Rotary Club to tidy Barrie Park.
Nancy Spoke of a Global Grant to improve drinking/potable water in Northern aboriginal communities.
Next week: Ron and Catharine will talk about Fundraising, just because they are brave.
Speakers Dr. Douglas Thompson, from the Rotary Club of Stratford and David Knoppert, from the Rotary Club of London-Lambeth, spoke about various humanitarian efforts in Nicaragua and fundraising.
Dr. Thompson has been a doctor in Stratford for 40 years. He believes that the best way to combat the colossal number of problems in the world is to help developing countries with projects as he described in his presentation. Their broad range of projects is described at
http://commitwithnphnicaragua.simplesite.com/438292941. Their projects are impactful and diverse. They will begin to speak to churches 18Apr21.
ESRAG is short for Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group
COMMIT is short for Canadian Outreach Medical and Missions Team
David spoke about the many negative impacts of biomass (fallen tree branches and dung) cooking in third world countries. 3 billion people on earth eat meals cooked over an open fire. 4 million people die yearly from the smoke produced cooking this way. Both Ron and Pat noted that while travelling in 3rd world countries they saw cooking over open fires. The resulting pollution is more than that generated by all the cars on the planet.
A helpful solution to this problem is the Justa stove (above). 2 stoves are equivalent to removing a car from the road. They use 50 to 80% less wood and cost $150 each. They are built from locally sourced materials. The benefits are that women stand when they cook so have fewer muscular and burn injuries. Since less wood is needed, reforestation projects are more successful. Ask yourself this no-brainer question; which is the most cost-effective environmental solution, a. 2 Justa stoves at $300 or b. 1 electric car at $50000? The Stratford club is partnering with the Granada Rotary Club and the Stove Team project
https://www.stoveteam.org . Their goal is 250 stoves and they have received $20000 to date. David complimented our club for donating $1000 without being prompted by this presentation.
Inspired by Terry Fox, David raises funds for these projects by selling sponsorships for his virtual stationary bike tour across Canada. The above photo shows his progress. His pedalling will end in St John’s virtually in 5 weeks. The following shows how individuals can contribute:
2 PROCEDURES TO DONATE FUNDS TO COMMIT STOVE PROJECT
1. E Transfer
Mention COMMIT STOVES and include your mailing address in the message section.
Please let David Knoppert (
davidknoppert@sympatico.ca) know if you choose this method to donate, and please also include the amount of the donation and your mailing address.
2. CHEQUE – PREFERRED METHOD
Make payable to “Stratford Rotary Club Charitable Foundation” and add “COMMIT STOVES” somewhere on the cheque. Remember to add your email on a separate piece of paper.
Please MAIL to :
David Knoppert
527 Chiddington Ave
London, ON
N6C2W4
Q&A: Ron pointed out that for this project to make a significant impact, it would need to be scaled up like the Polio Plus program. It’s no surprise that we have a fundraising talk next week.
From RI re training:
Are you thinking about how you can get ready to make an impact next Rotary year? Take the Learning Center courses for your role before you take office (My Rotary login required):
- President
- Secretary
- Treasurer
- Committees:
- Administration
- Membership
- Public image
- Rotary Foundation
- Service projects
If you don’t have a My Rotary account, use this step-by-step guide to create one.
Don’t forget to look at our professional development courses, too, especially the courses developed by Toastmasters International, which will help you strengthen your communication and leadership skills. They’re available to all members in the Professional Development topic on the Learning Center.
Links to the Learning Center may not work on mobile devices. Instead, go to the Learning Center through My Rotary, then search for materials or courses.
Help other club officers prepare for the year ahead by forwarding this email to them. Send any questions or comments to learn@rotary.org.
Sincerely,
Sarah Remijan
Director
Learning and Development