Rotary International President

Ron Burton ; New window to the world of Rotary

Paul Harris famously wrote, “This is a changing world: we must be prepared to change with it. The story ofRotary will have to be written again and again.”

While we will never know what Paul would have thought of the Internet Age, I think I do know what he would have said about the idea of a Rotary website:

that not only should we have one, but that it should be the best possible – keeping up with advances in technology, and alwaysresponding to the needs of Rotarians.

I’m proud to announce that after a redesign that

has taken two years from concept to completion, the

new rotary.org is now live and available to Rotarians

and internet users everywhere. It contains many of the

features you’ve asked for, most notably a much improved

search function and navigation, new ways to connect

with your fellow Rotarians around the world, and a more

personalised experience that will connect you with the

information that’s interesting to you.

Rotary’s new website is actually two sites: one for

the family of Rotary, and another for people interested

in finding out more about Rotary. When you create an

account and log on as a member, you’ll gain access to a

host of new Rotary tools. One I hope you’ll all use is Rotary

Club Central, an efficient and effective way for clubs to set

goals, track their progress, and maintain continuity from

one administration to the next. You can also create or

join a Rotary group, an interactive discussion forum that

gives you a way to find and talk to Rotarians with similar

interests. You can exchange ideas and experiences, and

benefit from the experiences of others from all over the

world, at any time of the day or night. It’s a tool with

wonderful potential to improve our service by allowing us

to learn directly from others already involved in projects

similar to those we might be planning.

For non-Rotarians, the new site will show what Rotary

is and what we do, highlighting the uniqueness of Rotary

and how Rotary clubs strengthen their communities.

They’ll be able to see a snapshot of different Rotary

projects and areas of service, find out more about how

Rotary works and explore ways to get involved.

I am excited about this new window on the Rotary

world and invite you all to visit, explore and learn – as we

write the story of Rotary, again and again, together.

Ron D. Burton

President, Rotary International

