The Rotary Foundation is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

corporation A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the State (polity), state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as ...

that supports the efforts of Rotary International to achieve world understanding and peace through international humanitarian, educational, and cultural exchange programs. It is supported solely by voluntary contributions. The foundation was established in 1917 by Rotary International's sixth president, Arch C. Klumph, as an endowment fund for Rotary "to do good in the world." It has grown from an initial contribution of US $26.50 to more than US $1 billion. It has one of the largest and most prestigious international fellowship programs in the world.

Programs

Polio eradication

''PolioPlus'': Rotarians have mobilized by the hundreds of thousands to ensure that children are immunized against this crippling disease and that surveillance is strong despite the poor infrastructure, extreme poverty, and civil strife in many countries. The

Polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

Plus program was promoted by Sergio Mulitsch di Palmenberg, President and founder of Rotary Club Treviglio e Pianura Bergamasca in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, during the June 1979 3H Promotion Convention. Mulitsch, thanks to the 204 District Governo VALMIGI, began the fundraising and, thanks to their professional packaging technology, solved the

temperature Temperature is a physical quantity that quantitatively expresses the attribute of hotness or coldness. Temperature is measurement, measured with a thermometer. It reflects the average kinetic energy of the vibrating and colliding atoms making ...

shipping issue, starting the first

immunization Immunization, or immunisation, is the process by which an individual's immune system becomes fortified against an infectious agent (known as the antigen, immunogen). When this system is exposed to molecules that are foreign to the body, called ' ...

campaign in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

in 1980. Since the PolioPlus program's inception in 1985, more than two billion children have received the oral polio vaccine. To date, 209 countries, territories, and areas around the world are polio-free. As of January 2012,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

was declared polio-free for the first time in history, leaving just

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

, and

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

with endemic polio. As of June 2011, Rotary has committed more than US $850 million to global polio eradication. Rotary has received $355 million in challenge grants from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation: Rotary committed to raising $200 million by June 30, 2012, and met that goal by January 2012. This represents another $555 million toward

polio eradication Polio eradication, the goal of permanent global cessation of circulation of the poliovirus and hence elimination of the poliomyelitis (polio) it causes, is the aim of a multinational public health effort begun in 1988, led by the World Healt ...

. ''PolioPlus Fund'': Grants supported out of the PolioPlus Fund that are primarily geared towards national level and supra-national efforts. For example, National PolioPlus Committee chairs or a major partner agency, such as the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

may apply for these funds. Support is available for eradication efforts in polio-endemic, recently endemic, and high-risk countries, including National Immunization Days, poliovirus transmission monitoring, and other activities. ''PolioPlus Partners'' is a program that allows Rotarians to participate in the polio eradication effort by contributing to specific social mobilization and surveillance activities in polio-endemic countries. In 2003–2004, grants were approved in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and

South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

for a total of $330,000.

Humanitarian grants programs

''Disaster Recovery'': Facilitates club efforts to support disaster preparedness and recovery. ''District Simplified Grants'': Support for short-term service activities or humanitarian endeavors of districts in communities locally or internationally. This program began in 2003–2004 and, projects in 44 countries for US$5.2 million were awarded. ''Health, Hunger, and Humanity (3-H) Grants'': Support for large-scale, two- to four-year projects that improve health, alleviate hunger, or promote human development. Since 1978, projects in 74 countries have been funded for US$74 million. As of 1 July 2009, the foundation will no longer award 3-H grants, except projects being developed to support water and sanitation projects in Ghana, the Philippines, and the Dominican Republic. ''3-H Planning Grants'': Support for the planning activities of Rotary clubs and districts designing 3-H projects of significant size and impact. Also in a moratorium in conjunction with the 3-H Grants program. ''Matching Grants'': – Provide matching funds for the international service projects of Rotary clubs and districts. Since 1965, more than 20,000 Matching Grants projects in 166 countries have been funded at a cost of more than US$198 million.

Educational programs

''Scholarships'': Founded in 1947, the Ambassadorial Scholarships program was the largest non-governmental and most international scholarship program in the world. Scholars studied in a country other than their own where they serve as unofficial

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

s of goodwill. Over 37,000 scholars from some 110 countries received scholarships at a cost of almost US$446 million. The program ended in 2013. Scholarships are now funded by district and global grants and are offered directly through Rotary clubs. ''Group Study Exchange (GSE)'': These annual awards are made to paired Rotary districts to provide travel expenses for a team of non-Rotarians from a variety of vocations. Rotarian hosts organize a four- to six-week itinerary of educational and cultural points of interest. Since 1965, almost 48,000 individuals in more than 11,000 teams from more than 100 countries have participated at a cost of US$85 million. ''Rotary Peace Fellowships'': Up to 100 fellows are selected every year in a globally competitive process based on personal, academic, and professional achievements. Fellows earn a master's-level degree or a professional development certificate in peace and conflict studies at one of six Rotary Peace Centers at leading universities in Australia, England, Sweden, Japan, the United States and Thailand. ''Rotary Grants for University Teachers'': Awarded to faculty members to teach in a developing nation for three to ten months. Since 1985, 377 university teachers have taught at a college or university in a developing country. As of 1 July 2009, the foundation has discontinued this program.

References

External links