About Rotary - What Is Rotary?

Rotary is an organization of business and professional leaders united worldwide who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world. In more than 200 countries worldwide, approximately 1.2 million Rotarians belong to more than 32,000 Rotary clubs.

Rotary club membership represents a cross-section of the community's business and professional men and women. The world's Rotary clubs meet weekly and are nonpolitical, nonreligious, and open to all cultures, races, and creeds.

The main objective of Rotary is service — in the community, in the workplace, and throughout the world. Rotarians develop community service projects that address many of today's most critical issues, such as children at risk, poverty and hunger, the environment, illiteracy, and violence. They also support programs for youth, educational opportunities and international exchanges for students, teachers, and other professionals, and vocational and career development. The Rotary motto is Service Above Self.

Although Rotary clubs develop autonomous service programs, all Rotarians worldwide are united in a campaign for the global eradication of polio. By the time the world is certified polio-free, Rotary's contributions to the global polio eradication effort will be nearly US$650 million.

In addition, millions of dollars of "in-kind" and personal contributions have been made by and through local Rotary clubs and districts for polio eradication activities. Of even greater significance has been the huge volunteer army mobilized by Rotary International.

Hundreds of thousands of volunteers at the local level are providing support at clinics or mobilizing their communities for immunization or polio eradication activities. Rotary has provided an army of volunteers to promote and assist at national immunization days in polio-endemic countries around the world.

To date, 122 nations around the world have benefited from PolioPlus grants for polio immunization and eradication efforts. As a result of the efforts of Rotary International and its Foundation and those of our partners, the number of cases of polio has declined by 99% since Polio Plus was launched in 1985 and more than TWO BILLION CHILDREN have received oral polio vaccine.

Find out more about Rotary by visiting the Rotary International web site.

Information on this page came from:

The About Rotary and the RI Programs pages on the Rotary International web site