The
International Service Update
provides news about World
Community Service, Rotary
Volunteers, and Rotary Community
Corps, as well as disaster
relief and recovery. Visit the
Service and Fellowship
pages on the Rotary
International Web site,
www.rotary.org, for more
information.
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Rotarians respond to disasters |
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Rotarians
have been providing assistance in
Indonesia,
the
Philippines,
and the Samoan
islands after
a recent series of natural disasters. A
path of destruction was left by an
earthquake in Indonesia, two typhoons in
the Philippines, and a tsunami in the
Samoan islands. Rotarians responded with
immediate relief and are now planning
long-term recovery efforts.
Learn more. |
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Upcoming project fairs |
Rotarians
in the Philippines and Guatemala
invite Rotary club members around
the world to attend their upcoming
project fairs. Project fairs are a
great opportunity to meet fellow
Rotarians and learn about service
projects in need of funding,
volunteers, or donated goods.
Project Fair Philippines
Makati, Philippines
26 November
Uniendo America Project Fair
Antigua, Guatemala
28-30 January
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New model project submission form |
Rotary
clubs and districts can now use the
ProjectLINK Model Project Submission
Form to submit their model projects
for posting on ProjectLINK. Model
projects are completed service
projects that other clubs and
districts can refer to for
inspiration and examples of best
practices. The form is available as
a Word document at
www.rotary.org/projectlink.
Although the ProjectLINK database is
available in English only, clubs and
districts may submit forms in
English, French, Portuguese, and
Spanish.
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Rotarian Action Group joins Live Earth
clean water initiative |
Rotary International
has authorized the
Water and Sanitation
Rotarian Action
Group to lead
Rotary's efforts in
the
Live Earth initiative
to address the
global water crisis.
The initiative will
launch on 13 October
with an event in New
York City and will
continue until 18
April, which will be
a day of concerts
and water-related
events in 25 cities
and thousands of
communities
worldwide. Updates
on how clubs can
become involved will
be available on the
action group's Web
site in the
coming weeks. If
your club is
interested in
participating or
learning more, write
to info@wasrag.org.
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Rotary Volunteers in the Peruvian Amazon |
Rotary Volunteer Ariel
Cecotti, a member of the
Rotary Club of Pilar,
Santa Fe, Argentina,
recently traveled to
Santa Rosa, Peru, to
help the Rotary Club of
Iquitos, Loreto, with
its community school
project. The two clubs
have developed a close
relationship, which
began during Rotary's
centennial year. On the
trip, his second to
Santa Rosa, Cecotti was
accompanied by his wife,
Analia Ramos; Cristian
Bender, a member of the
Pilar club; and Bender's
wife, Natalia Quinteros,
all Rotary Volunteers.
Val Petersen, a member
of the Rotary Club of
Kaysville, Utah, USA,
also served at the
project site, where the
volunteers worked on
constructing and
painting a library,
bathrooms, and a cement
playground for school
sports activities. The
Iquitos club has
received support for the
project from a Rotary
Foundation Matching
Grant, District 5420,
and the Rotary Clubs of
Tooele Valley, Park City
Sunrise, and Vernal,
Utah.. The volunteers
paid for their own
transportation, and the
Iquitos club provided
food and lodging. During
their stay, the
volunteers also
participated in health
and education efforts
with a group from
YouthLINC, whose
executive director, Judy
Zone, is a member of the
Rotary Club of Holladay,
Utah.
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Concert to End Polio |
Rotary International is
teaming up with violin
virtuoso and polio
survivor Itzhak Perlman
and the world-renowned
New York Philharmonic to
present the
Concert to End Polio,
a benefit performance
supporting the global
effort to eradicate this
disabling, sometimes
fatal, childhood
disease.
The one-night-only
performance will be held
on 2 December at 7:30
p.m. in New York City.
All proceeds will go
directly to Rotary's
US$200 Million
Challenge. Learn more
and purchase tickets at
www.rotary.org/endpolioconcert.
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Country Profile:
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Country overview
The Philippines
is a chain of over 7,000
islands off the coast of
Southeast Asia, bordered by
the Celebes, Philippine,
South China, and Sulu seas.
The majority of the
country's 89.7 million
people live on just 11
islands. Filipino and
English are the two official
languages, and Christianity
is the major religion. The
terrain is mountainous with
many volcanoes; volcanic
eruptions and earthquakes
are common. Clothing, timber
products, food, animals,
chemicals, and electrical
machinery are the country's
main exports.
The Medium-Term Philippines
Development Plan 2004-10 was
created to monitor progress
toward achieving the
UN Millennium Development
Goals by 2015. While
this effort demonstrates the
country's commitment to
these goals, the amount of
money needed to meet them by
the deadline is about US$15
billion, which is beyond its
means. About 43 percent of
the population lives on less
than $2 a day; the country's
high
poverty rate may be the
cause for the recent drop in
net enrollment in primary
school. Nonetheless, the
overall enrollment for girls
is higher than that of boys,
representing a positive step
toward the empowerment of
women.
In its efforts to improve
environmental sustainability
over the past few years, the
Philippines has been quite
successful. The Presidential
Task Force on Climate Change
has taken action to prevent
deforestation by cracking
down on loggers and
prompting reforestation
efforts.Water and sanitation
efforts have resulted in 93
percent of the population
having access to
cleaner water.
Projects seeking assistance
Rotary clubs in the
Philippines sponsor 1,327
Rotary Community Corps.
There are also 69 World
Community Service and Rotary
Volunteers projects in the
Philippines seeking support
on ProjectLINK. These
efforts are focusing on
areas including water and
sanitation, education,
vocational training, food
and nutrition, medical
treatment, and microfinance.
They are in need of
contributions and
volunteers.
To find more information on
how to support these
projects and others, please
visit
ProjectLINK.
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