"This week's Sunday Morning Musing we have as our guest columnist District Governor-Elect Dan Gensler from the Coronado Rotary club.  Dan will offer his Musing which I am sure is outstanding."
 
 
International Assembly:

Imagine gathering with 535 Rotarians from over 200 countries and territories and suddenly the world feels much smaller and more connected.  The virtual Rotary International Assembly, an educational gathering of District Governors-Elect, was recently held February 1-11.  The conference opened with a flag ceremony of the countries and territories represented by Rotary, many of which I’ve never heard of. 

Rotary International President Elect Shekhar Mehta gave his opening remarks, which highlighted the amazing and impactful world of Rotary.  His elegant style and unshakable conviction to humanity through Rotary conveyed an impressive array of our organization and the good we’re doing in the world. 
 
Shekhar’s single biggest goal is to grow global membership by 100,000 to a total of 1.3 million.  He is asking every Rotarian throughout the world to adopt and practice the slogan “Each one Bring one!”  

The Assembly format consisted of General Session topic’s focusing on Rotary’s top priorities.  We had ongoing small group discussions with 15 different District Governors-Elect (DGEs) usually representing eight to ten different countries.  Although we come from all corners of the globe, our experiences and challenges were very similar.  It was a fascinating experience.

President Elect Shekhar followed the long-standing tradition of his predecessors by announcing his theme for the upcoming Rotary year which will be “Serve to Change Lives.”  The theme was inspired by Shekhar’s personal humanitarian experience, which has been shaped not only by the lives he’s been able to affect but how service has changed his own life.  

We heard from past and future Rotary International Presidents, board members and leaders of The Rotary Foundation (TRF).  We learned that TRF has experienced unprecedented Global Grant volume and donations have NOT kept up.  As a result, TRF is reducing the Global Grant DDF match to make sure we don’t deplete our resources.  

Rotaract had an impressive presence at the Assembly.  Rotaractors did presentations to the general audience and attended all of the small group break-out sessions.  Rotaractors told us that they want a seat at the table and want to be taken seriously.  It was suggested that we add Rotaractors to our Club and District Leadership functions and also be open to their contributions.  

In conclusion, it’s been an honor to represent our District at the International Assembly and I look forward to leading our District in the upcoming Rotary year.  I’m grateful to District Governor Steve Weitzen for his mentorship and unwavering support.  

SAVE THE DATE:  District Conference, September 10-12, 2021 Hotel Del Coronado.