It is time to consider what other training events can be on offer.

Article by PDG Stephen Lamont, Rotary Coordinator

As most Districts in Rotary move towards various training events at this time of year, mainly in the form of President Elect training and District Assemblies, it is also time to consider what other training events can be on offer.

Over the course of the last twelve months a group of Rotary Coordinators from three Zones have regularly met on Zoom to discuss all things Membership – and to reflect on the challenges each Zone has to promote and grow Rotary. From these discussions, we have learnt that there is common ground and ideas that we can share and that we should extend these discussions to include Membership Chairs across our Zones.

On Sunday April 23rd at 6pm AEST a Zoom meeting has been organised to enable District Membership Chairs (DMCs) to gather and discuss two main questions from a membership point of view. The topics shall be:

• Looking forward - how can we meet members expectations on being a value added membership and service organisation?
• What type of Rotary Club would we invent today if we started from a clean sheet of paper?

The sessions shall be facilitated by the Rotary Coordinators and the Regional Membership Officers across three Zones. The countries the DMCs represent are Finland, Sweden, The Netherlands, Flanders (Northern half of Belgium) as well as Australia, New Zealand and Oceania. Collectively this represents thirty five districts, over a thousand clubs and sixty thousand Rotarians. It is a first-time opportunity for DMCs to speak with an international group and we hope that it shall be embraced by collective DMCs from our Zone.

Membership learning opportunities can also be provided by any of the Assistant Rotary Coordinators in our Zone. I would encourage District trainers to send out a call to any of the Assistant Rotary Coordinators (ARCs), who can assist with membership presentations at PETS (President Elect Training Seminar) and District Assemblies. It has also been my observation that having someone from outside the district to speak provides a new and fresh perspective – rather than repeating the same concepts and expecting different results from the same people.

Sharing ideas and concepts to promote Membership, Public Image and the Rotary Foundation across our and other Zones is an opportunity that should not be missed. Embrace any learning opportunity and share with others in your Club, District and Zone.