By Dan May
Rotary Club of Orange
Dan May
Many people are familiar with local Rotary clubs’ community efforts to support youth, seniors and disadvantaged groups. Less well known is the support that Rotary International provides for a number of global causes dedicated to building international relationships. These include ending polio, fighting disease in developing areas, supporting education and public health initiatives, sustainably growing local economies and promoting peace.
The ongoing trauma and destruction in Ukraine, Israel/Gaza, Ethiopia, Sudan and elsewhere prompt me to focus this month on Rotary’s specific efforts to promote peace. In recent decades, Rotary members have successfully negotiated humanitarian ceasefires in conflict-torn regions to allow polio vaccinators to reach at-risk children. Other members have served as advocates in post-conflict reconstruction. And many are active currently in supply chain activities delivering food and medical supplies in Ukraine, as well as supporting that nation’s disabled civilians and soldiers.
Proactively, one of Rotary’s cornerstone goals is to foster understanding and provide communities with advanced skills to resolve conflicts. In practice, this is carried out via training offered at Rotary Peace Centers and sponsorship of Peace Fellowships. Since 2002, Rotary’s Peace Centers have trained over 1,700 Peace Fellows who are now working in more than 140 countries as leaders in government, the military, law enforcement, nongovernmental organizations, humanitarian assistance groups, international governance organizations and education.
Each year, Rotary funds up to 130 fully-funded fellowships to dedicated individuals from around the world to study at one of the Peace Centers. The centers operate in partnership with premier universities around the world. Five of the fellowship programs enroll up to 50 participants in master’s degree programs, and two provide professional post-graduate training to up to 80 individuals.
The master’s degree programs include one jointly delivered by Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as well as programs at University of Bradford in England, Uppsala University in Sweden, University of Queensland in Australia and Japan’s International Christian University. All courses are held in English, and each site hosts an international cohort. Each university has specific areas of emphasis, and their full-time degree programs range from 15 to 22 months. All provide extended applied field experiences and shared workshops that develop skills in peacebuilding and development. Candidates need to possess an undergraduate degree and at least three years of full-time relevant experience in peace in economic development work.
The professional development certificate program is intended for more experienced professionals actively working in regional settings with pressing needs. Current certificate programs are based at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda, which focuses broadly on African projects; and at Bahcesehir University in Istanbul, Turkey, which addresses projects in the Middle East and North Africa. Candidates need at least five years of relevant experience in the geographic regions. The one-year certificate programs are delivered in a hybrid format, with an initial online course followed by a 10-week field study that lays the groundwork for an independent nine-month social change initiative. The capstone experience is a one-week seminar that overlaps with the next incoming cohort.
Rotary’s best-known initiative has been its Global Polio Eradication Initiative. GPEI has immunized more than 3 billion children in 122 countries since it was launched in 1988, and has worked closely with the World Health Organization to progressively eliminate this disease. That global reach informs Rotary’s goals for peacebuilding initiatives. Conflict resolution is a more complex challenge than limiting the spread of a virus, but Rotary’s Peace Fellows and trainees from other international public service organizations are actively working to address root causes, reconstruction and restorative justice.
The need now is perhaps as great and widespread as it has been since World War II. If you or someone you know would be interested in pursuing a Rotary Peace Fellowship opportunity and career in conflict resolution, contact me or an officer at any local Rotary Club to learn where to obtain more information. Application steps for 2025 cohorts begin this spring.
Dan May is the president of the Rotary Club of Orange.