Today, over 70 million people are displaced as a result of conflict, violence, persecution, and human rights violations. Half of them are children.
We refuse to accept conflict as a way of life. Rotary projects provide training that fosters understanding and provides communities with the skills to resolve conflicts.
Each Rotarian, each club, each District is a vital part of Rotary’s commitment to creating peace locally and around the world. It is what Rotarians do. Rotarians have four roles in promoting peace and creating environments of peace.
- Practitioners: through the avenues of service we change the conditions that cause conflict directly building the conditions that provide for peace.
- Educators: with the Peace Scholarship program Rotary has educated over 1500 people to.
- Mediators: members negotiate pauses and ends to conflict for humanitarian purposes such as polio immunizations and other projects.
- Advocates: Rotarians have an integral role as impartial participants during peace processes and in post-conflict reconstruction to help form communities that have resources to live peacefully.
Peace Scholarships = Trained Peacemakers
Educating Peacemakers is one of our key roles as a peacemaking organization. Rotary sponsors candidates for peacemaking scholarships each year given by the Rotary Foundation. Since 2002 Rotary has provided over 1500 scholarships for Peacemaking and Conflict Resolution. There are graduates working in 115 countries who are involved as catalysts for peace through careers in government, education, law, international programs.
The current scholarships are for the academic year 2024-2025 with applications available in February 2023 and due May 1, 2023.
- There are 50 full paid scholarships for a two year Masters program in one of five universities in the world, and
- There are 80 scholarships for a one year (summer attendance) professional certificate in conflict management from a university in Thailand for persons in careers needing skill development in conflict management.
Your club and our district can sponsor candidates to this program. Living all around us are people who have skills and interests that would be likely candidates. They await the inspiration and invitation from Rotarians and clubs to apply.
It is up to us—you, your club, our district.
YOUR ACTION: Read the Rotary website (www. Rotary.org) on Peacemaking describing the program, eligibility and process for application. See requirements for each of the two scholarships. Make a plan to inform and recruit candidates. Educate your club. Contact District Peace Scholarship Chairman.
CONTACT: Kent Miller, Chairperson, Peace Scholarship District Committee, for information for your club, or with persons interested in the scholarship program. Kent.kcm@gmail.com.
*Quotes and information taken from website ( www.Rotary.org).