ISSUE 22 - NOVEMBER 2001 - Table Of Contents

In this issue you will find:

• Calendar • A Word from the President • A Rotaract Bridge between US and the Islamic world

Report of the 1st ERIC Meeting in Sofia 2001 • Communication: an essential part of Rotaract • Club Master: Making club-life nicer • The new Rotaract Club of Liptovsky Mikulas

Calendar

December 2001 30.- 2. 1. 2002

Ostuni New Year Rotaract Party and Events

February 2002 2. Danish MDIO Conference

The 3rd annual conference of the Danish MDIO, DANIO. Please contact denmark@rotaract-eric.org for more information.

March 2002 9. 20th Anniversary Party

Copenhagen City and Copenhagen North Rotaract Clubs will join forces to celebrate the 20 anniversary of the two clubs. The party will have a James Bond theme and will include dinner, dancing and entertainment. Please contact denmark@rotaract-eric.org for more information.

Apri l 2002 25.-28. XXI Italian National Rotaract Congress (Milan)

info-line: infonazionale@rotaract.it

May 2002

1.-5. ISRM International Sardinian Rotaract Meeting

quartu@rotaract.it (Club E-mail); Massimo.Melis@rotaract.org (Club President); Nicola.Usai@rotaract.org (Event Promoter)

31.-3. 6. Rotaract Great Britain & Ireland Conference

Navigate your way to Southampton for the 2002 RGBI Conference and you will dock with over 200 like-minded shipmates, for a weekend of Rotaract at its best. Whether you opt to sail for two or three nights, or on a non-residential basis, pack your water wings for a Conference that will be naughty-cal, but definitely nice!

June 2002 23.-26. Rotary International Convention in Barcelona, Spain

October 2002 18. - 20. 33th National Convention Rotaract & Interact of France

A Word from the President by Matthias Boerner

Welcome to the first edition of the ERIC Newsletter in the new Rotaract year! New year??? If some of you are now wondering if I am “slightly” out of my mind I would not absolutely deny this... But at least I can reassure you that I am well aware of the fact that we are already at the end of November and that the Rotaract year has been running for several months now. New is, however, that with this first edition of the ERIC NEWS the European Rotaract Information Centre has started its regular public information services again. I am happy to announce the appointment of Paolo Ogno, a highly motivated and enthusiastic young Rotaractor from the Rotaract Club of Novara / Italy as new ERIC Information and Communication manager, so that the Executive Committee is now complete and you can again expect a regular Newsletter with information from and about European Rotaractors and their work. You will have noticed that I talked about the regular service we are continuing now. Even though it is true that most ERIC officers enjoyed their – sometimes rather long – summer break, we haven’t been lazy all time since the wonderful European Convention in Antalya. In fact the first European Rotaract Project organised by Peter Quantrell, former ERIC Representative of Great Britain and

Ireland, together with the Rotaract Club of Sofia / Bulgaria and a multinational team of volunteers was carried out in August, and in September Rotaractors from 12 European countries met in Sofia on the occasion of the first ERIC Meeting of the year. In addition our normal web-based services have been running all time. You wonder what these services are? There are two ways to find out: 1.) You explore our website at www.rotaract-eric.org. The first one who sends me an email with the correct list of all services ERIC provides will receive a bottle of Champaign at the RI World Convention if he or she attends (present and past ERIC officers are of course excluded!!!). 2.) You wait patiently and keep on reading the monthly editions of the ERIC Newsletter in which you will regularly find information about ERIC.

Still, I am often confronted with the question: ”Why the hell do we need a European or an international MDIO?” I have to warn everybody never ever to ask me this question again or you risk to be forced to listen to a two hours lecture! Don’t worry, I am not going to give this lecture now. But I would like to show you one very basic reason. A few weeks ago the world was shocked with horror. Many felt as if they had seen the face of pure evil - the worst nightmares seemed to have come true. The horrible attacks on innocent people caused even more violence and more suffering. It is not up to me to judge what happened or what is happening now. Everyone can and should form his own opinion. But what is the message of this terrible tragedy that changed the world? We, especially those of us in the so called “Western World" who had been spoiled with freedom and constant economic growth in a globalising world after the end of the cold war, suddenly have to realise that our earth is not yet such a nice place after all and that we have neglected and almost forgotten a big part of this world with millions of people for years. It is certainly useless to ask for the reasons of fanaticism but we should look at the reasons for the hatred amongst people which is the foundation and support of fanaticism. One of the most fundamental reasons is certainly the lack of knowledge and understanding which leads to prejudice, mistrust and eventually to hatred. One way out of this vicious circle is to start to communicate with each other and to be open to learn from each other. People who talk with each other, who meet, who work together, who have a common goal will eventually begin to understand each other even if they have different backgrounds, different interests and worship a different God . We, as Rotaractors, belong to an international organisation and share a common vision. We have the chance to talk with people from all over the world, we can learn from each other, we can work together and follow common objectives and, as a result, can build friendship and have a lot of fun together. But how do we use this unique chance? I know, there already have been successful international projects and some Rotaractors regularly meet at international conventions. But how efficient are we? Do we really use the huge potential we have? This is where ERIC and other international MDIO’s can help. We organise international events (like the annual EUCO or the regular ERIC-Meetings) where Rotaractors can meet. We provide a regular flow of information between countries and offer a platform for communication amongst Rotaractors. Furthermore we possess a network of experienced Rotaractors who are happy to assist clubs in organising international projects, finding twin clubs or simply getting contact information. Don’t misunderstand me: I know that we can not heal the world at once – it takes a lot more to do it. And if we are now all looking at the Middle East we should not forget that this is not even half the picture. The same kind of hatred, envy and misunderstanding has been around for years and in most parts of the world. We don’t have to look too far away: Israel and Palestine, Spain, Ireland, Turkey, Germany and many other countries – examples can be found almost everywhere. In the same way we must not forget the injustice and inequality the international community still faces. Even if we can’t make the world better at once we can at least start with small steps. ERIC is happy to help, support and assist you in your efforts. Just take us by our word, use our services and participate! Matthias Boerner A Rotaract Bridge between US and the Islamic world

by Paolo Ogno

Report of the 1st ERIC Meeting in Sofia 2001 Last September 22, the ERIC Committee of Representatives met in Sofia to discuss about the activities for the new rotaractian year. As it results from the detailed notes taken by the dimissioning I&C Manager, Maciej Szwedowski, the committee discussed about four main topics:

I. The international crisis after the W.T.C. Bombing; II. The situation of Rotaract in all the countries represented in ERIC; III. The report and the planning of all ERIC Divisions´ jobs and skills; IV. The future international meetings of ERIC and Rotaract. I. The international crisis after the W.T.C. Bombing. Coordinaated by the President Matthias Börner, all the Representatives taking part at the meeting (Isabelle de Boeck - Belgium; Konstantin Skabrin - Bulgaria; Torben Lund - Denmark; Mario Montanucci - Italy; Georges Hilbert - Luxembourg; Annet Stoffels - The Netherlands; Lukasz Grochowski - Poland; Aura Cadis - Romania; Radoslav Marko - Slovakia; Anna Grahm - Sweden), and the proxy Representatives (proxy given to Radoslav Marko for Czech Republic; Annet Stoffels for Germany; Nicola Usai for Spain; Torben Lund for UK) first addressed the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001. The discussion concerned the dramatic international crisis and revealed some interesting points of view. For instance the possible role of Rotaract in the new international scenario, according to Mario (Italy), could be that to build "a bridge between US and the Islamic world". And in order to achieve this important role, in Nicola´s (I&C) opinion, it is necessary to focus on a concrete project and to avoid that nothing will be done except a useless expenditure of words… II. The situation of Rotaract in all the Countries represented in ERIC. After the discussion on the international crisis, each Representative presented a short report about the situation of Rotaract in her/his home Country. All the representatives provided data like the number of Clubs, members and new Clubs in each Country. Some of them talked about the multi-district organizations (MDIO) they belong to, like Torben (Denmark). Others spoke of their "multi-Countries Districts", like Aura (Romania) for the joint Romanian-Moldavian Ditrict 2240 and Konstantin (Bulgaria) for the multi-national District comprising parts of Greece, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Macedonia. Some Representatives also talked about the National Conferences that will take place in their Countries, like Annet (The Netherlands) and Lukasz (Poland). Others talked about some ways to imlplement the rotaractian activity in their Country, like Isabelle (Belgique) who is preparing a 14 pages booklet on Rotaract, and like Georges (Luxembourg), Marko (Slovakia) and Anna (Sweden) who are working to let the Rotaract grow. III. The report and the planning of all ERIC Divisions´ jobs and skills After the Representatives´ reports, the ERIC Managers reported on their job and required the Committee to vote on some of their proposals: - Georges (Treasurer) talked about ERIC´s financial situation and the deadline for submitting application for the refunding of expenses. - Nicola (Marketing) discussed about some proposals like, for instance, gadgets for distribution among Rotaractors, an information package for ERIC representatives and the selection of an "ERIC DAY". Matthias then focused on what should be the main tasks of the Marketing Manager and what can be done by ERIC to assist European Rotaract Clubs in their marketing efforts. - Lukasz (Directory) complained about the present situation by saying that still too many clubs are not listed in the directory and that some countries are far behind in providing the necessary data. During his intervention some proposals were done even about a more efficient way to update the Directory, in order to provide a more accurate and current information. - Bogdan (Information Technologies) reported about the deadline for the International Website Contest and made some suggestions to improve the website and the informations that should be uploaded on it. - Maciej (Information and Communication Division Manager) informed the ERIC Committee that due to severe sudden personal problems he might not be able to fulfill his ERIC - duties in the future and offered his immediate resignation. However, the President asked him to stay in charge of the Division. Maciej then propsed two options for his future work: To either publish the Newsletter only once every two or three months or to go on publishing a monthly edition of the Newsletter and appointing an assistant. The representatives voted in favour of the second option. IV. The future international meetings of ERIC and Rotaract. After all the interventions of the Representatives and the Managers, the Committee discussed about three important future events: the World Convention 2001 in Barcelona, the ERIC meeting in Luxembourg and the EUCO 2003: . About the World Convention, Lukasz reminded the Committee that ERIC would have nothing to do with the organisation except advertise the event, suggest Rotaractors to

participate, and having an ERIC meeting during the convention. . About the ERIC meeting in Luxembourg, Matthias´ proposal to let the meeting take place on 7-8 February was favorable voted by the Committee. . Last but not least, about the EUCO 2003 was announced from Matthias that so far only Amsterdam had officially applied to host the convention. Annet announced that the dutch organizing committee will soon vote about the theme of the conference. It followed then a discussion wether the maximum participation fee for the basic EUCO-programme should stay at 125 EUR or should be raised to 150 EUR to enable Clubs in "expensive" countries as well to host the EUCO. But Matthias argued that a price of more than 125 EUR would prevent many Rotaractors from participating in EUCO. The majority of the representatives followed this argumentation. Paolo Ogno Communication: an essential part of Rotaract

by Anna Grahm

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The last weekend of September, members from nearly all the clubs in Sweden gathered for the annual national meeting which Malmö Rotaract club hosted. The theme this year was communication, something we believe is crucial for our clubs in Sweden. To communicate and share thoughts and ideas amongst us. Despite that, we have often put this aside in our struggle to get our own club running. We spoke nearly the whole day about communication, in terms of how we can take advantage of each other´s experiences when it comes to recruiting new members and promote Rotaract in Sweden. The workgroups came up with

many new ideas and it all led to an action program on how to collaborate in a better way. One really good way is through Internet. Our plan contains a better site, a site with information on members, clubs, flyers, and other necessities. We all agreed to make Rotaract more visible in our community, a way to recruit new members but also to make the public aware of Rotaract. Our national project, that has been running for some years now, is one way of spreading the words of Rotaract and to be seen in our community. The Rotaract clubs get the opportunity to do some fundraising in a shopping mall or department store in their city, the weekend before Christmas. The shop provides us with wrapping paper, ribbon, tape, scissors and a table. We offer our assistance to stressed Christmas shoppers to help them wrap their Christmas presents. They might even get a rhyme on their parcel and some years we have been serving hot ´glögg´, tradition during Swedish Christmas. Those who wish can give a small contribution to help raise money to BRIS, ´Barnens Rätt I Samhället´ (translation, ´Children´s Right In the Society´). Among other things BRIS have established a help line for children in Sweden, where they can talk to an adult whenever they feel the need of it. To help and to have lots of fun together at the same time, the essence of Rotaract. There are so many ways to communicate and spread our ideas. But maybe the most effective way is the non-verbal communication. One of the days in Malmö ended with a lesson of Salsa. And we danced Salsa indeed! Fifty happy Rotaractors in Sweden danced the night away, to the rhythms of Salsa, confidant in what Rotaract in Sweden can perform. Anna Grahm Country Representative of Sweden Club Master: Making club-life nicer

by Lukasz Grochowski

This function does not longer exist in the current Rotaract Handbook yet most of older clubs still retain the position of Club Master also known as Master of Ceremony on the Board of Officers. The name equally proud and vague, especially for Rotaractors that are sceptic about Rotary "glitters and titles". To make things clear it is necessary to say that duties of Club Master are more of a servant than in case of any other club officer. Although the understanding of role of Club Master could differ from club to club the main point is that this

person takes care of the "soft" aspects of club-life. During official meetings Club Master may arrange all settings (and keep track of incoming speakers ahead of time), welcome guests, make candidates and new members feel comfortable, supervise the timing and smooth flow of the sitting. To some extend his/her function is somewhat like a permanent sergeant at arms. Beyond the official duties Club Master can be an animator of social contacts in the club - may propose/arrange leisure activities of different nature and may keep in touch with "disappearing" Rotaractors. It is important that we all feel part of the group (on the large scale as one huge organisation and on the local scale as bunch of club members) and in most clubs it is difficult to keep the spirit and atmosphere. So he/she could also be a reference person of all candidates who may (and usually do) have a lot of questions concerning Rotary and Rotaract and at the beginning may feel lost among Rotaract "artefacts". Club Master being member of the Board can influence the retention and development of the membership which has been a nuisance in Rotaract around the world. Of course, some clubs do without Club Master charging with the described duties other officers, however it could be more handy to have one person responsible for making club-life nicer. Lukasz Grochowski ERIC Directory Division Manager The new Rotaract Club of Liptovsky Mikulas

by Viera Jancusova

Hi everybody from all over the world! We are a cheerful group of young people from The Rotaract Club of Liptovsky Mikulas, District 2240 Czech and Slovak Republics. We would like to cordially invite you to our Charter Celebration that will take place in the ski-centre Jasna on Saturday and Sunday 15 - 16 December 2001. Jasna is situated in the Demanovska Valley in the Low Tatras, in the northern part of Slovakia, central Europe. For those who like snow there will be a crazy competition in building the most interesting snow creature. In the afternoon there is going to be something for the fans of a cheerful mood, game and colours - "Paintball" - a big colour fight! The others can visit the Rotaract´s workshop or The Cave Of Liberty that is one of the most beautiful caves in Europe. For the fans of the white sport there is a great opportunity to enjoy themselves on the ski in the most famous ski-centre Jasna. We are almost "buried" under the snow these days, but we do not stop to hope and pray for superb skiing conditions in December. There will be possibility to borrow the whole skiing outfit, two skilled ski instructors at your disposal. Skiing is free of charge! So, if you are looking for fun, friends and if you would like to enjoy something nice, bright and unforgettable, let join us on this day! We are looking forward to meeting you! More info: Viera Jancusova - vierka@jancusova.sk President of the Rotaract Club of Liptovsky Mikulas District 2240 - (Czech and Slovak Republics)

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