Why go to a Rotary International convention?
Having had the joy of attending the last two, in Melbourne and in Singapore, I suggest that you consider traveling up to Calgary this June for no other reason than to get a much larger sense of what Rotary means to people around the world. Plus, until we go to Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN in 2029, this is the shortest distance you would have to travel to a convention.
Breakfast is a time to sit with Rotarians and family from around the world. In Melbourne, at our first morning we met a district governor from Norway and his wife, and we enjoyed bumping into them all over the city and exchanging even more greetings. Each afternoon breakout session is a chance to engage in conversation with people from just about anywhere, as well as a chance to learn from subject matter experts. Rotarians from at least 140 countries were in Singapore together. I love asking about their club projects, and even about their fundraisers. They really differ around the world! And who knows who you will sit next to at the plenary sessions.
At the president-elect dinner, my wife and I sat next to the queen of the Benin tribe in that same country, soon to be a Rotary president. One morning getting off the elevator I met UNICEF's member at the UN, himself a past club president from Uganda. And these meetings are endless.
The major sessions, morning and evening, have opportunities to hear from inspiring speakers and from international leaders. And the host city - they put their best foot forward, for sure. Calgary has an incredible transportation system, and like in the last two host cities, all attendees will get passes to use public transportation. You will have an opportunity in your free time to explore this wonderful city.
Some of Calgary's pre-assigned hotels are filling up, but there are plenty of ways to rent out homes or rooms. I suggest you try to find them close to public transportation, and you'll get to the convention area quite easily.
In Singapore we had a wonderful night at a restaurant with our own district group. You'll have opportunities to get to know your own friends from our district as well as making new friendships from around the world.
For the RI Convention June 21-25 in Calgary, registration now stands at $525. On December 16 it goes up to $625, so I invite you to make your plans now. At last count, I heard that 24 people from our district are already signed up.
And certainly before or after the trip, you might want to see some of the most beautiful mountain areas in the Canadian Rockies. Lake Louise, Banff, and Jasper are just a few hours away.
If you have never been to a RI convention, this next year will be a powerful opportunity. Expand your horizons, learn about Rotary, and enjoy all the enrichment that comes from almost 200 booths at the House of Friendship. There are international fellowship groups, service projects, learning opportunities, various environmental projects such as Ending Plastic Soup pictured below. And everywhere you go, you bump into more Rotarians to talk with.
For more information, look deeply at the main feature in the September issue of Rotarian, which also reminds us that Conde Naste Traveller readers named Calgary the "friendliest city in the world" last year.
Mark Jolivette
President