Giving & Grants

Over $100,000 donated to Rotary on #GivingTuesday

On 2 December Rotary participated in #GivingTuesday, a global movement dedicated to giving and celebrating generosity. Rotary used this opportunity to promote online giving to the Foundation and to thank our donors who make our life-changing grants possible.

During the #GivingTuesday event, Rotary sent 600 handwritten thank-you cards to donors and volunteers. And the Rotary community came together to make online gifts totaling over $100,000 that will support community-driven projects around the world. Thank you to everyone who participated — you’ve set a high standard for #GivingTuesday in 2015!

Celebrate Rotary’s birthday

How will you be celebrating Rotary’s birthday this month? Visit our new Give the Gift page to see how your donation to Rotary, no matter the size, helps create positive, lasting change.

Support your favorite area of focus through a named fund

Is there a specific area of focus that’s close to your heart? A major gift of $100,000 or more allows you to set up a named area of focus endowed fund, which provides general support to global grants in the area of your choice. If you’d like to learn more, email us at majorgifts@rotary.org to connect with a Major Gifts officer or a member of Rotary’s Fund Development staff.

Grant model successes

Grant sponsors have been invited to complete a short survey included with the online application tool for district and global grants. Their responses indicate that the grants and the application tool are working well. Most survey respondents rate district and global grants as good or excellent. And grant activity increased after The Rotary Foundation rolled out its new grant model in July 2013.

As of 20 November, the Foundation approved:

• 298 district grants totaling $17.9 million, compared with 288 grants during the same period in 2013
• 386 global grants totaling $23.7 million ($9.9 million of that from the World Fund), compared with 209 grants during the same period in 2013 — an 85 percent increase!

Recent Trustee decisions

At their October meeting, the Trustees made several decisions related to grants:

• The current agreement with UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education to provide water and sanitation scholarships is extended for one year, pending agreement from UNESCO-IHE.
• Clubs and districts may now carry out global grants in non-Rotary countries where the Rotary International Board is actively trying to establish Rotary clubs. Vietnam is currently the only country in this category.
• Up to 10 percent of a global grant budget may be used for project-specific overhead and administrative costs of cooperating organizations.
• Lineal descendants of honorary Rotarians are now eligible for Foundation awards.

The current version of grant terms and conditions reflects these changes.

Resources & reference

Rotary Foundation Reference Guide
Every Rotarian, Every Year club presentation
Rotary grants application tool
Rotary Ideas

Giving & Grants is a quarterly publication that offers information to help you support Rotary's work through your contributions and grant-funded activities. Formerly Rotary Grants and Every Rotarian, Every Year.

Send questions and comments to contact.center@rotary.org.

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