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A message from The Global Poverty Project
Last night more than 4,000 campaign supporters attended our massive concert in Perth - raising their voices in support of polio eradication, and calling on world leaders to commit to ending this debilitating disease.
And we were heard. Earlier today, at a special press conference called just to discuss polio eradication, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, United Kingdom Prime Minister David Cameron, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Pakistan Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and Bill Gates declared their support for polio eradication efforts and collectively committed more than $100 million of additional funding for polio eradication efforts – significantly reducing the funding gap currently limiting vaccination efforts - and providing 100 million additional vaccines against this paralysing disease.
Answering the calls of thousands of campaign supporters around the country who signed The End of Polio petition, this collective commitment included a contribution by the Australian Government of $50 million dollars!
The momentum of this campaign is building.
Today’s announcement is an incredible win – and a testament to the power and influence of people driven movements.
 As we celebrate this important victory, we ask you to continue to build the momentum of this incredible global campaign by sharing The End of Polio petition with friends – asking them to join the call so that we can demonstrate support for additional funding commitments in other donor countries. Thank you for the part you have played so far in protecting future generations from this debilitating disease,
Hugh & Simon, Mick, Wei, Lindsay, Renee and the whole GPP Team
ROTARACT AUSTRLLIA CONFERENCE
 When: 24th till 25th September 2011
Register now for your chance to win free registration. To go into the draw you must register before the end of July.
See young inspirational Australian speakers including Hugh Evans and many more. Meet Rotaractors from across Australia and the world. Plus enjoy the great city of Melbourne with lunch at the Queen Vic Market and loads of other exciting activities!!
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Club votes In new board!
Congratulations to the following people who were voted in unanimously for the 2010-2011 Rotary Year.
President
Sean Ingram
Vice President
Teresa Jordan
Secretary
Jess Brunner
Treasurer
John Craven
Publicity
Tim Vainoras
Social Coordinators
Kat Barret, Erin-Rose Dickson
Rotaract Australia
Background
Since starting in 1968 Rotaract spread rapidly across the world and Australia has the distinction of chartering the some of the first Rotaract clubs in the world. In the first five years of Rotaract, Australia had 288 of the 1,543 clubs worldwide. Rotaract continued to grow throughout the 70s and 80s, with 482 clubs in 1980, resulting in many metropolitan districts having over 20 clubs and hundreds of members at district events. Over the next two decades the number of clubs and members steadily declined, at an average rate of 16% per annum for some districts, leaving a national average of less than 3 clubs per district. Many clubs have now been
left isolated without surrounding clubs and leaders to support them and as such struggle to maintain members. Smaller districts have lead to a smaller talent pool for leadership positions with 40% of Australian Districts in 2009-10 having no DRR and 65% of DRRs were serving more than the standard one year term. This has left some districts with either fatigued leaders, no Rotaract district leadership at all or insufficient number of experienced members to drive growth. Rotaract Australia
- Our MDIO In September 2007 a vision summit was held in Geelong to discuss challenges affecting Rotaract and how to help Rotaract to find a way forward.
Representatives from 6 Australian Districts.
Jeremy Charles 
(District 9680)
David Mahoney (District 9690),
Stephen Lovison (District 9750),
Kathryn O'Connor (District 9780),
Seren Charlton- White(District 9800)
and
Kylie Knight Brown and Kylie McMillan(District 9810), unanimously decided to create an Australian MDIO. Australia's MDIO has been 3 years in the making and recently the constitution and a number of initial joining districts' forms were submitted to Rotary International for approval. The MDIO has recently been approved. Rotaract Australia will unite the talented and experienced Rotaractors across Australia to help Rotaract clubs and districts reverse the long term declining membership trend into an upward trend and provide assistance and advice for Rotaract to once again become an organisation of stature in Australia. Rotaract Australia will complement existing district structure and initiatives and not cut across any programs already in place. Rotaract Australia will serve Rotaract clubs in districts 9455 - 9830.
A Message from President Sean
It is an honour and a privilege to have been elected President of the Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley. The 2010-11 rotary year will be an exciting, enjoyable and challenging year for the club and I look forward to sharing these experiences with a wide range of individuals throughout my travels.
With a strong committed membership the Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley can and will achieve great things in this upcoming Rotary year.
The opportunities to contribute to the 2010-11 goal of “building communities and bridging continents” are endless. The next twelve months can be viewed with great optimism provided we all club members work together to make positive change.
The work which has gone into making this club a fixture in the Diamond Valley area could never have been possible without the support of our sponsoring clubs. They are to be commended on their vision and commitment to the youth of the Diamond Valley region by coming together to support the creation of this club.
The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley looks forward to working together with the Rotary Clubs of Diamond Creek, Eltham, Greensborough as well as other Rotary clubs and community groups on a wide range of initiatives.
The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley is also extremely proud of its association with the local Interact Club of Eltham. We are committed to strengthening our relationship with them over the next twelve months by working with them on a number of projects and initiatives.
The 2009-10 year was a very successful one for the Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley. President Paul Skinner and the members of the club should be extremely proud of their achievements. The club has made substantial gains over the past 12 months and I am very fortunate to have been able to assume the role of President with the club in such a strong position.
The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley is committed to the goal of “building communities and bridging continents”, with an ever growing membership the sky is the limit.
All members are strongly encouraged to contribute to projects throughout the year as well as provide the club with project ideas and their own vision for ensuring that the club succeeds in its goal of “building communities and bridging continents”.
As President, I look forward with optimism to the year ahead and I hope that all of you can be apart of this clubs exciting journey.
Sean Ingram
President of the Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley
Eltham Bunnings Rotaract BBQ
The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley is a community based group for 18-30 year olds interested in getting involved within the local and international community. The club is sponsored by the Rotary clubs of Diamond Creek, Eltham and Greensborough.
Help support our club and come down on Sunday the 20th of December at Bunnings in Eltham on Bridge St and buy a sausage and drink.
The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley meets fortnightly on Monday nights at 8pm in Eltham RSL bistro. Details: dvrotaract@gmail.com or Kat on 0401 082 720.
The club’s projects and events in its first year included:
Planting trees for 2008 National Tree Day;
Participating in the Diamond Creek Fair in 2008 and 2009;
Organising entertainment for the Youth Stage at the 2008 and 2009 Rotary Eltham Town Festival;
Raising money for prostate cancer research through the Movember program;
Collecting money for victims of the Black Saturday bushfires at the Rotary Bushfire Appeal;
Participating in the Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal;
Showcasing Rotaract to the Rotary 9790 District at the 2009 District Conference in Geelong in a joint project with the Rotaract Club of Darebin;
International projects such as supporting LifeStraw Australia helping children in third world countries access purified drinking water. We also supported an international exchange student;
Supporting Zaidee’s Rainbow Foundation to increase organ and tissue donation awareness through the sale of rainbow shoelaces; and,
Organising a Community Knit-a-thon that saw more than 200 knitted items donated to St Vincent de Paul and distributed to the homeless and bushfire victims.
Whether you are a knitting novice or expert, the Diamond Valley community is being urged to take part in the 2nd community knit-a-thon on November 14 to gather much-needed donations for St Vincent’s De Paul.
The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley is hosting the knit-a-thon from 1 pm-5 pm on Saturday November 14 at St John's Anglican Church.
“With many Diamond Valley families losing everything in the devastating Black Saturday bushfires, the club wants to ensure there is a good supply of winter woollies,” Club Past President Michael Shields said.
“We also must not forget the many homeless who should not be left to shiver through another cold winter.”
Mr Shields said it’s easy to get involved – knitters can come along all day or drop past for 30 minutes to join in the knitting frenzy. The club will also accept any pre-knitted items on the day.
“Knitters of all ages and abilities will be knitting a range of items from basic squares to beanies, scarfs and socks, which will all be donated to St Vincent’s De Paul,” he said.
St Vincent’s De Paul will be distributing donations to the homeless and bushfire victims.
The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley is a community based group for 18-30 year olds interested in getting involved within the community.
Mr Shields said the Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley was sponsored by the Rotary clubs of Diamond Creek, Eltham and Greensborough.
“Our three main goals are community involvement, development of leadership skills, meeting new people and networking,” he said.
Since being chartered in September last year the club has planted trees for National Tree Day, raised money for prostate cancer research through the Movember program and took park in the 2008/2009 Diamond Creek Fair and 2008/2009 Eltham Festival.
* The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley meets fortnightly on Monday nights at 8pm in Eltham RSL bistro. The club is always looking for new members. For more information on Rotaract or the community knit-a-thon contact dvrotaract@gmail.com or Kat on 0401 082 720.
Rotaract Youth Stage
at the Rotary Eltham Town Festival Sunday the 8th November 2009
Our vision for the 2009 Rotary Eltham Town Festival is to create an engaging and interactive youth area within the Rotary Eltham Town Festival that showcases live musical entertainment by local youth bands and groups, specialist performances suitable for all ages, sale of merchandise to promote an enjoyable environment and the provision of a complementary attraction or ride.
Come down to Alistair Knox park Main Road Eltham on Sunday, November 8, 2009 and support local music and enjoy the fun of this years youth stage. If your not into music there will be plenty of other attractions including free rides, Market Stalls, other entertainment and much more.
To go to the Rotary Eltham Town Festival page clink on the link in the navigation bar at the top of the page.
DO YOU KNOW ANY LOCAL BANDS THAT WOULD LIKE TO PERFORM ON THE YOUTH STAGE NEXT YEAR?
CLICK ON THE CONTACT US LINK IN THE NAVIGATION BAR AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE AND SEND THEIR DETAILS TO US.
Below is the program for the day.
HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY
DIAMOND VALLEY ROTARACT WINS TOP GONG IN FIRST YEAR
After just one year of service to the Diamond Valley community and beyond, the Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley has received an international award recognising its dedicated community work.
At its fortnightly meeting tonight, the club celebrated its first anniversary and reflected on a year of achievements that was topped off by receiving a 2008/09 Presidential Citation from Rotary International.
The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley was officially chartered on 5 September 2008. Since then, the club has grown and currently has 18 members.
“We are immensely proud to receive a Presidential Citation from Rotary International in our very first year,” Club President Paul Skinner said.
“The award is testament to the club’s great community work and its enthusiastic members who have generously donated their time to many service projects that benefit local, national and international communities.”
Rotary and Rotaract clubs can be recognised with a Presidential Citation for undertaking worthy service activities that demonstrate how they have achieved the Rotary International motto Make Dreams Real, while also increasing the number of club members.
The club’s projects and events in its first year included:
- Planting trees for 2008 National Tree Day;
- Participating in the Diamond Creek Fair in 2008 and 2009;
- Organising entertainment for the Youth Stage at the 2008 Rotary Eltham Town Festival, which the club will do again in 2009;
- Raising money for prostate cancer research through the Movember program;
- Collecting money for victims of the Black Saturday bushfires at the Rotary Bushfire Appeal;
- Participating in the Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal;
- Showcasing Rotaract to the Rotary 9790 District at the 2009 District Conference in Geelong in a joint project with the Rotaract Club of Darebin;
- International projects such as supporting LifeStraw Australia helping children in third world countries access purified drinking water. We also supported an international exchange student;
- Supporting Zaidee’s Rainbow Foundation to increase organ and tissue donation awareness through the sale of rainbow shoelaces; and,
- Organising a Community Knit-a-thon that saw more than 200 knitted items donated to St Vincent de Paul and distributed to the homeless and bushfire victims.
“Earlier this month we also launched our new club website. Please visit us at www.diamondvalleyrotaract.com to learn more about Rotaract or join our facebook group at www.facebook.com/group ” Mr Skinner said.
The Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley is a community based group for 18-30 year olds interested in getting involved within the community.
Mr Skinner said the Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley was sponsored by the Rotary clubs of Diamond Creek, Eltham and Greensborough.
“Our three main goals are community involvement, training and development of leadership skills and meeting new people and networking,” he said.
“On top of our community work, we also aim to have fun – as a group we go out to dinner, host barbeques and our social events have included lawn bowls, movies, ten-pin bowling, mini-golf, Darkzone laser-tag and trivia nights.”
Mr Skinner said the number of Rotaract clubs was currently expanding across Melbourne and we have established strong ties with clubs in Darebin, Sunbury, Tullamarine, Whitehorse and Balwyn North.
“As club president, my primary goal for the upcoming year is increasing awareness of our club and the great work it does within our local community,” he said.
“The future of the Rotaract Club of Diamond Valley is looking bright, with many more community service projects on the horizon.”
Mr Skinner said the club was always looking for more community-minded members and anyone was welcome to attend one of the regular club meetings to find out more about Rotaract.
“Thanks to new sponsorship from the Eltham Leisure Centre, all new members will receive a new member pack including one guest pass to the centre,” he said.
And we were heard.
As we celebrate this important victory, we ask you to continue to build the momentum of this incredible global campaign by sharing The End of Polio petition with friends – asking them to join the call so that we can demonstrate support for additional funding commitments in other donor countries.
And we were heard.
As we celebrate this important victory, we ask you to continue to build the momentum of this incredible global campaign by sharing The End of Polio petition with friends – asking them to join the call so that we can demonstrate support for additional funding commitments in other donor countries.