By Rotary International From the September 2015 issue of The Rotarian
Nearly 90 percent of the world’s polio cases last year occurred in Pakistan. But the country is making dramatic progress in its quest to eradicate the disease: Cases are down by almost 70 percent to date compared with 2014, owing partly to military interventions that year in Taliban-controlled North Waziristan, which have allowed vaccinators to reach hundreds of thousands of children who were previously inaccessible. Improved government leadership, the introduction of inactivated polio vaccine in high-risk districts, and vaccinations at transit… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the September 2015 issue of The Rotarian
Before her family was forced into exile, before her mother was assassinated, before her father became president, Aseefa Bhutto Zardari was known for something simpler, but in some ways equally powerful: In 1994, she became the first child in Pakistan to receive the oral polio vaccine, as part of the country’s first National Immunization Day. Benazir Bhutto, then prime minister, gave the drops to her daughter herself, a compelling endorsement of the nascent campaign.
“I was a baby at the time, so I don’t remember it,” says Bhutto Zardari, now 22. “… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the September 2015 issue of The Rotarian
When I was a college student in Wisconsin in the 1970s, those of us who worked at the 10-watt radio station hoped our signal would reach not only the 1,500 students on the Beloit College campus and the 35,000 residents of the town of Beloit but also the people in the cars and trucks passing by on the interstate 3 miles to the east – and possibly, late at night, the 150,000 who lived in the bustling metropolis of Rockford, Ill., 20 miles to the south.
Some of us hoped to get jobs in radio after we graduated, and there was even talk about starting… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International Jennifer Jacobson, a police constable in Chatham-Kent, Ontario, Canada, took part in a Rotary-sponsored Group Study Exchange (GSE) to Japan in 2009 after reading a post by a colleague and former participant.
“It was a life-changing experience, absolutely fantastic,” says Jacobson, who joined a physical therapist, a music therapist, and a retail manager on the trip. “Because they had limited translators, we went everywhere together and learned about each other’s professions. Our Japanese hosts made sure we experienced everything.
“What really hooked me on Rotary, though, was the experience I… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the August 2015 issue of The Rotarian
Patricia Shafer founded the nonprofit Mothering Across Continents, based in Charlotte, N.C., after a trip to Uganda with Save the Children. “I wrote an opinion piece in the Charlotte Observer and pointed out that if we took all the Ugandan children who were orphaned by AIDS and put them in Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium, we could fill it twice,” she says. “People came out of the woodwork and proposed that I do something to help the children of the world.” Later, a Rotary Peace Fellowship inspired her to create a program that would deliver peace-… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the September 2015 issue of The Rotarian
Last month, as virtually anyone with a television knows, Jon Stewart retired after 16 years as host of “The Daily Show.” Stewart was technically a comedian. But he was also, in the judgment of the New York Times and about half the country, “the most trusted man in America.”
I spent many years watching Stewart and his evil twin Stephen Colbert, who played a conservative pundit so convincingly that it was hard to believe he wouldn’t have had a shot at the GOP presidential nomination. Like many Americans distressed by the corruption of our political… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International Today marks a significant milestone for Africa in its effort to eradicate polio from the continent. A full year has passed since Africa’s last reported case caused by the wild poliovirus.
Somalia was the last country to identify a new case, which occurred on 11 August 2014. While Africa has achieved an important public health milestone, the job is not yet finished. To end polio forever, all countries – both endemic and non-endemic – must strengthen routine immunization, address gaps in disease surveillance and do more to reach children who are still being missed by vaccinators.
“We cannot… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International Share your Rotary story during a Twitter chat with Rotary International President K.R. Ravindran on 19 August at 13:00 Chicago time (UTC-5). Relate the reasons you joined, hear President Ravindran’s Rotary story, and find out what it means to Be a Gift to the World. Discuss tips on increasing interest in Rotary and bringing new members into your club. Use #RotaryChat to participate and follow @Rotary and @KRRavindran105. …read more

Source:: Rotary.org