Rotary Foundation

The mission of The Rotary Foundation is to enable Rotarians to advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through the improvement of health, the support of education, and the alleviation of poverty.

The Rotary Foundation helps fund our humanitarian activities, from local service projects to global initiatives. District 6900 clubs can apply for grants from the Foundation to invest in projects and provide scholarships. The Foundation also leads the charge on worldwide Rotary campaigns such as eradicating polio and promoting peace. Rotarians and friends of Rotary support the Foundation’s work through voluntary contributions.

At the 1917 convention, outgoing RI President Arch C. Klumph proposed to set up an endowment “for the purpose of doing good in the world.” In 1928, it was renamed The Rotary Foundation, and it became a distinct entity within Rotary International.

Evolution of Foundation programs:

• 1947: The Foundation established its first program, Fellowships for Advance Study, later known as Ambassadorial Scholarships.
• 1965-66: Three programs were launched: Group Study Exchange, Awards for Technical Training, and Grants for Activities in Keeping with the Objective of The Rotary Foundation, later called Matching Grants.
• 1978: Rotary introduced the Health, Hunger and Humanity (3-H) Grants. The first 3-H Grant funded a project to immunize 6 million Philippine children against polio.
• 1985: The PolioPlus program was launched to eradicate polio worldwide.
• 1987-88: The first peace forums were held, leading to Rotary Peace Fellowships.
• 2013: New district, global, and packaged grants enable Rotarians around the world to respond to the world’s greatest needs.

Since the first donation of $26.50 in 1917, the Foundation has received contributions totaling more than $1 billion.