Rotary meetings are now conducted throughout the world. They are being sponsored by national, regional, and local health authorities, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, advocacy groups, trade unions, and other organizations. This is to bring together people from diverse walks of life who have an interest in the subject of public health. The goal is for these individuals to work together towards a common goal and for the event to be documented and made available for the viewing public.

For example, in Canada, a rotary-funded conference took place this past October in Toronto, Canada. Hundreds of people attended. It brought together people from all walks of life, from different regions of Canada, as well as those from the United States. The participants came from all over the world and came from all sorts of different health organizations, government agencies, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, advocacy groups, and schools.

In New York City, two large seminars were held. One was co-sponsored by the American Heart Association and the American Cancer Society. Each day, approximately 200 community volunteers from the various sectors of the community, including nurses, teachers, doctors, pharmacists, and school volunteers, participated in the event. They participated in classroom visits, action days, and tours of local hospitals.

Several hundred people from the public participated in the second seminar, which was co-sponsored by the New York City Department of Health and the New York State Department of Health. During the seminar, the participants were educated on the importance of community involvement to increase participation rates in local community health fairs, as well as to decrease the costs associated with nonessential travel in and out of the area. The goal was to develop methods that would allow for the creation of a healthy workforce and to promote healthy lifestyles for all residents in the district.

One of the methods that the New York City health department proposed to use for increasing the rate of participation in community health fairs was to create a “Covid-19” program. This program would award money to local health authorities in low-income neighborhoods if the families in the area signed up at their local health departments to be part of the “Covid-19” program. The program would provide children with healthy foods at reduced cost, as well as promote healthy lifestyles through participation in fun community activities.

The Rotary and other national organizations that operate through local health authorities were invited to participate in a conference call to discuss the latest ways that they could promote community engagement and participation. Representatives from the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society, and the World Health Organization attended the meeting. They had many ideas for how to increase interest in local community fairs, increase the participation rates in the meetings of local health organizations, and create new funding sources that they could apply for when it came to applying for global grants.

After the conference call, officials from each district began contacting their Rotary Club and participating in the “Covid-19” program. As the numbers of district members increased, so did the amount of money that the cities and counties received in the “Disaster Response Grants” program. A portion of the funds that the Rotary Clubs in the various districts received went into a joint fund to be used for local health district programs. Because the Rotary Clubs provided an invaluable service by participating in community events, the “Disaster Response Fund” has been making good use of the funds.

Another great idea to help increase participation in community events is to hold a fundraising event that ties in with the Rotary’s regional activities. This way, the community will have a chance to participate in a free fundraiser and get some much needed funding to help combat the problems with global warming. In addition to fundraising ideas, there are many other ways for communities to increase their involvement in these types of events. These funding opportunities will keep the rotary clubs focused on their noble cause.