DISCURSOS - Rotary International

Foundation Goals for 2013-14
Dong Kurn Lee
Rotary Foundation Chair-elect
Good morning!
It is a great pleasure to be here at this Rotary International Assembly.
Every International Assembly is wonderful. But this is an assembly unlike any other, because in
a few months, we will embark together on a new adventure: the full rollout of Future Vision. It is
a new grant model, and a new way of thinking about our Rotary service. It will be a new era for
Rotary — and a time of transition that will require unprecedented levels of involvement and cooperation
by and among Rotary leaders, at the club, district, and international level.
For the first time, we have with us at this International Assembly not only the district governorselect
but the district Rotary Foundation chairs and chairs-elect as well. We have taken this unprecedented
step to emphasize how very important it will be that district governors and district
Foundation chairs begin this year with a shared understanding and shared priorities for their
districts.
While our district governors-elect are preparing to enter a new office, many of our district Foundation
chairs are beginning their second or third year of service. Many of you are also from pilot
districts. All of you have received training on our Rotary Foundation and Future Vision. Many of
you are already very knowledgeable, and all of you will learn much more before July 1. But as we
say in Korean, 아는 길도 물어가라: Even if you know the way, ask again.
There is so much to learn, and there are so many changes. When you return to your districts, your
Rotarians will come to you with many questions about our Foundation. I ask you to answer every
one honestly — even when the honest answer is, “I don’t know.” And whenever this is your response,
it should be followed with, “But I’ll find out the answer for you.” This is the best way to
build trust and a district that has confidence in your leadership.
Here in San Diego, I hope many of your own questions will be answered. But most important is
learning how to find the answers to the questions you will face after you leave: learning about the
resources that will be available to you, and to your districts, so that you can do the most possible
with Future Vision.
This year, you and I and the Rotarians in your districts will work together to Engage Rotary,
Change Lives. And we will work together toward the four goals of our Rotary Foundation, which I
am here to tell you about today.
The first goal will be no surprise to anyone: It is the complete eradication of polio. This is our
No. 1 goal as an organization and will remain so until it is met.
In the years since PolioPlus was launched, we have immunized over 2 billion children and have
seen a more than 99 percent decrease in cases of polio. These last few years, we have made
enormous progress. But we have not yet reached our goal of a polio-free world.
Until the wonderful moment when the world is declared polio-free, we must continue the fight
with everything we have. We have to keep up the momentum, keep up the energy, and keep up
the awareness. Every Rotarian needs to understand what polio is and why we are committed
totally to its eradication. Without this understanding, one might easily wonder why we are not
International Assembly Speeches 2013 51