Internationally, we develop and implement large, impactful projects primarily, but not exclusively, on the needs of communities in South East Asia and the South Pacific Islands. We also provide emergency aid in natural disasters.
Our projects are aligned with one or more of the Seven Areas of Rotary Focus:
Rotary Melbourne strives to partner with local Rotary Clubs to ensure our projects are relevant, sustainable and impactful.
The Rotary Give Every Child A Future Centenary Project is a joint project between the Rotary Clubs of Melbourne, Sydney, Auckland and Wellington - the first four Rotary Clubs chartered in Australasia in 1921.
In conjunction with UNICEF, the project's goal is to immunise 100,000 children and adolescent girls in 9 Pacific Island Countries. The countries are Cook Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
Typhoon Mangkhut, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Ompong, was a strong typhoon which struck the Northern Philippines islands on 14 September 2018 with disastrous flooding. Thanks to Bob Glindemann, Ruth Carlos Martinez and Members, a call to action was undertaken successfully.
In 2017, Rotary Melbourne signed an MOU with the Minister for Education in Timor Leste for the publication and shipment of a series of books written by Kirsty Sword Gusmao, Timor’s first lady to enhance the opportunities for school children in Timor to have access to publications in Tetun and Portuguese for reading. Several books were written, published, and sent to Timor via Donations In Kind (DIK).
Rotary Melbourne and Ortigas Center Rotary provided two Skyhydrant water filtration units to the rural villages of Baroro and Pandan in northern Philippines.
Rotary awards up to 100 fully funded fellowships for leaders to undertake university study in peace and conflict resolution.
The Rotary Clubs of Melbourne, Australia and Osaka, Japan have been sister clubs since 1996. Together we continue to work on a variety of projects to make a difference in the world, as well as friendship and young leader exchanges.
Rotary Donations in Kind Store (DIK) Footscray. This Rotary created warehouse is a hub for collecting goods donated in bulk such as hospital beds and equipment, and school desks for charitable purposes. Rotary volunteers support DiK store by helping to sort and load containers for shipment to local and off-shore projects.
For more information on how to become involved, contact the club office.
Our life-changing scholarship program with Empowering Youth Cambodia (EYC) enables over 50 children annually from run-down shanty houses, in the urban poor slums of Phnom Penh to attend high school. These schools provide education, leadership, development and job opportunities for vulnerable boys and girls.
Launched in October 2024, our San Mateo Clean Water for Life project - partnering with the Rotary Club of Greater Marikina Valley (Philippines) and Rotary Australia World Community Service - delivers safe drinking water and a WASH hygiene station at Jose F. Diaz Memorial National High School.
The “Sewing Machines for East Timor” project encompasses collecting sewing machines and overlockers to be refurbished and shipped to the Canossian Sisters in Timor-Leste, to the coffee highlands of Ermera and the main capital city of Dili.
A fire broke out at the Empowering Youth in Cambodia Youth School - and Rotary Melbourne stepped in to help.
East Timor Roofing was established as a Rotary project in mid 2000 by Rotary Clubs of Doncaster 45%, Melbourne 45% and joined subsequently by Rotary Club of Lilydale 10%to provide training and opportunities for the people of Timor Leste to help them help themselves to greater sustainability as a nation and as a people. From a start of “zero base” the operation is now a fully established incorporated limited liability Company in Timor Leste.
ROMAC provides surgical treatment for children from our neighbouring Oceanic countries in Australia and NZ, in the form of Life Giving and/or dignity restoring surgery not accessible to them in their home country.
Papua New Guinea has the highest per capita death rate from snakebite globally, 60% of cases involving children. Rotary Melbourne and the PNG Snakebite Partnership helps reduce snakebite fatalities through provision of ventillators, solar powered refrigeration for anti-venom, and training of healthcare workers.
Rotary Melbourne in conjunction with Stewart Craine's Village Infrastructure organisation, helped provide solar power to remote villages on Tanna in Vanuatu to provide lighting, to mill crops and to recharge mobile phones.
