Friendship, Service, and Serendipity: Joining Rotaract and the Rotary Action Summit 2024 Malmö

Greetings everyone, 

Thank you for taking the time to join my journey here in Sweden. Part of the Magic of Rotary can be summed up in three words: friendships, service, and serendipity. Over the past three weeks in Sweden, I have experienced all three. Let us start with friendship.

FRIENDSHIP

Friendship is the foundation of every cultural exchange. Sweden has proven to be a very diverse place. In my student accommodation, I live with 38 other nationalities. Many come from China, Vietnam, and Japan. Others come from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Russia, and India. We share community meals, and sometimes we climb on top of the roof if we get a chance to see the Northern Lights above Lund (so far we have been unsuccessful).

(Ideon House flatmates on top of our roof) 

Sometimes in Lund, you get wonderful invitations to join a whole new group of friends and community. In early September I was invited to join the Malmö-Lund Rotaract Club and start growing the impact of Rotary in the local area. Rotaract is for youth and young professionals interested in Rotary and public service. Malmö is the 3rd largest city in Sweden. It is a short 15 minute train ride away from Lund. 

As new Rotaracters, we were invited to the Malmö City Hall (Malmö Rådhus), a 16th-century administrative building, to take part in the founding/charter ceremony for our new club. Our Rotaract club is comprised of 11 nationalities and a few Swedes. We were warmly greeted in the city hall ballroom, where there are portraits of old Danish kings and Swedish royalty. Rotarians from all around Skåne, Sweden, came to support us and give their support. Now that is intentional friendship made reality. 

You can see some photos below

(Malmö Rådhus - Malmö City Hall)

(Malmö-Lund Rotaract Club) 

(Malmö Cityhall Ballroom)

(Danish King Canute and I.)

SERVICE

Another element of the Magic of Rotary is service. Rotarians desire to have a strong and positive impact on the world. Often Rotarians meet as clubs. Occasionally, they meet in large action summit comprised of different zones. Let me invite you to the Rotary Action Summit Malmö 2024! 

My Japanese co-Rotary global scholar, Suetake, and I were invited by the Lund International Rotary Club to attend the Rotary action summit in Malmö. One week after joining Rotaract, we came to a large gathering of Rotarians from all around Scandinavia. Many of our participants were from Iceland, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, and Poland. 

All of them represented their club leadership and came to learn about progress on issues important to Rotarians. 

(Rotary Summit Conference room)

At the summit, we heard speakers from the World Health Organization, United Nations, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group (ESRAG), the Rotary Foundation, and Rotary Peace Fellows. Some of the topics I learned about were Rotary's role in addressing Polio, their responses to natural disasters, and progress on implementing Rotary environmental goals. Important to note, was the long history of Rotary taking on some the world's largest challenges since its founding. 

(The World Health Organization talking about Polio Epidemics and Progress) 

During the conference, we had many fika (coffee and pastry) breaks where we talked with other Rotarians. I learned how active Rotarians in Sweden are. Suetake and I were also encouraged to join the ESRAG and learn about environmental and climate issues in the Baltic Sea region. We were invited to join some of their community service projects helping restore the habitats of the Baltic Sea region in the near future. 

My general impression of Scandinavian Rotarians was an eagerness and openness to do good. But a desire to also better their own clubs and sense of purpose. Above all, the warm and genuine interest of the Rotarians was striking. They were thinkers and doers. 

(Board Director of ESRAG talking on Greening Rotary Clubs)

An important update for adventurous Arkansans. You may have to book your plane tickets soon. In February 2025, Rotary will have an international peace conference focusing on peace-building in Istanbul, Turkey. Rotary International is opening another peace centre in Istanbul to host peace fellowship scholars. I am already thinking of booking my place tickets!

SERENDIPITY

Lastly, I would like to end this blogpost on the importance of serendipity. You do not get many opportunities in life. Knowing when to jump is as important as knowing when to not jump. Many of the experiences I have had with Rotarians in my host city have been from saying yes to every invitation I can. For those that are kind enough to offer help, it can unlock a whole new world. 

Many Rotarians at the Malmö summit talked about the need for things at Rotary to be fun. To have that element of joy, community, and surprise in all their meetings. To remind them why they joined and why they volunteer their time in service to others. One of those such serendipity-evangelists was none other than Rotary International President Stephanie A. Urchick. She talked of the need to make Rotary as enjoyable as possible and connect young people with Rotary's mission and communities. 

Suetake and I were lucky enough to talk with her after the summit. She had so much to say about the importance of Rotary and, especially, young people getting involved as much as possible. She stressed the need to work with Rotarians to understand the perspective and needs of young people and how we can help carry on the legacy of Rotarian values. She also wanted to express a "Hello, to all the Arkansan Rotarians." Part of her advice to us was to find a way to connect with older Rotary communities and to have as much fun/joy as possible. 

(With Rotary International President, Stephanie A. Urchick)

(She also proposed we take a floor selfie with my cellphone. She gets extra points for being spontaneous)

That goes to show it; you never know where you are going to end up with Rotary. From both the Rotaract charter party and the Rotary Action Summit in Malmö, I have been surprised and amazed by the ability of Rotarians to embody friendship, service, and serendipity. I look forward to learning more from my new friends here in Scandinavia. I am pleased to share that they all now know where Arkansas is on a map and the virtues of sweet tea....

Now let me leave you with some music in the European style. Thank you for listening, and see you all soon for the next blog post.