Rotary-Carter School Collaboration for Peace

The Rotary Peace Project Accelerator enhances the impact and effectiveness of Rotary peacebuilding projects at the club and district levels by pairing them with Carter School faculty and staff. Rotary member-led projects receive comprehensive support including initial seed funding, budget planning, mentorship, and expert guidance from Carter School professionals and Rotary International’s peacebuilding team. The ability to combine real practical expertise from Rotary International staff with academic rigor and analysis from the Carter School, allows Rotarians to design and execute evidence-based peacebuilding projects.

The Cyprus Rotary/Carter Peacebuilding initiative built upon longstanding relationships between Rotary clubs within Greek and Turkish-speaking communities in Cyprus.  Phase 1 of the effort culminated in November 2024, when 24 key members of civil society and Rotarians convened at Point of View, the Carter School’s Retreat Center, for a 5-day workshop. Their aims were to generate actionable ideas, innovative projects, strategic frameworks, and policy recommendations that local and regional Rotarians can use to revitalize and elevate peacebuilding efforts. Participants produced an extensive range of in-country peacebuilding projects that the Carter school will support throughout 2025.  The Carter School offered a neutral meeting site at Point of View, with proximity to Washington, D.C. Carter School faculty advised on workshop design and co-facilitated the workshop. The Carter School team also managed the organizational logistics and accommodations for the participants and engaged in the planning of further activities in Cyprus, including the evaluation of the peacebuilding effort.

Initiated by the Rotary Club of Colombo Metropolitan in District 3220, LMSV aims to instill a strong moral foundation in children through a series of Sinhala and Tamil songs that teach values such as respect for all religions and races, honoring parents and elders, kindness, honesty, and integrity.  The program is conducted in partnership with the Ministry of Education.  This effort culminates annually with the Rotary Honda Purudu Championship.  Now in its 4^th year, this contest includes over 4,000 students and finalists are prominently featured on national television, news print, and social media. LMSV was paired with Carter School’s Narrative Transformation Lab to utilize the cutting edge “Ripple Effects Mapping” methodology to evaluate the accomplishments and limitations of the 2024 Honda Purudu Championship. The results of this evaluation will go on to inform LMSV’s efforts to effectively expand its programming to all 10,000 schools in Sri Lanka.

This ambitious project seeks to combat gun violence in Baltimore, beginning with peace educators and synchronizing efforts among stakeholders. Starting with a Peace Summit on March 8^th in Baltimore with representatives from 15 organizations committed to violence interruption and peace education, this multi- phased initiative will 1) Collect data from over 200 active peace educators to create a comprehensive needs analysis; 2) Convene the most influential stakeholders to jointly devise solutions; and 3) Transmit the most salient best practices internationally, beginning with a cross-cultural exchange with Santiago, Chile. This project originated with faculty and alumni at Carter School and then developed methods for enhancing its impact by actively engaging Rotary Clubs and Rotary members including the Rotary Club of Baltimore and individual Rotarians in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia whose expertise and networks can further enhance the project’s impact.  Rotarians in the Baltimore area will form coordinating committees to identify key peacebuilders and stakeholders across government, business, and other sectors. Rotarians will also secure funding and help organize events that promote learning and knowledge sharing; and the project will utilize the Rotary network to transmit best practices to other participating cities.

The Rotary-Carter Collaboration introduces "Salons for Peace," a transformative thought leadership, networking, and fundraising series. Designed to address pressing and contemporary global issues in conflict and possibilities for peace, these salons bring together Rotary club members, Carter School affiliates, and subject matter experts in engaging discussions on topics ranging from regional conflicts to dynamics of peacebuilding. These intellectually stimulating gatherings, initially in the DMV region and expanding to global venues, serve as hubs of knowledge exchange, fostering dialogue and understanding. By creating an intimate environment in homes, clubs, and other small venues where diverse perspectives meet, we aim to enhance peacebuilding efforts and conflict prevention strategies. These salons not only empower Rotary and community members but also provide a unique platform for cultivating prospective donors. Through strategic planning, engaging discussions, and collaborative partnerships, Salons for Peace signify the Rotary – Carter School commitment to fostering peace, understanding, and unity on a global scale.

June 20, 2024, Washington DC 

The Rotary-Carter School Collaboration hosted the first Salon for Peace on Thursday, June 20, 2024 at the Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress, featuring their exhibition “Join in: Voluntary Associations in America”. Salon participants were guided through the exhibition by its curator, Nathan Dorn. Guests also heard from Mari Clarke and Richard Rubenstein, who highlighted the mission of the Rotary-Carter Collaboration, as well as Charles Davidson, the Director of the collaboration.

October 21, 2024, Chicago

Guests heard from Larry Cooley, John DeBlasio, and John Hewko for opening remarks. Kate Thompson moderated a talk by Dean Özerdem and Harry Anastasiou on the state of the Cyprus project and how the Rotary-Carter School Collaboration Cyprus Initiative hopes to create positive change.

Attendees included members of the Rotary-Carter Collaboration Steering Committee, leaders of the Cyprus Peacebuilding Project, the General Secretary of Rotary International, and the DT Institute.

Rotary International and George Mason University’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution announce a new learning curriculum developed specifically for Rotarians that blends service and peacebuilding skills and tools with Rotary and Rotaract club needs around the world. Peacebuilding and conflict resolution faculty and practitioners will design in consultation with Rotarians a series of learning modules focused on strengthening the conflict resolution skills and tools of Rotarians.  Two 20-hour interactive workshops will be piloted in the Washington DC area for Rotary Club Presidents in order to assess and create a learning curriculum that will be available in the coming years to Rotarians around the globe.  The workshops will also engage Rotarians on the most effective ways to take back what is learned to their respective Rotary Clubs. The workshop will include relevant case studies, lessons learned from community peacebuilding projects, learning activities, role plays and project design.  In addition, the Carter School will create an on-line course designed specifically for Rotarians, combining an emphasis on peacebuilding, community service, conflict analysis, communication tools, and facilitation skills. It will be asynchronous but also enable those who take the course to participate in live webinars and have access to Carter School faculty and peace and conflict resources through the Carter School’s Better Evidence Project Peacebuilding Hub.

Help the Carter School and Rotary International design the learning curriculum on peacebuilding tools by filling out the short needs assessment.

The Carter School and Rotary International have created new opportunities for Rotarians interested in peacebuilding service projects to connect with a wealth of resources about peace and conflict while also connecting with each other.  The Carter School’s Better Evidence Project has created a virtual Resource Center that will enable Rotarians to be more effective in their service.  Additionally, the Better Evidence Project will soon launch its new Peacebuilding Hub and Peace Action Network which will enable Rotarians engaged in peacebuilding-related activities to connect with other Rotarians and Rotary and Rotaract Clubs in the United States and around the world as well as with other peacebuilders and peacebuilding organizations.  Learning from carefully-chosen materials and learning from each other and the experiences from other peacebuilding activities and projects will be beneficial to all concerned, particularly those communities served by Rotarians that are affected by conflict.