Rotary: Conroe’s President Elect experiences Rotary International Convention in Taipei

Leona Lewis’ stirring and moving rendition of “Fire Under my Feet” may have brought the Rotary International Convention in Taipei to a close, but the song acted as a pointed reminder of the resilience of the organization.  

The convention echoed the Rotary International President Francesco Arezzo’s call of “ Uniting for Good,” and the event was a powerful reminder of just how much good Rotary does and continues to do in the world.

The Taipei Convention was attended by 38,000 people from 140 countries, demonstrating the global reach of Rotary. As a participant, I was reminded just how much good work is happening in so many places of need.  

The convention is a place of connection and reunion. I had the opportunity to spend quality time with good friends and fellow Rotarians from Serbia, Ukraine, Australia, Italy, Hong Kong, India, Singapore, China, Columbia, Mexico, the Caribbean, and from all over the US and Canada.  

I was able to catch up on the status of older projects and hear about the new ones.

One of the most impressive speakers was the youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner, Malala Yousafzai, from Pakistan. Her father was a Rotarian, and when she was just a child, she and her father had discussions about girls’ rights to go to school. She started advocating for girls education when she was 11 and grew her voice along with others in Pakistan.  

At 15, she was targeted by a Taliban hit squad because of the impact on society that she was having. She survived the attack and recovered from her injuries. She emphasized that recovery from an attack requires more than just physical healing, that the mental healing component is just as important. 

After her recovery, she cofounded the Malala Fund, to campaign for girls’ education and equality worldwide.  In 2014, at 17, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.   

In her talk she reminded us there are more than 120 million girls out of school worldwide, and that we as leaders should be working to eliminate the barriers and societal trapdoors that keep girls from getting an education.  

We can see from those countries where girls participation in society and government that their outcomes would be much improved if females were involved in the process.  She challenged all of us to watch for situations where girls are dropping out and to see what can be done to support them.  Girls empowerment is more than just building a better future for girls, it is building a better future for all of us.

Taipei and Taiwan were unique, with a very interesting Chinese city and a very beautiful tropical countryside.  The city is a high energy place filled with street markets and Chinese temples. The subway system was easy to navigate, clean and safe.  

The history of Taiwan with mainland China created an overarching narrative that affected everything from museums to how the tour guides present their city.  All in all, a worthwhile experience.