From Fellowship to Global Force: The Transformation of Rotary International in a Changing Civic Landscape

Konstantinos T. Kotsis
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Konstantinos T. Kotsis: Department of Primary Education, University of Ioannina, Greece

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Abstract: In the last fifty years, Rotary International has changed a lot. It started out as a group of local businesspeople and has grown into a global civil society organization that has a big effect on international development, public health, peacebuilding, and ethical civic engagement. This paper looks at the strategic, structural, and normative changes that have shaped Rotary's growth since the mid-1970s, putting its growth in the context of globalization, the shift to digital technology, and changing civic cultures. Using modern ideas from global civil society studies, peace and development theory, and organizational ethics, the paper looks at how Rotary has changed to meet the needs of a world that is becoming more complicated by transnational problems. Some of the most important things it needs to work on are changing its mission to align with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, growing and diversifying its membership, going digital with its communication and governance, and changing its role in soft power diplomacy and promoting norms. The study looks at both the good things that Rotary does for the world and the bad things that happen within the organization when it comes to fairness, representation, and institutional accountability. In the end, the paper shows that Rotary is a dynamic organization that continues to connect local service with global responsibility. It is a living laboratory for 21st-century civic leadership that is inclusive, ethical, and forward-thinking.

Keywords: Ethical Leadership; Organizational Transformation; Rotary International; Civic Engagement; Global Civil Society (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-07-05
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Published in European Journal of Management, Economics and Business, 2025, 2 (4), pp.36-54. ⟨10.59324/ejmeb.2025.2(4).03⟩

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05711160

DOI: 10.59324/ejmeb.2025.2(4).03

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