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Resolution 23-34 and its Adoption |
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In St. Louis, between the 18th and 22nd of June 1923 during the
14th International Convention of Rotary, the delegates
overwhelming approved Resolution 23-34, which specified "the
policy of Rotary towards community activities." Part of the
beginning of what is now known as the "Evolution of Rotary,"
Resolution 23-34, along with the "Aims and Objects Plan," formed
the basis of what we now know as the "Avenues of Service." It
was a complete expression (so far as Community Service is
concerned) of the policy of personal rather than corporate
responsibility already enumerated in 1916. It was at that point
that Rotary began changing from a business orientation to one of
community service. Doug Rudman  Resolution
23-34 and its AdoptionRESOLUTION NO. 34, TO REAFFIRM THE POLICY OF ROTARY TOWARD OBJECTIVE ACTIVITIES AND TO FORMULATE CERTAIN PRINCIPLES FOR THE FUTURE GUIDANCE OF ROTARY INTERNATIONAL AND OF ROTARY CLUBS Offered by the Resolutions Committee: ADOPTED It Is Resolved by Rotary International, assembled in its Fourteenth Annual Convention, that, for the guidance of Rotary clubs and Rotarians and to formulate a policy for Rotary toward objective activities, the following principles are recognized and accepted as sound and controlling: 1. Fundamentally, Rotary is a philosophy of life that undertakes to reconcile the ever present conflict between the desire to profit for one's self and the duty and consequent impulse to serve others. This philosophy is the philosophy of Service - "Service above Self" - and is based on the practical ethical principle that "He profits most who serves best."  2.
Primarily, a Rotary club is a group of representative business
and professional men who, without secret vow, dogma or creed,
but each in his own way, have accepted the Rotary philosophy of
service and are seeking: First, to study collectively the theory
of service as the true basis of success and happiness in
business and in life; and, second, to give, collectively,
practical demonstrations of it to themselves and their
community; and, third, each as an individual, to translate its
theory into practice in his business and in his everyday life;
and, fourth, individually and collectively, by active precept
and example, to stimulate its acceptance both in theory and
practice by all non-Rotarians as well as by all Rotarians.3. Rotary International is an organization that exists (1) for the protection, development, and worldwide propagation of the Rotary ideal of service, (2) for the establishment, encouragement, assistance, and administrative supervision of Rotary clubs, and (3) as a clearing house for the study of their problems and, by helpful suggestion but not compulsion, for the standardization of their practices and of such objective activities, and only such objective activities, as have already been widely demonstrated by many clubs as worth while and as are within, and will not tend to obscure, the objects of Rotary as set out in the Constitution of Rotary International. 4. Because he who serves must act, Rotary is not merely a state of mind, nor Rotary philosophy merely subjective, but must translate itself into objective activity; and the individual Rotarian and the Rotary club must put the theory of service into practice.  5.
Each individual Rotary club has absolute autonomy in the
selection of such objective activities as appeal to it and as
are suited to its community; but no club should allow any
objective activity to obscure the objects of Rotary or
jeopardize the primary purpose for which a Rotary Club is
organized; and Rotary International, although it may study,
standardize and develop such activities as are general and make
helpful suggestions regarding them, should never prescribe nor
proscribe any objective activity for any club.6. Although regulations are not prescribed for an individual Rotary club in the selection of objective activities, the following rules are suggested for its guidance: (a) Because of the limited membership of Rotary, only in a community where there is no adequate civic or other organization in a position to speak and act for the whole community should a Rotary club engage in a general civic activity that requires for its success the active support of the entire citizenship of the community; and, where a Chamber of Commerce exists, a Rotary club should not trespass upon nor assume its functions, but Rotarians, as individuals committed to and trained in the principle of service, should be members of and active in their Chamber of Commerce and as citizens of their community should, along with all other good citizens, be interested in every general civic enterprise, and, as far as their abilities permit, do their part in money and service.  (b)
As a general thing, no Rotary club should endorse any project,
no matter how meritorious, unless the club is prepared and
willing to assume all or part of the responsibility for the
accomplishment of that which it endorses.(c) A Rotary club, in selecting an activity, should seek neither publicity nor credit for itself but only the opportunity to serve. (d) A Rotary club should avoid duplication of effort and in general should not engage in an activity that is already being well handled by some other agency. (e) A Rotary club in its activities should preferably cooperate with existing agencies, but where necessary may create new agencies where the facilities of the existing agencies are insufficient to accomplish its purpose. It is better for a Rotary club to improve an existing agency than to create a new and duplicative agency. (f) In all its activities a Rotary club acts best and is most successful as a propagandist. A Rotary club discovers a need but, where the responsibility is that of the entire community, does not seek alone to remedy it but to awaken others to the necessity of the remedy, seeking to arouse the community to its responsibility so that this responsibility may be placed not on Rotary alone but on the entire community where it belongs; and while Rotary may initiate and lead in the work it should endeavor to secure the cooperation of all other organizations that ought to be interested and should seek to give them full credit, even minimizing the credit to which the Rotary Club itself is entitled. (g) Activities, which enlist the individual efforts of all Rotarians generally are more in accord with the genius of Rotary than those requiring only the mass action of the club, because the objective activities of the Rotary club should be regarded only as laboratory experiments designed to train members of a Rotary club in Service. Also see a 1949 editorial referencing the resolution. Graphics: Calum Thomson |
| Also see a 1949 editorial referencing the resolution. |
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