Register for New Orleans -- $340 prior to March 31, $380 thereafter!!

NOTE: Any changes or edits to registration information after successfully registering/paying must be done by contacting ri.registration@rotary.org .

2011 RI Convention
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA – 21-25 May 2011

REGISTRATION DEADLINES
Deadline 1: 15 December 2010
Fees will increase after 2400 hours, Central Standard Time, on 15 December 2010
Deadline 2: 31 March 2011
Fees will increase after 2400 hours, Central Standard Time, on 31 March 2011
The Cancellation deadline for registration and tickets is 15 April 2011.
Deadline 3: 06 May 2011
Online registration closes at 2400 hours, Central Standard Time, on 06 May 2011

IMPORTANT! Online registrations made after 15 April 2011 are NON-REFUNDABLE.

2011 registration

For most categories of attendees, the base price for the convention is US$300. Registration for a preconvention event will entail an additional fee; however, you no longer need to register for the convention in order to register for a preconvention event.  

Deadlines

• 15 December is the first registration deadline. For most attendees, the convention registration cost increases to $340 after this time.
• 31 March is the second registration deadline. After this time, the convention registration cost increases to $380.

CNN coverage of a CNN Hero, founder of ShelterBox, Tom Henderson

Copy and paste into your browser

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/03/17/cnnheroes.henderson.japan/index.html?hpt=T2

ShelterBox Internation Director Laase Peterson on NPR, March 15

Copy and paste into your browser to hear a brief interview with ShelterBox Director who has been in worst affected area

http://www.npr.org/2011/03/15/134571458/International-Group-Provides-Aid-In-Japan

Bill Gates, keynote speaker at RI Convention New Orleans

Bill Gates, cochair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will be a keynote speaker at the 2011 RI Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, 21-25 May.


Gates will discuss the progress of the polio eradication effort and the need to finish the job during the third plenary session scheduled for Tuesday, 24 May, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. The session has been moved to the afternoon, 15:00-17:00, from its original morning time slot.


The Gates Foundation has awarded US$355 million in challenge grants to Rotary for use in the campaign to rid the world of polio. Rotary has responded with Rotary's US$200 Million Challenge. Gates has made several trips to India and Nigeria, two of the four remaining polio-endemic countries, and has praised the work of Rotarians in his annual letter.


Register for the convention before 31 March so you don't miss out on early-bird pricing. Register online through Member Access.

Rotary's Anniversary and our Rotary's Public Image

RI President Ray Klinginsmith will ring the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange on 23 February during a ceremony with representatives from Rotary and Sanofi Pasteur, a leading provider of polio vaccine, in honor of Rotary's 106th anniversary and in support of a polio-free world.

Rotarians can watch the event through streaming video at http://www.nyse.com.

Representatives of the two organizations will also take part in opening bell ceremonies in four financial markets in Europe that day: Lisbon, Portugal; Amsterdam; Brussels, Belgium; and Paris. Video of the events will be streamed at www.euronext.com.

That evening, the New York Stock Exchange Building will provide a dramatic backdrop for an equally dramatic message: End Polio Now, which will be projected onto the building. Grammy Award-winning singer Angélique Kidjo, a participant in Rotary's "This Close" polio awareness campaign, will attend the lighting. Other landmarks around the world will be illuminated during the week of 23 February in support of Rotary's pledge to rid the world of this crippling childhood disease.

Working on a video

2010 - District 7950 Conference from Edward Meaney on Vimeo.

GSE Team Readying for Trip to Nepal

The 2011 GSE team, which will go to Nepal this spring, attended a full day of fun, fellowship and training, at Northeast Link on January 29th. Led by Torrington Rotarian, Barbara Spiegel, the non-Rotarians on the team -- two men and three women -- were at the link to learn about all things Rotary, including our Rotary Foundation which funds the teams.
To follow the team as it prepares for the month-long vocational and cultural exchange, go to the blog

You will also find a link to their blog on homepage of our district's website, lower, left side of the page under "District Links."

San Diego Here We Come

Over the next several days, Governors-elect and their partners will be heading toward San Diego to undergo a week of extensive training for their year as governor, beginning July 1, 2011.
The much anticipated announcement of next year's theme will be made by RI President-elect Kalyan Banerjee on Monday, January 17th. Check rotary.org which should have information about the theme, perhaps even the RIPE's speech posted later that day.

The training, a multi-million dollar annual effort by Rotary International to ensure success in the 532 districts around the world, is for both governors-elect and their spouses or partners. Information provided there will be incorporated into the Presidents-elect Training Seminar (PETS) mandated for every incoming club president.

Presidents-elect should check our district's website for location and dates of both the pre-PETS meeting in February and PETS in March.

Hans Rosling's 200 Countries, 200 Years, 4 Minutes - The Joy of Stats - ...

This is worth four minutes of your time.
Check it out.

Early-bird pricing for Rotary International Convention almost over!

Be sure to register for the Rotary International Convention in New Orleans, May 22-25.
For most attendees,the base price is $300,if you register by 15 December 2011.
After that, the base price is $340, if you register by 31 March 2012.
To learn more or to begin registering online, copy and paste this link in to your browser:
http://www.rotary.org/en/Members/Events/Convention/Pages/ridefault.aspx
Rotarians in District 7890 will be invited to a special welcoming reception Peter and I are hosting on Saturday, May 21, in New Orleans, 5 to 7 PM at the New Orleans InterContinental. Once you have registered, email me confirmation and you will be added to the guest list.
If you register before the early December deadline, be sure to let me know. Your name will be entered into a special drawing(get your raffle ticket at the reception in New Orleans). To be eligible you must register for the convention by 15 December 2011.