For over a century, Rotary has committed itself to addressing the needs of communities across the globe. In recognition of this commitment, Rotary honors six projects each year that create change – not only in member communities, but around the world. These projects demonstrate how Rotary members are truly people of action.
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Maria Cifuentes and Anne Bathel, People of Action: Champions of Peace honorees, speak during the Rotary International Convention in Calgary, Canada.
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The People of Action: Champions of Impact recognition dinner at the Rotary International Convention in Singapore.
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A breakout session during Rotary Day at the United Nations with the Young Innovators honorees in Nairobi, Kenya.
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2022-23 Rotary International President Jennifer Jones and the Champions of Inclusion honorees visit an exhibit at the Tutu Legacy Foundation Homecoming Centre in Cape Town, South Africa.
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Rotary's People of Action: Champions of Girls Empowerment awardee (right) at the Rotary International Convention in Houston, Texas, USA.
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Rotary Day at the United Nations in New York City, New York, USA, where six Rotary members were recognized as Rotary People of Action: Connectors Beyond Borders.
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Rotary Day at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, where six individuals were recognized as Rotary People of Action: Champions of Peace.
Why are the People of Action Honors important?
People of Action Honors are given to Rotary projects that exemplify everything our organization has to offer. Born out of a White House initiative in the United States, the People of Action Honors highlight impactful, sustainable, and scalable projects that are models of service for clubs around the world.
For more than 10 years, the People of Action Honors have brought attention to Rotary projects related to disease prevention, mental health, community development, education, youth empowerment, sustainability, and many more areas of service. The Rotary People of Action honorees represent the standard for the type of change Rotary members create in their communities and across the globe.
The 2025-26 People of Action Honors: Champions of Tomorrow
The 2025-26 Rotary People of Action Honors will recognize six members of the Rotary family as Champions of Tomorrow for their hands-on volunteer activities.
The Champions of Tomorrow are young people, between the ages of 13 and 30, who are working to create a brighter future today. These are members of the Rotary family who are not waiting their turn but are disruptors and change-makers – putting their talents to use to build a better tomorrow.
Projects may fit within any of the areas of focus. The primary requirement is that they must be either led by or in service to youth. As with all nominations, the projects must meet Rotary International’s minimum impact standards.
For the first time, the People of Action Honors will be open to Rotary program participants under the age of 18. However, only adults (over the age of 18) may submit nominations.
Recognition Criteria
All viable projects must:
• Be led by and/or focus on the needs of youth. This could be anti-violence or anti-bullying campaigns, education activities, promotion of social inclusion, etc.
• If not strictly led by youth, the project should demonstrate that youth were integral to the development and implementation of the project. Youth should have an equitable seat at the table.
• Provide evidence of partnerships, measurement, community assessment, scalability, and sustainability.
• Demonstrate the following evaluation criteria:
- RELEVANCE - is the intervention doing the right things?
- COHERENCE - how well does the intervention fit community needs?
- EFFECTIVENESS - is the intervention achieving its objectives?
- EFFICIENCY - how well are resources being used?
- IMPACT - what difference does the intervention make?
- SUSTAINABILITY - will the benefits last?
• Be currently active or have not concluded before 30 June 2024
• Not primarily focusing on fundraising or providing material support (i.e., buying laptops, books, pads, etc.), though both can be an element of the larger project.
Individual Eligibility:
Champions of Tomorrow project representatives must:
• Be Rotary or Rotaract members, Peace Fellows, Global Grant Scholarship recipients, Interact members, RYLA participants, Rotary Youth Exchange students, or Rotary alumni.
• Be involved with a project that is currently active or concluded no earlier than June 30, 2024.
• Between the ages of 13 and 30.
• Have held a leadership role in the hands-on implementation of the project.
• Self-nominations will not be considered.
Individuals or projects previously recognized with one of the following honors are ineligible for consideration:
• Past People of Action Honors recipients (2015-2025)
• Rotary Programs of Scale recipients
As with all People of Action Honors recognitions, nominees should have taken a leadership role in implementing “hands on” volunteer activities or initiatives. Ideal projects should be able to demonstrate/define/address a specific community need and serve as examples of work that can/should be replicated by Rotary members.
Nomination deadline: 31 October 2025
Rotary People of Action honorees in the news and online
Past People of Action Honorees
2024-25: Champions of Peace
Rotary honors six members and alumni for their work to build peace around the world.
Watch the Champions of Peace highlight video below.
2023-2024: Champions of Impact
Rotary honors six individuals for their leadership over projects that have created positive, collaborative, sustainable, and long-term change
Watch the Champions of Impact highlight video below.
- Steve Dudenhoefer: Building Hope for Guatemala’s Youth
- Evangeline B. Mandia: How a Tree is Saving Communities in the Philippines
2022-2023: Champions of Inclusion
Rotary celebrates six members for their work to amplify the power of marginalized populations in our clubs, in our communities, and around the world.
2021-2022: Champions of Girls’ Empowerment
Rotary honors six members for their commitment to improving girls’ access to education, health, and sanitation and hygiene resources, as well as their work to create environments where girls can flourish.
- Lydiah Njoroge: Freedom for Girls at HEART (Health Education Africa Resource Team)
- Elaine Ruiz: Empowering the Disenfranchised Through Training and Connection
- Srinidhi S.U.: Changing the Stigma Around Menstrual Health
- Momtaz Chowdhury: Empowering Girls by Providing Leadership Training
- Mildred Fragante: Empowering Survivors of Abuse Through Storytelling
2020-2021: Champions of Health
Rotary honors six members for their work to improve the foundation of good health at home and across the globe.
- Isabel Scarinci: Eliminate Cervical Cancer
- Teguest Yilma: Protecting Ethiopia's children from polio
- James Ham: Hawai’i HOME Project
- Julie Dockrill: Childbirth Education in Mongolia Saves Lives
- Mohan Kumar: Reach the Unreached
- Rohantha Athukorala: How a 'Stop the Spread' Campaign Helped Curb COVID-19 Infections
2019-2020: Connectors Beyond Borders
Rotary honors six members of the Rotary family who found community-based solutions to the refugee crisis.
2018-2019: Young Innovators
Rotary honors six young Rotary members for their innovative ways of creating change.
2017-2018: Champions of Peace
Rotary honors six members for pushing peace from concept to reality.
What Is Impact for Rotary?
Rotary members are People of Action who create sustainable change. We work to generate projects that not only positively impact our world but have the capacity to be maintained locally and serve the continuing needs of communities. Want to learn how to maximize your club’s impact? Check out the following resources: