ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Stacy Richardson: As part of the upcoming President-Elect Training, Rotary Clubs are conducting a fundraiser to support Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Ohio, which provides free books for every Ohio child from birth to age 5 each month. Stacey passed out flyers showing
three ways to support.
Nithya Venkataraman: Our International Potluck dinner will be held Sunday, February 1 at North Water Brewery from 4 to 7 p.m. Contact Nithya for details.
Rotary Auction will be held on Tuesday, March 10, at Bell Tower Brewery.
Nancy Whitehead: Nancy (with help from John Ryan) delivered more than 108 bags of fresh fruit and vegetables to Kent Social Services this month. Nancy proposed the idea of Kent Rotarians donating fresh fruit and vegetables to the KSS pantry, as she heard that would be appreciated by those who get free groceries there. Our Rotary Club has 108 members.
Bill Childers: The Salvation Army food give away is scheduled for Wednesday, February 4. A group of Rotarians have volunteered. Bill also says that a warming center at Shepherd’s House next to Birdie Shack on Route 59 is in need of laundry soap.
President Amanda Senn: When Doug Fuller saw a student stuck in the snow at the church entrance drive, he stopped to help her. Amanda named Doug our Rotarian of the Day!
HAPPY BUCKS!
Lots of Happy people in the house!
PROGRAM:
Professor Neil Cooper, Director of the School of Peace and Conflict Studies at Kent State University, was the final speaker for the January programs called “Seeking Peace in a Conflicted World,” coordinated by Bill Childers.
Cooper, who has spoken to our club previously, reiterated his interest in Rotary International, as he was involved with Rotary Peace projects in the UK.
Cooper’s presentation, called “Peace and Conflict: Trends and Data,” centered around arms control and military expenditures around the world.
Although he admitted that most of his research and information was negative, Cooper pointed to the positive point that global nuclear stockpiles have come down massively since a high point in the 1980’s. And spending on defense as a percentage of GDP remains relatively low compared with the Cold War days.
However, the number of countries involved in conflicts and the number of fatalities in these conflicts is the highest since 1946, the end of WWII. As economic growth has increased in the U.S., China and Russia, so has the percentage share of global military expenditures.
Cooper discussed concerns about the stability of nuclear deterrence and concluded with points for optimism. He says, “Bottom-up peace initiatives make a difference, including Rotary’s work on peace.”
RESPONDER: Nithya Venkataraman
