Rotary is a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and helps build goodwill and peace in the world. Approximately 1.2 million Rotarians belong to more than 32,000 clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas.

The world's first service club, the Rotary Club of Chicago, Illinois, USA, was formed on 23 February 1905 by Paul P. Harris, an attorney who wished to recapture in a professional club the same friendly spirit he had felt in the small towns of his youth. The name "Rotary" derived from the early practice of rotating meetings among members' offices.
Rotary's popularity spread throughout the United States in the decade that followed; clubs were chartered from San Francisco to New York. By 1921, Rotary clubs had been formed on six continents, and the organization adopted the name Rotary International a year later.

 “Of the things we think, say or do:

1. Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?
3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?

Four Avenues of Service are Rotary's philosophical cornerstone and the foundation on which club activity is based:

• Club Service focuses on strengthening fellowship and ensuring the effective functioning of the club.
• Vocational Service encourages Rotarians to serve others through their vocations and to practice high ethical standards.
• Community Service covers the projects and activities the club undertakes to improve life in its community.
• International Service encompasses actions taken to expand Rotary's humanitarian reach around the globe and to promote world understanding and peace.