ASK YOURSELF SERIES: IS YOUR CLUB INCLUSIVE

Regular meetings

• Does your meeting include prayers, invocations, or pledges? These can make some members and guests feel uncomfortable or excluded. 
• What are your criteria for choosing guest speakers? Who do they appeal to? Who's choosing them? Whose perspectives are not asked for? Invite members to speak about their experiences. It demonstrates that the club values each member's unique perspective. 
• Who participates in your meetings, and who is quiet?
• Who in the community might find your meeting time, format, or location a barrier to participating? Is the building you meet in accessible to those with disabilities? Does the meeting time exclude many? If you meet virtually, do you offer captions for members and guests who have hearing impairments?
• Are your club dues too expensive for many potential members? Cost is the most common reason members leave Rotary. How could you make membership in your club more affordable? Could you consider a sliding scale or offer exceptions in certain cases?
• Are your meetings welcoming to families or convenient for members who have small children? 
• Do you celebrate members' personal achievements?
• Would your social activities be uncomfortable for some, such as single people or those who don't drink alcohol?

Projects

• Do you invite members of the community to participate in service projects and propose ideas to them?
• Do your club's service projects address pressing needs in your community? Or are they projects that make members feel good more than they help others? 
• Who benefits from your club's projects? Are there others in the community who could benefit more?
• Who chooses your clubs projects? Do all members have an equal say? Do members feel empowered to express differences in opinions?
• Are your club's projects ones that members with disabilities could participate in?
• Do you partner with other organizations to expand your reach?

Social Media

• Do your club's social media posts include all of your members?
• Do they show members who represent diverse groups in the community?
• Do your posts invite others to participate?
• Does your club tokenize certain members in its social media posts?

Policies

• Does your club consider prospective members from underrepresented groups for membership? Look at who your club invites and who hasn't been invited.
• What criteria are considered in club membership decisions? Do they exclude any underrepresented groups? Are they documented in your bylaws? Are there also unwritten criteria?
• What are your club dues, meeting details, and other expectations of members, and who do they potentially exclude?
• Does your membership application ask about religion or holidays celebrated?
• Who benefits from your club bylaws, and who is left out? Whose perspective is missing? 

ASK YOUR MEMBERS

Do you feel like you belong?

Do you believe that you have a fair chance of leadership?

Are you using your unique talents & skills?