Current playbook index title and category plus an internally authored detailed-guide draft
Initiative-specific development wave
How this draft was developed
These sources support general principles for mentoring connections, welcoming culture and accessible participation; they do not constitute Rotary International or Australian Human Rights Commission endorsement of the named Mentor Identification Badges initiative, its wording, artwork or this locally designed duty model.
Primary references consulted
Enhance Your Club's Culture(Rotary International) Used for: Rotary recommends connecting members with mentors who match their interests, skills or professional background.; The guidance treats mentoring as a relationship-building practice that can benefit both people.
Engage Emerging Leaders(Rotary International) Used for: Rotary encourages clubs to make introductions to established members who can be useful connections.; Clubs should check in as members take on roles or projects rather than assuming they know where to find help.
Hosting accessible and inclusive meetings and events(Australian Human Rights Commission) Used for: Inclusive meetings should consider accessible invitations, venues, materials, communication and requests for adjustments.; Access should be designed for people whose needs may not be known in advance.
Candidate District material consulted
These records remain draft evidence and still need a human source decision.
Club Playbook - Theme 2 The related My Rotary Mentor Badges concept,Optional badge pins intended to help new members identify someone safe to approach,Induction and social events as draft use settings,Design and production as the proposed starting resources
Theme 2 source-assurance wave
What has been checked
3 current primary pages used by this guide were reopened on 9 August 2026.
6 attributed source claim(s) were mapped to their bounded use in this initiative.
Candidate District material remains separate and does not establish this result.
See each source's scope and limit
Enhance Your Club's Culture Supports: Member-centred culture review, barrier reduction, flexibility, mentoring and practical conversation about club renewal. Does not establish: That every suggested action suits the club, that the page diagnoses the club or that a proposed cultural change has member support or governing approval.
Engage Emerging Leaders Supports: Member-centred discovery, mentoring, feedback, emerging-leader support and club-health review principles during renewal. Does not establish: That a person is ready for office, should be selected, has consented to a role or that a proposed renewal pathway will work locally.
Hosting accessible and inclusive in-person meetings and events Supports: The 71 attributed Theme 2 claims attached to this source, limited to the implementation elements and supporting documents named in each initiative-level claim mapping. Does not establish: Accessibility or inclusion conformance, the needs or preferences of any person or community, cultural authority to act, the suitability of a format or venue, or local approval.
What still needs a person to confirm
Confirm the member, prospective-member, past-member and community needs, preferences and consent that the local design assumes.
Confirm which privacy, safeguarding, incorporated-association, charity, work health and safety, food, liquor, copyright, licensing, screening and other duties apply to the club and the activity.
Test accessibility, cultural safety, belonging, language and alternative participation routes with affected people and recognise First Nations cultural authority rather than inferring suitability from the guide.
Confirm every local fact, starting point, cost, role, current service contact, measure, stopping condition and platform capability before the club decides to proceed.
Confirm the authority and current scope of each primary source, resolve login-gated or moved-page references and keep any candidate District material attributed and unapproved until its source decision is made.
The source-verification release gate remains closed.
Checks still on hold
The club must approve the role wording and must not imply background checking, safeguarding clearance, professional accreditation or decision authority unless separately verified.
Rotary and District marks, colours and naming may be used only in accordance with the current approved brand and licensing requirements.
The meeting or event lead must nominate referral owners for complaints, safety, accessibility, finance and governance before the badge is used.
Any record of questions must avoid unnecessary names or personal circumstances and follow an approved retention and access arrangement.
Still an internal draft: source interpretation, local suitability, accessibility, governance and editorial approval remain open checks.
Why a club might use this
It helps knowledge, confidence and encouragement move between members instead of resting with a few people.
It may suit: Members seeking guidance or a new challenge, and the people offering practical support.
Use it when
Consider Mentor Identification Badges when members want guidance or a next challenge but the available pathways are hard to see.
Meetings or events where newcomers cannot readily tell who can explain the room, introduce people or help with a practical question.
Clubs with an agreed mentor or friendly-contact roster whose members want a visible cue while they are on duty.
A two-event pilot using optional badge inserts, ribbons or lanyard cards supported by a non-visual contact route.
Before the club starts
A one-page role statement covering what the contact will do, what they will refer and who provides backup.
An opt-in roster of briefed members with enough coverage that one person is not expected to answer every question.
An accessible badge specification using plain text, strong contrast, a recognisable symbol and no reliance on colour alone.
A clearly announced alternative such as the meeting chair, welcome desk, phone number or named contact for anyone who cannot see, read or comfortably approach a badge wearer.
Capacity guide
Likely cost
Low; usually limited to coffee, simple materials and coordination time.
Lead time
About three weeks to recruit mentors, map pathways and make the first matches.
People
One coordinator and four to eight mentors, scaled to the number of participating members.
A useful club conversation
Questions worth asking
What would you reasonably expect a person wearing this badge to know, do and keep private?
Could the badge be mistaken for authority, expertise or insider status, and how would we prevent that?
How will someone find the same help if they cannot see the badge, do not read English confidently or prefer not to approach a stranger?
Common traps
Trying Mentor Identification Badges when Conferring status, authority, safeguarding clearance, professional expertise or leadership rights that the wearer does not hold.
Proceeding with Mentor Identification Badges when Printing permanent badges before the club has tested the wording, role boundaries, accessibility and willingness of intended wearers and users.
A badge wearer is unavailable, unbriefed or no longer willing, but the club continues displaying the cue. — Issue badges only for rostered occasions, collect reusable items afterwards and review the wearer list before every event.
A practical 90-day path
Three milestones for Mentor Identification Badges
When
What the club does
Evidence to keep
Days 1–30: Agree the local design
Ask recent members and guests where they currently get stuck and whether a visible first-contact cue would help or create discomfort. Define the badge role in plain language, list the questions wearers can answer, and name the people or services to whom other matters must be referred.
A short needs note and a decision on whether visible signposting is useful An approved role-and-referral card
Days 31–60: Run and adjust the first version
Invite volunteers, confirm that wearing the badge is optional, brief them in short scenarios and check that each person is comfortable saying they do not know. Create two low-cost prototypes, test readability and meaning with members who did not design them, and provide the same contact information verbally and in the event material.
A briefed duty roster with named backup An accessible approved prototype and alternative contact route
Days 61–90: Review the evidence and decide
Pilot the badge at two different gatherings, introduce the wearers without implying special status and record only the types of questions or referrals received. Ask newcomers and wearers whether the cue was useful, clear and comfortable; revise the role or design before deciding whether to continue.
A de-identified question and referral log A continue, revise or stop decision with an owner and review date
Fit it to the club you have
Small club
Use a removable name-badge insert for the meeting chair and one backup rather than producing permanent pins. Announce the role at the start so support does not depend on spotting the badge.
Larger club
Use a duty roster by entrance or room zone, publish the role and escalation contact, and rotate wearers so the cue does not create a permanent inner group.
Regional or rural club
Use reusable lanyard cards across interclub events and include a telephone contact for people joining from dispersed locations or arriving outside the main welcome period.
Metropolitan, hybrid or online club
Mirror the badge with an accessible online display name or host introduction, provide captions and a help contact, and never require a participant to disclose an access need in a public chat.
Learn, adapt and know when to stop
Evidence worth keeping
Newcomers who can identify at least one appropriate first contact without prompting after the welcome.
Questions correctly answered or referred, rather than improvised beyond the wearer's brief.
Wearers who report that the role, duration and backup were clear and manageable.
Change course when
The badge creates a visible hierarchy or suggests that only labelled people are welcoming. — Describe it as a temporary duty cue, rotate volunteers, remind every member of the shared welcome responsibility and avoid prestige language or special privileges.
A wearer answers a governance, safety, financial or personal matter beyond their knowledge. — Use scenario briefing, a pocket referral card and a standard response that acknowledges the question and names the correct follow-up owner.
The design excludes people who cannot see colour, read small print or recognise club jargon. — Use large plain text, strong contrast and a simple symbol; test with users and provide verbal, printed and online alternatives.
How to put it into practice
Detailed implementation steps for Mentor Identification Badges
Step
Action
Suggested owner
Timing
Evidence or output
1
Ask recent members and guests where they currently get stuck and whether a visible first-contact cue would help or create discomfort.
Member experience lead
Three weeks before the pilot
A short needs note and a decision on whether visible signposting is useful
2
Define the badge role in plain language, list the questions wearers can answer, and name the people or services to whom other matters must be referred.
Member experience lead with secretary
Two weeks before the pilot
An approved role-and-referral card
3
Invite volunteers, confirm that wearing the badge is optional, brief them in short scenarios and check that each person is comfortable saying they do not know.
Mentoring coordinator
One week before the pilot
A briefed duty roster with named backup
4
Create two low-cost prototypes, test readability and meaning with members who did not design them, and provide the same contact information verbally and in the event material.
Communications lead with access contact
Five days before the pilot
An accessible approved prototype and alternative contact route
5
Pilot the badge at two different gatherings, introduce the wearers without implying special status and record only the types of questions or referrals received.
Meeting or event lead
Across two gatherings
A de-identified question and referral log
6
Ask newcomers and wearers whether the cue was useful, clear and comfortable; revise the role or design before deciding whether to continue.
Member experience lead
Within seven days of the second gathering
A continue, revise or stop decision with an owner and review date
Controls and safeguards
Check the idea with the people affected and confirm its purpose, owner and practical limits before putting it into use.
Protect member choice and privacy, make participation accessible, and do not infer belonging or satisfaction from attendance alone.
The badge creates a visible hierarchy or suggests that only labelled people are welcoming. — Describe it as a temporary duty cue, rotate volunteers, remind every member of the shared welcome responsibility and avoid prestige language or special privileges.
A wearer answers a governance, safety, financial or personal matter beyond their knowledge. — Use scenario briefing, a pocket referral card and a standard response that acknowledges the question and names the correct follow-up owner.
The design excludes people who cannot see colour, read small print or recognise club jargon. — Use large plain text, strong contrast and a simple symbol; test with users and provide verbal, printed and online alternatives.
A badge wearer is unavailable, unbriefed or no longer willing, but the club continues displaying the cue. — Issue badges only for rostered occasions, collect reusable items afterwards and review the wearer list before every event.
The club must approve the role wording and must not imply background checking, safeguarding clearance, professional accreditation or decision authority unless separately verified.
Rotary and District marks, colours and naming may be used only in accordance with the current approved brand and licensing requirements.
The meeting or event lead must nominate referral owners for complaints, safety, accessibility, finance and governance before the badge is used.
Any record of questions must avoid unnecessary names or personal circumstances and follow an approved retention and access arrangement.
What to measure
After 90 days, review Mentor Identification Badges. Look for suitable matches, regular check-ins and progress against goals chosen by the participating member.
Newcomers who can identify at least one appropriate first contact without prompting after the welcome.
Questions correctly answered or referred, rather than improvised beyond the wearer's brief.
Wearers who report that the role, duration and backup were clear and manageable.
Users who can access an equivalent contact route without relying on the visual badge.
Follow-up: At the 90-day review, compare the recorded measures with the starting point, resolve the listed governance holds and tell participants whether Mentor Identification Badges will change, continue or stop.
Made for this initiative
Tailored supporting documents
These working documents use the decisions, safeguards and evidence needs of this initiative. Complete them with the people affected and keep the agreed version with the club's project record.
01
Mentor Contact Role and Referral Card
Make the visible support role useful without implying expertise or authority the wearer does not hold.
