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 updating Rotary language, explaining unfamiliar shortened forms and using plain language; they are not an endorsement of the named Rotary Acronym Guide or authority for any local expansion, definition, term, policy or Rotary interpretation.
Primary references consulted
Enhance your club's culture(Rotary International) Used for: Rotary encourages clubs to update insider language and explain the wider experience of service, connection and leadership rather than relying on familiar club terms.
Acronyms and initialisms(Australian Government Style Manual) Used for: Unfamiliar shortened forms should be defined, specialist collections may need a glossary and accessibility requires attention to how screen readers and users encounter terms.
Plain language and word choice(Australian Government Style Manual) Used for: Everyday words, limited jargon and first-use expansion of unfamiliar acronyms improve clarity and accessibility.
Candidate District material consulted
These records remain draft evidence and still need a human source decision.
Club Playbook - Theme 2 Candidate record 87 Rotary Lexicon Guide for Newbies provides a related terminology-guide concept. It is not a literal current-title match and does not supply the present remove-first, source-authority, plain-language testing, accessibility, correction, ownership or expiry controls.
Theme 2 source-assurance wave
What has been checked
3 current primary pages used by this guide were reopened on 9 August 2026.
3 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.
Acronyms and initialisms Supports: The 1 attributed Theme 2 claim 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.
Plain language and word choice Supports: The 1 attributed Theme 2 claim 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 guide owner, inclusion rule, formal-versus-local labelling, authoritative-source standard, accessibility and review cycle.
Only the responsible authority can define an official Rotary entity, role, programme, system or policy term.
The guide cannot replace first-use explanations in stand-alone messages, decisions, forms and web pages.
Every entry requires a correction route and review or expiry date before controlled publication.
Still an internal draft: source interpretation, local suitability, accessibility, governance and editorial approval remain open checks.
What could this idea change?
It helps more people feel known, valued and able to take part in ways that work for them.
It may suit: Members at the relevant stage of their club experience, including people who may not yet feel fully connected.
Could this work in our club?
Consider Rotary Acronym Guide when the club's identity is unclear, contested or expressed more strongly in words than in member experience.
A short, evidence-based guide built from questions people have asked in meetings, projects, messages and orientation rather than a copied global list.
Terms that members need in order to understand a decision, cost, role, event, system or Rotary relationship and cannot simply be removed.
A club able to name an owner, link each formal definition to a current authoritative source and review local explanations when practice changes.
Before you start
A collected list of terms from actual club communications, with the setting, audience, source and evidence that each term causes confusion or carries a necessary meaning.
A decision rule to remove unnecessary shorthand first, spell out unavoidable terms on first use and include only terms with a current verified definition.
A plain-language entry template covering the full term, practical meaning, local relevance, common confusion, authoritative link, source date and review owner.
Accessible digital and print formats with search or alphabetical navigation, readable layout, correct language markup and a prominent route for corrections and missing terms.
At the end: At the 90-day review, compare the recorded measures with the starting point, resolve the listed governance holds and tell participants whether Rotary Acronym Guide 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
Acronym and Jargon Use Inventory
Find terms that create real barriers and decide whether each one should remain.
