Discover- RDU FAQ

 
 
 
The following answers some of the common questions but please contact us for further clarification and / or if you have other questions at
 
Q: Do I have to subscribe to the Rotary Down Under magazine?
 
A: Yes and no ... it is a requirement of your Rotary membership as stipulated by Rotary International (not by Rotary Down Under) and described in the Manual of Procedure that you subscribe to an official Rotary magazine which for Rotarians in New Zealand and the Pacific Islands means either the Rotary Down Under magazine or The Rotarian. 97% of Rotarians in our region subscribe to the Rotary Down Under magazine because of its focus on information and articles relevant or from our region.
 
Note also that the Rotary Down Under magazine contains at least 8 pages of the most useful information contained in The Rotarian anyway so you get the "best of both worlds". Further, if you want to be an effective member of any organisation or group, you need a reliable education and resource "tool" such as Rotary Down Under has a deserved reputation for providing.
 
Q: We are a Rotarian couple (as defined in the Manual of Procedure); do we both have to subscribe?
 
A: No longer although one must, but options to consider include:
  1. One receiving the Rotary Down Under magazine and the other The Rotarian (organise via your club Secretary)
  2. One receiving the Rotary Down Under magazine and the other gifting their subscription to another person (non-Rotarian) or organisation in the community as part of your club public relations activity.
Q: Is Rotary Down Under magazine available on-line?
 
A: Yes - there are two methods (both excellent to include in your club publicity / prospective member material):
 
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2)  Via the free Rotary Down Under App.  To get this download from your device  Play Store - search for 'Rotary Down Under'.  This should take no longer than 2 minutes in total to do. 
 
To change your magazine subscription from hard copy to digital is as easy as getting your club Secretary to update your subscription (may take a month to come into effect).
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The availability of the on-line magazine is a very useful PR tool, especially for showing non-Rotarians what Rotary is and does in our region.  The Rotary Down Under Board of Directors and senior staff are working hard to stay ahead of the game and are very aware that electronic communications are and will be increasingly a part of Rotary's future.
 
Q: What is being done to ensure the magazine is relevant to today's Rotarians?
 
A: Compared to just a few short years ago the magazine today is significantly different. Rotary Down Under conduct regular professional surveys of Rotarians. Recent surveys show that about 60% of subscribers read Rotary Down Under magazine for at least 30 minutes every month.
 
In addition, Rotary Down Under Board members and senior staff visit a wide variety of Rotary clubs every year and the feedback is very positive. Feedback is actively encouraged and any concerns or suggestions are promptly considered and replied to.
 
Is is interesting to note that it was from repeated requests from young Rotarians for more variety in content that the Life & Leisure section arose.  This section has been an outstanding success.
 
Q: There seems to be a predominance of Australian content.
 
A:   Not really. This can be answered in two parts:
 
1) Since January 2013 there has been a NZPacific Edition and provided there is a project with a picture of sufficient quality to feature on the cover, every NZPacific Edition cover has a NZ or Pacific project picture .  The only exception is July which is mandated by Rotary International to feature the incoming RI President and the odd exception for special situations, usually disasters within the region.
 
2) Since the July 2014 edition, the NZ and Pacific Editorial Office is now responsible for selecting up to 12 quality articles each month and submitting these to the RDU Editor who  will publish at least 10 (but retains the ultimate right to accept any of the articles). The performance so far is more than 10 each month. If in any one month an article as sent is not published it re-enters the assessment process and to date these have all been published when resubmitted. This arrangement has meant that we now have a consistently high visibility for our NZPacific projects in the magazine.  Article numbers submitted are totally reliant on the  NZ and Pacific Editorial Office receiving sufficient quality articles to submit.
 
So, proportionately New Zealand and the Pacific get a very high representation BUT to maintain this New Zealand and Pacific Islands clubs and districts need to keep the quality articles and picture coming to the Rotary Down Under New Zealand and Pacific Islands Editorial Office. To repeat the above, there obviously will always be numerically more Australian advertising and articles due to the imbalance of numbers with 34,000 Australian vs 9,600 New Zealand and the Pacific although there is no proportionate allocation as such.  In recent times there have been complaints from Australian subscribers about "that New Zealand magazine" - lets keep it that way.
 
Q:  How do we keep the subscription database up-to-date?
 
A:  All clubs are expected to maintain their own member subscription records with Rotary Down Under on-line.  If you are one of the clubs yet to register (ie. one of the 4% who haven't) or you need advice on how to use this system place contact subscriptions@rotarydownunder.com.au
 
Q:  A member is not receiving their magazine !
 
A:  Whenever we get an email re this we respond immediately and the matter is corrected but direct email queries should go to subscriptions@rotarydownunder.com.au . In 99% of cases it is the lack of adequate subscriptions management by the club itself (or the Rotarian has failed to advise the club of an address change). Managing the subscriptions list for their members is the club's responsibility.