Clubs are grouped into 529 Rotary Districts, each led by a District Governor who is an officer of Rotary International and represents the RI Board of Directors in the field. Though selected by the Clubs of the District, a Governor is officially elected by the global participants at the RI Convention. The District Governor for our District 7820 is Bette Douglas, a Past-President of the Rotary Club of Amherst, Nova Scotia.

Geographically our District happens to be one of the largest of all Rotary Districts. District 7820 represents all the Rotary Clubs in Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland & Labrador, Isles de la Madeleine (Québec) and Saint Pierre et Miquelon (France) spread over an area twice the size of Great Britain.

A 19-member Board of Directors, which includes the International President and President-Elect, administer Rotary International. The current International President is RI Pres. Wilf Wilkinson who is from Trenton, Ontario, Canada. He and the Board meet quarterly to establish policies. These officers are elected at the annual Rotary International convention. The selection process for choosing Directors, and the nominating committee for President, are based on Zones, each of which comprises approximately 15 Districts. There are 31 Zones. Our District is in Zone 22 - A huge Zone that includes Canada, Alaska, Saint Pierre et Miquelon (France), and Russia. Zone 22 is represented by Rotary International Director Monty Audenaut, a dentist from Southern Alberta who is a member of the Rotary Club of Reed Deer East.

Rotary International supports its member clubs in fulfilling the Object of Rotary by:

• Fostering unity among member clubs.
• Strengthening and expanding Rotary around the world.
• Communicating worldwide the work of Rotary.
• Providing a system of international administration.

While all this might seem like a lot of administration, Rotary relies heavily on volunteers so the vast majority of funds raised by Rotary are able to be used in support of Rotary projects. Many Districts, for instance, have no paid employees. Most Clubs have no paid employees.

A unique feature of Rotary is the fact that on 1 July each year, all officers change at the Club and District levels, and also at Rotary International (except where certain Board appointments are made for two years). This cycles responsibility, and opportunity for leadership to many members of the Club, and encourages all members’ active participation in the life of the Club.