From Casablanca to Calgary via Sydney

Rotary Peace Fellow alumni from around the world gathered in Calgary, Canada, to reconnect, collaborate and explore new approaches to peace leadership – a timely reflection of Rotary’s expanding global peace network.

WORDS Mark Panayiotis Notaras. Rotary Peace Fellow (Australia).

With a new Rotary Peace Centre recently launched in Türkiye and another soon to be established in India, this is a pivotal time for Rotary International’s peacebuilding journey. Against this backdrop, Rotary Peace Fellow alumni from across the world gathered in Calgary, Canada, from 17–20 June 2025 for the Rotary Peace Fellow Alumni Leadership Retreat, held in the days just before the Rotary International Convention.

For me, an Australian Rotary Peace Fellow based in Sydney, it felt like a full-circle moment. Two years earlier, I had travelled to Casablanca, Morocco, to take part in my first Alumni Leadership Retreat. That gathering created space for renewal and reminded us that peace leadership evolves not only in institutions but also in friendships, daily practices and our capacity to listen. It was in Casablanca that the seed was planted for what came next.

In Calgary, I returned to the Rotary Peace Fellow Alumni Leadership Retreat with fellow Peace Fellow and Calgarian Lorelei Parker, not as a participant but as a co-choreographer, entrusted to help shape the second Alumni Retreat for our peers. The journey – from Casablanca to Calgary via Sydney – reflected both the global reach and the personal depth of Rotary’s investment in peace.

We deliberately described ourselves as choreographers. Our task was not to tightly script what would happen, but to set the conditions for flow and rhythm. Drawing on my Greek cultural background, we framed the retreat through Kronos (structured time) and Kairos (sacred time). This balance allowed us to nurture vulnerability, nourish connection and honour culture. Ceremony was aligned to place, with Indigenous wisdom from Turtle Island woven throughout the experience. Music, storytelling and art reminded us that peace is both an inner practice and a collective endeavour.

It was also the first time I piloted my current work on Trust Intelligence™, exploring the 12 essential trust-building skills with 14 humanitarian leaders. With trust in leadership at an all-time low globally, it felt urgent to offer tools that could help bridge what I call the Leader’s Trust Deficit. The experience confirmed my belief that when leaders strengthen self-trust, they unlock integrity, courage and humility – qualities the world urgently needs.

One of the most rewarding parts of the retreat was seeing the sparks of future collaboration. Already, two participants have taken inspiration from Calgary into a storytelling project based in Sacramento, California. These outcomes remind us that the true impact of such retreats often emerges quietly over time, in connections that continue to grow long after we leave.

For me, the retreat reaffirmed the enduring value of Rotary’s investment in the Peace Fellowship. The opportunities Rotary has given me continue to ripple outward, multiplying through initiatives like this retreat, where Peace Fellows support one another and extend Rotary’s mission of peace.

It was a privilege to spend time with such dedicated colleagues – true Rotary People of Action. Their courage, creativity and commitment to peace demonstrated how Rotary’s investment in people continues to bear fruit across the world.

As for what’s next for Lorelei and me as co-choreographers? We had so much fun that we are working to create more offerings, for Rotary members and Rotary staff.

For more information, reach out to Mark via team@empathos.com.au or Lorelei via @everydaypeacebuilder