Guest Speaker - Alan Lord

Alan Lord is a retired Real Estate Agent and a Past District Governor of Kiwanis Australia.

Kiwanis is a global organisation of member-volunteers who are dedicated to changing the world, one child and one community at a time.

Kiwanis International was founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan, and became an international organisation with the creation of the Kiwanis Club of Hamilton, Ontario, the following year. In the early years, members focused on business networking but in 1919, the organisation changed its focus to service. In the 1960s, worldwide expansion was approved and within the decade, Kiwanis International-Europe was formed, representing Kiwanians in 11 European nations. In 1987, women officially were allowed into the membership.

With The Eliminate Project, Kiwanis International and UNICEF have joined forces to eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus. This deadly disease steals the lives of 60,000 innocent babies and 30,000 mothers each year. The effects of the disease are excruciating — tiny newborns suffer repeated, painful convulsions and extreme sensitivity to light and touch.

To eliminate MNT from the Earth by 2015, 129 million mothers and their future babies must be immunised. This requires vaccines, syringes, safe storage, transportation, thousands of skilled staff and more. It will take $110 million — and the dedicated work of UNICEF and every member of the Kiwanis family.

Kiwanis is a very similar organisation to Rotary and faces many of the same challenges especially around declining numbers and ageing membership.