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Annex C, Glossary

How to use: This glossary covers the Rotary and humanitarian acronyms used in this book. Each entry provides the English expansion and a definition. Strict alphabetical order.

Rotary acronyms and terms

  • AAR, After-Action Report. Structured debriefing document written after each operation. Records the timeline, results, successes, failures and recommendations. Recommended within 30 days for any Rotary disaster response operation (see ch00 doctrine).

  • CERT, Community Emergency Response Team. Program training citizens in basic emergency skills (light search and rescue, first aid, fire extinguishing). American model adopted in several countries.

  • DCA, Disaster Committee Activation. Rotary activation scale with 3 levels (convention of districts D7080, D5930), where the lower the number, the stronger the mobilization: DCA-3 (normal activity, advisory and planning mode), DCA-2 (significant event, committee activated, District support required), DCA-1 (full-scale relief operation, major disaster exceeding the District, Zone and RI mobilized).

  • DDF, District Designated Fund. Portion of SHARE (World Fund) returned to the District by TRF. Can be used for District Grants and as local contribution to Global Grants.

  • DDRF, District Disaster Relief Fund. Reserve fund set up by the District to finance immediate disaster response on its territory. Fed by voluntary contributions from clubs.

  • DFC, District Finance Committee. Body responsible for overseeing District finances, including allocation of disaster funds.

  • DG, District Governor. Highest elected leader of the District. Authorizes DRG requests, declares DCA levels, and coordinates response at the District level. One-year term.

  • DNA-RAG, Disaster Network of Assistance Rotary Action Group. RAG specialized in disaster response coordination. Provides trained assessors, technical expertise, training and inter-tier coordination. Formerly DRF-RAG.

  • DRC, Disaster Response Committee of the club or district. Standing committee responsible for preparation and response to disasters within a club or a district.

  • Disaster Coordinator, Designated role at the club level. Responsible for the club's preparedness, coordination during a response, and field liaison with the District DRO. Distinct from the DRO, which is a district-level function.

  • DRG, Disaster Response Grant. TRF grant awarded to qualified districts for immediate disaster response. Maximum amount per application at the time of writing: 25,000 USD. This ceiling is set by The Rotary Foundation and is periodically revised, verify the current amount on my.rotary.org before submission, as figures cited throughout this book reflect the value in effect at the time of writing. Typical approval timeframe: 2 to 4 weeks after complete submission (24 to 48 hours on pre-impact submission for a named storm). Pre-impact submission is governed by the Disaster Response Grant Terms and Conditions published by TRF, refer to the current version on my.rotary.org. Stewardship report required within 12 months.

  • DRFC, District Rotary Foundation Committee Chair. Responsible for coordination between the District and the Rotary Foundation. Co-signs grant applications with the DG.

  • DRO, District Disaster Relief Officer. Person appointed by the DG to coordinate all District disaster response operations. Primary point of contact between clubs, District and Zone.

  • EREY, Every Rotarian, Every Year. Program encouraging each Rotarian to contribute annually to the Rotary Foundation (target: 100 USD per member per year). These funds feed SHARE and, indirectly, disaster response capacities.

  • ESRAG, Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group. RAG specialized in environmental issues: climate change, natural hazards, disaster risk reduction, sustainable reconstruction.

  • GMS, Grant Management System. TRF online platform (integrated with MyRotary) for submitting, tracking and reporting grants. Every DRG or Global Grant application goes through GMS.

  • MOU, Memorandum of Understanding. Written agreement formalizing a partnership between Rotary and an external organization (NGO, local authority, technical partner). Mandatory for Global Grants involving a cooperating partner.

  • POD, Point of Distribution. Physical location where aid is distributed to beneficiaries. Each POD requires a manager, a beneficiary register, and a security protocol.

  • RAGFP, Rotary Action Group for Peace. RAG specialized in peacebuilding, conflict resolution and post-conflict reconstruction. Operates in areas where natural disasters and conflicts overlap.

  • RAGCED, Rotary Action Group for Community Economic Development. RAG specialized in community economic development, including post-disaster economic reconstruction: microfinance, vocational training, recovery of local markets.

  • RI, Rotary International. Global organization bringing together all Rotary clubs. Headquarters in Evanston, Illinois (USA). Provides institutional framework, brand, policies and global coordination.

  • SITREP, Situation Report. Standardized report transmitted periodically from the lower tier to the higher tier. Contains the state of the situation, actions underway, needs and requests. Frequency: every 6 h (acute phase), daily, then weekly.

  • TRF, The Rotary Foundation. Charitable branch of Rotary. Manages grants (DRG, Global Grants, District Grants), the World Fund, the SHARE program, Peace Fellowships and the Disaster Response Fund.

International humanitarian terms

  • Cluster, Sector group, humanitarian coordination system. UN coordination mechanism bringing together humanitarian actors by sector of intervention (shelter, health, water, food, etc.). Each cluster is led by a reference UN agency. Rotary can participate in cluster meetings at the local level.

  • CHS, Core Humanitarian Standard. Set of 9 commitments defining the obligations of humanitarian organizations toward people affected by crises: relevance, effectiveness, accountability, participation.

  • EOC, Emergency Operations Center. Physical location where authorities coordinate disaster response. Rotary should know the location of the local EOC and ensure liaison there if possible.

  • ICS, Incident Command System. Standardized emergency response management system used primarily in North America. Defines a clear hierarchy: incident commander, operations, planning, logistics, finance. Reference model for structuring Rotary response.

  • IDP, Internally Displaced Person. Person forced to flee their home but remaining within their country (unlike a refugee who has crossed an international border). Natural disasters are one of the main causes of internal displacement.

  • IFRC, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Umbrella organization coordinating the 191 national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies. Strategic partner of Rotary on the ground in many disasters.

  • NFI, Non-Food Items. All goods distributed to disaster victims other than food: blankets, tarps, kitchen utensils, hygiene kits, clothing, mattresses. Standard category in humanitarian response.

  • OCHA, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. UN body in charge of coordinating international humanitarian response. Publishes funding appeals, manages CERF (emergency fund) and activates the cluster system. Reliable source for disaster data.

  • ORSEC, Organisation de la Réponse de Sécurité Civile (French civil security response organization system). Crisis management plan of the French authorities. Defines the organization of disaster response at departmental and zonal levels. Equivalent to the National Response Framework in the USA.

  • PFA, Psychological First Aid. Structured approach to immediate psychological support after a traumatic event. Does not require psychologist training. Any trained volunteer can apply it. Components: listen, protect, connect, stabilize.

  • Sphere, Sphere Minimum Standards for humanitarian response. Global reference defining minimum quality standards in four areas: water and sanitation, food and nutrition, shelter and non-food items, health. Example: 15 liters of water per person per day, 3.5 m² of covered space per person.

  • UNHCR, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. UN agency responsible for the protection of refugees and displaced persons. Intervenes when a disaster causes massive population displacement across borders.

  • UNICEF, United Nations Children's Fund. UN agency specialized in child protection. In a disaster, UNICEF coordinates the response for children (nutrition, emergency education, protection, water).

  • UNDRR, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction. UN agency coordinating the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030. Reference source for global disaster data.

  • WASH, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene. Humanitarian sector covering access to drinking water, sanitation (latrines, sewage disposal) and hygiene promotion. One of the seven Rotary areas of focus. Area of expertise of WASH-RAG.

  • WFP, World Food Programme. UN agency responsible for emergency food aid. Largest humanitarian organization in the world by volume of aid distributed. Potential partner for large-scale Rotary operations involving food distribution.

  • WHO, World Health Organization. UN agency leading the international health response. In a disaster situation, coordinates epidemiological surveillance, access to medicines and response to epidemics.

Common operational terms

  • Beneficiary, Person directly receiving humanitarian aid. The term "victim" should be avoided in official communication.

  • Call-down list, Cascade telephone list: each person calls the next. Allows reaching all club members in less than 30 minutes. Also known as a phone tree.

  • Do No Harm, Fundamental humanitarian principle: every intervention must avoid causing additional harm to affected persons.

  • Emergency kit, Set of materials and documents pre-positioned by the club for immediate intervention (forms, vests, water, radios, etc.). Also called a go-bag.

  • Phase 1, Emergency, First 72 hours after the disaster. Priorities: rescue, assessment, first aid, securing.

  • Phase 2, Stabilization, From 72 hours to 4 weeks. Priorities: structured distribution, coordination, financing, communication.

  • Phase 3, Recovery, From 1 month to 24 months. Priorities: reconstruction, rehabilitation, resilience, Global Grants.

  • Stewardship, Obligation to account for the use of Rotary Foundation funds. Includes a narrative, financial and photographic report. Deadline: 12 months after receipt of funds (DRG) or according to the Global Grant schedule.

  • Tier / Layer, Level of the Rotary ecosystem. Six tiers: Club (1), District (2), Zone (3), RAGs (4), TRF (5), RI (6). Each tier has a distinct role in disaster response.

  • Community kitchen transition, Closure of a community kitchen on objective criteria: local market ≥ 80% functional, OR unit cost of kitchen > local market price, OR active beneficiaries < 20% of peak for 3 consecutive days (see chapter 14).

  • PFA to beneficiary ratio, Minimum density of Psychological First Aid trained responders: 1 per 100 at-risk persons in emergency phase, 1 per 50 in stabilization, 1 per 30 in recovery (see chapter 17).

  • Complex multi-hazard crisis, Superposition of two or three major stressors on the same population within a short window (e.g., earthquake + epidemic; conflict + drought + famine). DNA-RAG is mandatory as central coordinator (see card F4 in chapter 26).

  • Vicarious trauma / compassion fatigue, Consequence of repeated exposure to the suffering of others. Vicarious trauma designates the clinical phenomenon (indirect exposure to a traumatic event); compassion fatigue designates its operational manifestation (emotional exhaustion, disengagement). See chapter 17.

Annex C, Glossary, Rotary Club Disaster Response Book