Thanks to dedicated Rotary members around the world who have volunteered, supported, and been our project partners, ShelterBox has supported more than three million people in around 100 countries.
Together with Rotary we can do more. It’s support from Rotarians like you that means we can be there for people after disasters.
ShelterBox and Rotary
Built 25 years ago from the hard work and passion of a handful of Rotarians, ShelterBox is now a global community working to see no one is without shelter after disaster.
It all started with an idea from one small Rotary club. The Rotary Club of Helston-Lizard in Cornwall, UK, set up a millennium project with the goal of reaching a few dozen families a year.
Dedicated Rotary members gave their time to pack boxes of aid that were sent all over the world, making it all possible – gathering the momentum needed to get to where we are today.
Rotary members around the world have worked tirelessly to support that vision. Now ShelterBox has grown into a global movement supporting tens of thousands of people every year.
International project partners
Our project partners Rotary International are a global community of 1.4 million neighbors, friends, leaders and problem-solvers creating positive, lasting change in communities.
For over 25 years, Rotary members have been there to support people after disaster. They help us fundraise, network with local communities and authorities, share contacts and knowledge. They work side by side with our teams distributing emergency shelter aid. They help people build, repair or return home.
Every situation is different. So we work in different ways with Rotarians around the world. See some examples of our work below.
Ethiopia, 2024
We worked alongside IOM to provide shelter aid and other items, supported by Rotaract volunteers. Following training with ShelterBox, volunteers helped maintain a safe and secure environment to distribute items to people with a disability. This included kitchen sets, mosquito nets, blankets, water carriers and tarpaulins.
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Gaza, 2024
We worked with local organisations MAP and PARC, along with Rotary in Jordan, Egypt and Cyprus to move, store and distribute aid in Gaza. Our aid packages included tarpaulins, tents, sealing off kits for damaged buildings, along with items like rope, blankets, mattresses and hygiene kits.
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Türkiye, 2023
Our Rotary partnership was key to help us respond to the earthquakes in Türkiye. Rotary partners worked with our teams on all levels of the response, and crucially in liaison with local authorities and distributing UN Ridge style tents and other essential items to affected households.
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Morocco, 2023
We worked with Rotary and The Grand Atlas Foundation, a local well-connected NGO. Working with local communities and Rotary volunteers, we distributed our emergency dome tents along with solar lights, blankets and kitchen sets to people affected by the earthquake in some of the most remote villages in the Atlas Mountains.
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Philippines, 2021
Led by ShelterBox Operations Philippines (SBOP), and working closely with the Rotary Club of Cebu, District 3860 and Rotary Clubs on Bohol, we worked hand-in-hand with Rotary to distribute shelter kits, timber and corrugated iron sheeting. Together we helped people repair and reconstruct homes lost to the typhoon.
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Honduras, 2020/21
We joined forces with the Rotary Club of San Pedro Sula and Habitat for Humanity Honduras (HHH) to support thousands of people who had lost their homes. We used stock from our warehouse in Panama, with shelter kits and other aid items distributed by both HHH and Rotary partners. Distributing equipment was even more complicated than normal due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Nepal, 2015
We supported tens of thousands of people with shelter aid, including shelter kits, emergency dome tents and corrugated iron sheets. Rotary and Rotaract members provided damage reports and made crucial introductions to local government officials and local communities. ShelterBox had responded in Nepal to floods in 2008, and again in 2007 and 2014 – all with the help of the Rotaract Club of Kathmandu and other local Rotary members.
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