Strategic partners
The projects and partners behind our club.
Every site below is part of the Rotary Club of Newport Beach family. Rotaractors can join any of these projects, learn from them, and bring their own ideas.
Flagship project · SDG 14
Rotary Reef
It started when Steve Bender was stranded in Bocas del Toro during the pandemic and saw how few fish and how little live coral were left. With Doug Marcy of the Caribbean Coral Restoration Center, he built three mini reefs as a test, and they have far exceeded expectations. Next is a 100 foot Rotary Wheel reef to mark 100 years of Rotary in Panama.
A club can sponsor a 6 foot mini reef for $1,950. Because when the oceans die, we die.
The oceans give us half the oxygen we breathe and feed billions of people, and coral reefs shelter a quarter of all ocean life.
Coming in December 2026: our club is hosting the Mazatlán Project in Mazatlán, Mexico, chaired by Natalia Naranjo.
Our Rotaract club also mentors the student reef divers of Randolph Union High School in Randolph, Vermont. Read their story.
Watch
A nurse shark moves into the Rotary Reef
Three test reefs, and the sea life came back. This nurse shark now lives on the reef at Isla Solarte full time.
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Our 10 year plan · SDG 15
The Macaw Project
We are bringing the Great Green Macaw back to the Bocas del Toro islands. Since 2020, volunteers have planted more than 15,000 mountain almond trees, which give the macaws their food and nesting cavities.
Next comes a breeding aviary at Dolphin Bay, with construction starting in 2027. Working with Ara Manzanillo in Costa Rica, our goal is to release the first Great Green Macaws in Bocas del Toro in 2030.
Our Panama projects
Join us in Bocas del Toro.
The Panama Project in Bocas del Toro is the first complete 4-7-8-17 living laboratory: one community where reefs, clean energy, health and education move forward together.
- Rotary Reefs at Isla Solarte, where a nurse shark now lives on the reef full time
- Solar and clean water for off grid island communities
- Great Green Macaw habitat, with thousands of mountain almond trees planted at Dolphin Bay
- Health and dental care for island children with Floating Doctors and Ayuda International
Rotaractors can apply to attend our regular projects in Bocas del Toro, with deep discounts for members of our club. Dive the reefs your club helped build and serve alongside local Rotarians.
Where we serve
Explore the map.
Tap a pin to see the project. Switch views to see Bocas del Toro up close or our club around the world.
Our websites
Explore the family of projects.
47817.org
The 4-7-8-17 Global Service Program: the 36 elements and the projects in each one.
47817.org
The Panama Project
The first complete 4-7-8-17 living laboratory, in Bocas del Toro, Panama.
thepanamaproject.org
The Macaw Project
Our 10 year plan to bring the Great Green Macaw back to Bocas del Toro by 2030.
themacawproject.org
The Mazatlán Project
Our December 2026 project in Mazatlán, Mexico, chaired by Natalia Naranjo.
themazatlanproject.org
Rotary Club of Newport Beach
Our sponsoring Rotary club, here to support the Rotaract club and its projects.
rotaryclubofnewportbeach.org
Rotary Global Service Club
The Rotary Club of Newport Beach as a global service club, with a page for each project.
rotaryglobalserviceclub.org
Rotary Reefs
Our flagship project for SDG 14, Life Below Water.
rotaryglobalserviceclub.org/project/rotary-reefs
Seas the Straws
A project to keep plastic straws out of the ocean.
rotaryglobalserviceclub.org/project/seas-straws
Women Empowerment Project
Opportunities and support for women and girls.
rotaryglobalserviceclub.org/project/women-empowerment-project
RCAT Network
A network project of the Rotary Global Service Club.
rotaryglobalserviceclub.org/project/rcat-network
Global Climate Pledge
The Rotary Global Climate Pledge, plus articles on climate action and peace.
globalclimatepledge.com