This Week’s Speaker
Steve Bender, Embracing the Future While Respecting the Past (Jan. 21)
Steven Bender, President of The Rotary Club of Newport Beach and a passionate advocate for environmental sustainability and community development, has been the CEO and consultant to known corporations and non-profit organizations worldwide. His diverse involvement in sustainable projects, green building, affordable housing, and tiny homes, showcased by his roles as the Global Partnership Ambassador for the United Nations Association-Orange County and CEO of Newport Homes, is truly impressive. Steve recently traveled to Ukraine to engage with the International Chamber of Commerce in discussions about rebuilding the country with green technology for the country’s reconstruction efforts post-war. During his visit, he explored initiatives he supports, focused on removing landmines from agricultural areas. Additionally, Steve has been conducting meetings with banks and businesses across four continents, addressing environmental projects and carbon credit trading.
Steve was the Founding Director of the US Green Chamber and Co-Founder of the Global Climate Pledge program which is now in almost 100 countries! Steve is the current Director of the Environmental and Sustainability Rotary Action Group (ESRAG) for Western North America, comprising over 1700 Rotary Clubs, and the Director of the Rotary Climate Action Team (RCAT) board. His unwavering dedication to the environment is evident in his global outreach, which includes speaking engagements with business owners, government organizations, and NGOs, where he passionately promotes and educates on environmental and social issues and projects.
As the Sea 2 Sky Solutions CEO, Steve’s influence extends globally, with strategic partners and offices in Newport Beach, Bangkok, Mexico City, Panama, and Taiwan. He is a consultant for various environmental initiatives, including Oceans Week 2024 in Mexico, EarthX, and the 7 Seas Initiative. Steve’s leadership is also evident in his role as a founder of The Rotary Reef Project, emphasizing his dedication to oceans, island nations, and coastal communities. His ability to lead and drive change in these organizations is a testament to his commitment to environmental sustainability and his potential to inspire support for his initiatives.
About Bellevue Rotary
Founded in 1961, the Bellevue Rotary Club is an organization of local community and business leaders who make a difference by serving the citizens of our city and the world. Our primary avenues of service are Community Service, International Service, Vocational Service, and Youth Service.
Bellevue Rotary’s Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
The Bellevue Rotary Club unequivocally embraces Rotary’s intolerance for racism. We believe in promoting respect, celebrating diversity, demanding ethical leadership, and working tirelessly to advance peace as central tenets of our work. We recognize we have more work to do to create a more just, open and welcoming club for all people. We acknowledge and support Black humanity and its value. We acknowledge the sadness, anger, mental and emotional exhaustion, and trauma that our African American members and other people of color continue to experience. The Bellevue Rotary Club understands its responsibility towards truth, equity, and social justice, and will work with our members to dismantle any and all forms of systemic racism within our Club. To do this, we will carefully look at our Club’s culture, policies, partners, and the work we do in our community as we work to improve ourselves first. The Bellevue Rotary Club will also work towards being an anti-racist club in alignment with our long history and value of serving humanity.
Bellevue Rotary Officers and Directors, July 2023–June 2024
Contact Us
Contact us, or better yet, visit us to learn more about Rotary.
You can also send mail to: PO Box 523, Bellevue, WA 98009