Conservation has been an integral part of the program of the Boy Scouts of America for many years but in August 1998, they began to take a leadership role with the announcement of Leave No Trace. At that same time, the Venturing program began and within the program, scouting is continuing to promote conservation and come up with new awards that Venturers can earn.
This site is intended to bring together a number of conservation awards available to Venturers. It will provide requirements and links to assist you.
Hornaday Awards for Venturers are designed to provide requirements for youth who can not or did not earn the merit badges required under the Boy Scout program. Of course if a male youth did earn all the required merit badges then he does not have to use the alternate Venturing requirements.
The alternate requirements for the Venturing Hornaday Badge and Medal include earning both the Ranger Ecology and Plant & Wildlife electives. The complete requirements for Venturers can be viewed on the BSA website under How Applications Are Judged.
The "Guidelines for the William T. Hornaday Award Conservation Advisor" is a useful PDF document that provides invaluable information for the conservation advisor. I expect that it will soon become part of BSA literature. I want to thank Howard Kern for providing me the document and the work he put into it.
The following are websites that provide detailed information on the Hornaday Award:
The Conservation Good Turn Award is an opportunity for scouts at all levels to join with conservation and environmental organizations (federal, state, local, or private) to carry out a conservation Good Turn in their home communities.
Units which conduct a Good Turn service project and submit the application form will receive a certificate from the Council office. The Conservation Good Turn patch is available for sale at the Scout Shop.
Steps to take:
- The Scouting unit contacts a conservation agency and offers to carry out a Good Turn project.
- The agency identifies a worthwhile and needed project that the unit can accomplish.
- Working together in the local community, the unit and the agency plan the details and establish the date, time and location for carrying out the project.
The application form in PDF format is available on ConservationGoodTurnAward.pdf.
Leave No Trace is a nationwide and international program designed to assist visitors with their decisions when they travel and camp on America's public lands. The program strives to educate visitors about the nature of their recreational impacts as well as techniques to prevent and minimize such impacts. Leave No Trace is best understood as an educational and ethical program, not as a set of rules and regulations.
The Boy Scouts of America have integrated Leave No Trace into their program. It is one of the core requirements for the Ranger Award.
Several good reference sites for Leave No Trace are:
The application form in PDF format is available at www.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/21-105.pdf.
is an exciting program for Scouts and Venturers at Philmont Scout Ranch ages 16-20 who enjoy spending an extended period of time in the outdoors. ROCS is a 21-day trek that will take participants all over the Philmont backcountry.
