Outdoor Ethics Awareness Award Patch
Varsity Scout Outdoor Ethics Awards
(Discontinued)

Effective on January 1, 2018, the VARSITY SCOUT program was discontinued by BSA.

Varsity Outdoor Ethics Awareness Award

Varsity Scouts and Scouters interested in learning more about outdoor ethics and Leave No Trace should begin by exploring the Outdoor Ethics Awareness Award.

Requirements:

  1. Recite from memory and explain the meaning of the Outdoor Code.
  2. Watch the National Park Service Leave No Trace video. It's on the right side of the page.
  3. Complete the Leave No Trace online youth course. Print the certificate.
  4. Earn the Tread Lightly! online course certificate. Print the certificate when you are done.
  5. Participate in an outdoor ethics course, workshop, or training activity facilitated by a person who has completed the BSA outdoor ethics orientation course or is a BSA outdoor ethics trainer or master.

Varsity Scout Outdoor Ethics Action Award Name Tag

Outdoor Ethics Action Award for Varsity Scouts

The Outdoor Ethics Action Award challenges Varsity Scouts and Scouters to take affirmative steps to improve their outdoor skills.

Requirements

  1. Do the following:
    1. Unless already completed, earn the Outdoor Ethics Awareness Award.
    2. Complete the BSA outdoor ethics orientation course.
    3. Explain how each of the four points of the Outdoor Code guides your actions when outdoors.
  2. Do the following:
    1. Read the chapters about Leave No Trace, using stoves and campfires, hygiene and waste disposal, and traveling and camping in special environments in the Fieldbook.
    2. Teach a skill related to Leave No Trace and a skill related to Tread Lightly! to another Scout in your team or another Scouting unit.
  3. Complete one of the following:
    1. Successfully complete a term as a troop or team Leave No Trace Trainer.
    2. Participate in an outing that emphasizes the complete set of Leave No Trace or relevant Tread Lightly! principles. All members of the team participating in the outing should use the outdoor ethics and the specific skills needed to minimize impacts from their use of the outdoors.
  4. Follow the Outdoor Code, Leave No Trace, and Tread Lightly! principles on three outings. Write a paragraph on each outing explaining how you followed the Outdoor Code, Leave No Trace, and Tread Lightly! Share it with your unit leader or an individual who has completed the BSA outdoor ethics orientation course.
  5. On a team outing, help your team on a service activity that addresses recreational impacts related to the type of outing. The project should be approved in advance by the landowner or land manager and lead to permanent or long-term improvements.
  6. Participate in a report at a court of honor, church gathering, or similar event on the service activity in Requirement 5.

Varsity Scouter Action Award

Requirements:

  1. Do the following:
    1. Earn the Outdoor Ethics Awareness Award.
    2. Complete the BSA outdoor ethics orientation course.
    3. Discuss with your team how each of the four points of the Outdoor Code guides your actions when outdoors.
  2. Read the North American Skills & Ethics booklet to learn about the principles of Leave No Trace. Review the principles of Tread Lightly! Review the chapters about Leave No Trace, using stoves and campfires, hygiene and waste disposal, and traveling and camping in special environments in the Fieldbook.
  3. Facilitate your team's leadership in planning and leading an outing that emphasizes the complete set of Leave No Trace or Tread Lightly! principles. All members of the team participating in the outing should use outdoor ethics and the specific skills to minimize impacts from their use of the outdoors.
  4. Help plan and participate in at least three outings where your team can follow the Outdoor Code and practice the principles of Leave No Trace and Tread Lightly! Facilitate a discussion at the end of the outings.
  5. Assist your unit in arranging for a service project emphasizing outdoor ethics with a local landowner or land manager. The project must be approved by the landowner or land manager in advance. Participate in that project. The project should lead to permanent or long-term improvements.
  6. Make, or facilitate youth in making, a presentation at a roundtable or similar gathering about what your team did for Requirement 4.

The Outdoor Ethics Awareness and Action Awards Program (for Varsity Scouts) - 430-140

Page updated on: December 20, 2017

Scouts Using the Internet Cartoon - Courtesy of Richard Diesslin - Click to See More Cartoons
© 1994-2024 - U.S. Scouting Service Project | Site Map | Disclaimer | Project Team | Contact Us | Privacy Policy

Materials found at U. S. Scouting Service Project, Inc. Websites may be reproduced and used locally by Scouting volunteers for training purposes consistent with the programs of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), the World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM) or other Scouting and Guiding Organizations. No material found here may be used or reproduced for electronic redistribution or for commercial or other non-Scouting purposes without the express permission of the U. S. Scouting Service Project, Inc. (USSSP) or other copyright holders. USSSP is not affiliated with BSA or WOSM and does not speak on behalf of BSA or WOSM. Opinions expressed on these web pages are those of the web authors. You can support this website with in two ways: Visit Our Trading Post at www.ScoutingBooks.com or make a donation by clicking the button below.
(U.S. Scouting Service Project Donation)


(Ruth Lyons Memorial Donations)