Transcript Boy Scouts of America OUTDOOR ETHICS

Boy Scouts of America
OUTDOOR ETHICS
Leave No Trace
Camping
Boy Scouts of America
OUTDOOR ETHICS
Delivering the
BSA Leave No Trace
Program
Presentation Objectives
• Provide the rationale for an outdoor ethics
program in the BSA.
• Review the seven Principles of Leave No
Trace.
• Review the BSA Outdoor Ethics programs.
• Explain how you can bring these programs
to your home council
Outdoor Recreation
Woodcraft
The Consumptive Ethic
Wilderness Act of 1964
Exponential Increases in Outdoor
Recreational Visits to Public Lands
Outdoor Recreational Visitations
Wilderness Recreation
Visitation Days
• 1975
7 Million
• 1985
15 Million
• 2000
20 Million
• National Park
Visitations
• 1950
33 Million
• 1970
172 Million
• 2000
287 Million
Combined Visitations to Public Lands
• 2000
Over 700 Million
Elephant in the woods?
BSA Estimated Use:
30,000,000 DAYS!
BSA should be part of
the solution.
Are we?
• Common perceptions by Federal land
management agencies about BSA units on
federal land:
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Kids out of control
Too much noise
Group sizes too big
Camping skills badly out of date
Inappropriate play damages the backcountry
Don't keep appointments to do service work
Completely soak up popular campsites or shelters
Unskilled campers using areas that call for expert
skills
• Using inappropriate areas (hi-use, fragile) to train
new campers
• and on and on and on...
IMPACTS
IMPACTS
IMPACTS
IMPACTS
IMPACTS
Vegetation Impacts
• Vegetation loss
• Spread of
non-native species
• Tree damage
Soil Impacts
• Soil compaction
• Soil erosion
• Loss of organic
litter
Wildlife Impacts
• Disturbance of
wildlife
• Altered behavior
• Reduced health &
reproduction
Water Resource Impacts
• Turbidity,
sedimentation
• Food scraps, soap,
& fecal wastes
• Animal access
points blocked
Social Impacts
• Crowding
• Conflicts
• Noise
Cultural Resource Impacts
• Theft of artifacts
• Damage to
historic structures
• Damage to
cultural features
Loving our public lands to death!
Increased
Visitation =
Increased
Impacts
Regulate Usage?
 Regulations
antagonize the
public
 Enforcement of
regulations is
difficult and
expensive
 Most impacts are not
due to malicious acts
Preservation Ethic
U.S. Forest
Service
National Park
Service
Education Not Legislation
Boy Scouts of
America
Bureau of Land
Management
U.S. Fish &
Wildlife Service
What Is Leave No Trace?
(and why BSA chose it)
• The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics says:
– Leave No Trace is an national and international program designed
to assist outdoor enthusiasts with their decisions about how to
reduce their impacts when they hike, camp, picnic, snowshoe, run,
bike, hunt, paddle, ride horses, fish, ski or climb. The program
strives to educate all those who enjoy the outdoors 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.
• Program is organized around the Seven Principles of
Leave No Trace. Like Scouting, Leave No Trace aims at
character development.
Leave No Trace Video
Scouting and Leave No Trace
• Scouting and Leave No Trace have a long
partnership
Literature: Boy Scout Handbook, Fieldbook
Awards: Cub Scout & Boy Scout Leave No Trace Award
Venturing Ranger Award
Scouting Is Moving to the Next
Level of Outdoor Ethics Emphasis:
• Boy Scouts
– New chapter 7 in Handbook
– New advancement
requirements:
• Second Class: Know
principles
• First Class: Demonstrate
principles
– New Troop position of
responsibility: Leave No
Trace Trainer (note: patch
is concept draft only)
• Cub Scouts & Venturing
– Revised Awareness Awards
What This Partnership Means for the
Local Council
• Leaders will want to learn about Leave No
Trace to facilitate youth advancement
• Youth will want to learn Leave No Trace
principles and skills to advance.
• Youth will want to qualify for Leave No
Trace Instructor and Trainer positions
How Leave No Trace
Training Is Delivered
• Leave No Trace Trainers deliver the Leave No
Trace Principles and skills to units and
individuals.
• Leave No Trace Master Educators train Leave
No Trace Trainers.
• The Challenge:
– Training a Trainer requires a minimum 16 hour course
– Training a Master Educator requires a five day, five
night course
How Leave No Trace
Will Come to Scouting
• The Leave No Trace roll out plan
– National Task Force established
– National goal established
– BSA Master Educator courses across the United
States during 2007-2010.
– BSA specific Leave No Trace training
programs (training continuum)
– New council-level volunteer position created
National Goal
• BSA Leave No Trace Task Force established the
following goals:
– One or more Leave No Trace Master Educators in every
local council
– One or more Leave No Trace Trainers in every district.
• Master Educators will train Trainers. Trainers will
provide training to youth and adult who desire to
learn more about Leave No Trace.
Master Educator Development
• The BSA Leave No Trace Task Force has sponsored a
series of Master Educator courses across United States
(2007-2010).
– 162 Master Educators trained so far, approximately 185 total
– Courses remaining in 2009 include:
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Philmont, NM (May, Sept)
Northern Tier, MN (August)
Clinton Valley, MI (Oct.)
Mid-Iowa, IA (July)
Puerto Rico (August)
Okeefenokee Area, GA (March)
Golden Spread, TX (October)
Midnight Sun, AK (June)
Western LA County, CA (Oct.)
Chief Seattle, WA (August)
Caddo Area, TX (Sept./Oct.)
– Course schedule available in Scouting magazine
Progress Toward National Goal, May 2009
Color =
Master
Educator
BSA Leave No Trace
Training Continuum
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Awareness Workshop
In-Unit Training by Youth or Adults
Leave No Trace 101
Leave No Trace Trainer Course
Leave No Trace Master Educator Course
BSA Leave No Trace
Training Continuum
• Awareness Workshops
– Goal: Awareness about Leave No Trace
– Instructor: May be taught by anyone with knowledge,
trained individuals preferred
– Course: Can be any length of time period, with content
varying on time and desired coverage
– Great for Roundtables, Camporees and tailored
presentations to units getting ready to go out to field
BSA Leave No Trace
Training Continuum
• In-Unit Training by Youth and Adults
– Goal: Unit program specific training
– Instructor:
• Cub Scouts—unit adult, Boy Scout or Venturer having at least
BSA LNT 101, if possible
• Boy Scouts/Varsity Scouts—youth Instructor (if BSA LNT
101) or Trainer (if LNT Trainer Course)
• Venturing—typically a youth Trainer (if LNT Trainer Course)
– Course: Varies by unit needs
BSA Leave No Trace
Training Continuum
• BSA Leave No Trace 101
– Goal: General introduction to Leave No Trace
– Instructor: Leave No Trace Trainer
– Syllabus: BSA Leave No Trace 101 Course Guide,
minimum of 3 hours
– Earn: BSA Leave No Trace Awareness Card
– Recommended training course for Troop Leave No
Trace Instructors, Venturers, and adults responsible for
Leave No Trace Awareness Awards and advancement
BSA Leave No Trace
Training Continuum
• BSA Leave No Trace Trainer
– Goal: Strong knowledge of Leave No Trace principles,
ethic and skills; ability to teach others
– Instructor: Master Educator
– Syllabus: BSA Leave No Trace Trainer Course
Manual, minimum 16 hours course.
– Earn: Leave No Trace Trainer status
– Required training for Troop Leave No Trace Trainer
position of responsibility or others seeking Trainer
status.
– BSA will accept Trainers taught by other Leave No
Trace recognized Master Educators.
BSA Leave No Trace
Training Continuum
• BSA Leave No Trace Master Educator
– Goal: Comprehensive knowledge of Leave No Trace
principles, skills and ethic and ability to teach and
motivate others
– Instructor: Instructors appointed by National Council
– Syllabus: Leave No Trace Master Educator Handbook
and BSA Supplement, minimum of five days/nights.
– Earn: Master Educator status, membership with Leave
No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics
– BSA will accept Master Educators trained by other
providers recognized by Leave No Trace Center for
Outdoor Ethics (NOLS, AMC, WEA, Nine-Mile, etc.)
Future Goals
• Integration of BSA Leave No Trace 101 with
Introduction to Outdoor Leadership Skills
– All BSA outdoor trained leaders will learn basics of
Leave No Trace during basic training
• Revised Leave No Trace Awareness Award
program
• Development of additional Scouting-specific
Leave No Trace skills
Successful Implementation
• New “Council Outdoor Ethics Advocate” position
will help council succeed with challenges of Leave
No Trace implementation
– Recruit Leave No Trace Trainers and Master Educators
– Promote and coordinate Leave No Trace training efforts
at local council level
– Coordinate with, and serve as a member of (at local
council discretion) Training, Camping, Program and
Conservation committee(s)
– Report progress to the National Task Force
Councils with Outdoor Ethics Advocates
Green =
Ethics
Advocate
Local Council Roll Out Plan
• Identify Outdoor Ethics Advocate to coordinate plan
• Recruit Trainers and Master Educators
– Contact Task Force –[email protected]
• Promote Leave No Trace Awareness
– Workshops at roundtables, camporees, etc.
– Offer BSA LNT 101 courses to get adult volunteers up to speed on
basics
– Offer BSA Trainer courses to interested youth and adults
• Report progress in annual Outdoor Ethics Advocate report
Additional Resources
• Official:
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Frank Reigelman, Director of Outdoor Programs
Eric Hiser, Chair, BSA Leave No Trace Task Force
[email protected]
www.scouting.org
Boy Scout Handbook, Fieldbook and Teaching Leave No Trace,
No. 21-117
– www.lnt.org – website of Leave No Trace Center
• Semi-Official
– BSALNTME Yahoo group (contact Eric Hiser)
– Outdoorethics-bsa.org (BSA Leave No Trace task force website)
Boy Scouts of America
OUTDOOR ETHICS
Implementing Leave No
Trace in the Local Council
Philmont Training Center
September 20-25, 2009