BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award Program
The BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award is the BSA’s highest conservation award available. Developed to encourage learning by the participants and to increase public awareness about natural resource conservation through sound stewardship.
The awards program has three awards:
Youth: BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award
Adult: BSA Distinguished Conservationist
Organizations and Individuals: BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award Certificate
World Conservation Award
The World Conservation Award provides an opportunity for individual Cub Scouts, Scouts BSA, Venturers, and Sea Scouts to think globally and act locally to preserve and improve our environment. This program is designed to help youth members gain awareness that all nations are closely related through natural resources and that we are interdependent with our world environment.
Conservation Good Turn Award
The Conservation Good Turn is an opportunity for Cub Scout packs, Scouts BSA troops, Venturing crews, and Sea Scout ships to join with conservation or environmental organizations (federal, state, local, or private) to carry out a Conservation Good Turn in their home communities.
National Outdoor Badge–Conservation
When a Scout excels in outdoor participation, there are awards to show for it! This program, conceived by the BSA’s National Camping Task Force, includes a series of six badges designed to recognize a Scouts BSA, Sea Scout, or Venturer who has exemplary knowledge and experience in performing high-level outdoor activities.
The segments represent six areas of emphasis: camping, aquatics, hiking, riding, adventure, and conservation, with rigorous requirements to earn each segment.
A gold device may be earned for each additional 25 hours of conservation work. A silver device is earned for each additional 100 hours of conservation work (for example, the first silver device is earned at 125 total hours of conservation work).
Keep America Beautiful Hometown USA Award
The Hometown USA Award is a joint program between Keep America Beautiful Inc. and Scouting America. It is designed to give recognition to the outstanding efforts of Scouts in their communities in regard to citizenship and environmental improvement.
Cub Scout Outdoor Activity Award
Attend Cub Scout day camp or Cub Scout/Webelos Scout resident camp and complete various requirements for each Cub Scout rank, including completing a certain number of outdoor activities. Among the options for a Cub Scout Outdoor Activity Award activity is this one: Complete a nature/conservation project in your area. This project should involve improving, beautifying, or supporting natural habitats. Discuss how this project helped you to respect nature.
National Park Service Scout Ranger Program
The Scout Ranger program invites Scouts of all ages to participate in educational and/or volunteer service projects at national park sites to spark their awareness of the national parks and to provide Scouts with the opportunity to explore the national parks and learn more about protecting our natural and cultural resources. Scouts are awarded certificates and/or patches for participating in the program.
To find a near by National Park Service Park look here.
BSA SAFE Service Project Resources
Before your next service project, please take a look at these two updated risk assessment tools to maintain a SAFE Scouting experience. The SAFE Service Project Planning Checklist and simplified SAFE Project Tool Use Guidelines are located in the appendix to the Guide to Safe Scouting.
