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Peace is not simply the absence of war; it is the presence of equality and justice.
3. Focus on what you can do, and do it well
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Scouting was created and has grown and developed for nearly one hundred years. During this time millions of young people and adults have been members of the Movement. Scouting has helped them to develop knowledge, skills and attitudes that are relevant to their lives within their families, school, the workplace and in the wider community. The Scout Method has been tried and tested. However, sometimes when new projects are developed, we try new ways of working rather than building on the successes of Scouting to date. Here are examples of how the projects have built on their experiences which in turn has contributed to the success of the projects. |
Example 1: El Salvador
One advantage of this was that the number of adults who were already trained to use the Scout Method and the number of young people who were Scouts and could lead the process of helping the new recruits to learn some Scout and camping skills and discover a new way of life – away from violence.
Example 2: Hong Kong
Scouting in Hong Kong is well established, with a strong Scout Groups and an effective training system for adult leaders. When there was the idea to offer Scouting to young people in the penal institutes, rather than consider another model, the decision was taken to set up a Scout Group. The Scout Group in the Young Offenders Institute operates like other Scout Groups in Hong Kong and there is a Group Scout Council to provide support to the leaders who run the programme for young people.
The young people do normal Scout activities and through Scouting young people get the opportunity to experience outdoor challenges and undertake community service.
Example 3: Ireland
Scouting in Ireland, in the different communities, has been very successful. When the communities became very divided in the 1970's, division and segregation became the norm. However two leaders in Belfast, Mike Loder and Paul Browne, from groups on each side of the sectarian divide, believed that their responsibility as Scout leaders included helping their Scouts to develop tolerance and understanding. They did this by doing 'normal' Scouting together, building on what both groups had in common and what Scouting does well – enabling young people to share experiences, irrespective of faith, class, culture or nationality.
Since the start of the project, over 100,000 young people have come together as Scouts, breaking down barriers and building up trust and confidence in each other.
