The Chief Scout's Award is the highest

award An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An awar ...

which can be achieved at the Scout level in

Scouts Canada Scouts Canada is a Canadian Scouting association providing programs for young people, aged 5 to 26, with the stated aim "to help develop well rounded youth, better prepared for success in the world". Scouts Canada, in affiliation with the Frenc ...

. It was inaugurated in 1973 by then

Governor General of Canada The governor general of Canada (french: gouverneure générale du Canada) is the federal viceregal representative of the . The is head of state of Canada and the 14 other Commonwealth realms, but resides in oldest and most populous realm, t ...

Roland Michener Daniel Roland Michener (April 19, 1900 – August 6, 1991) was a Canadian lawyer, politician, and diplomat who served as Governor General of Canada, the 20th since Canadian Confederation. Michener was born and educated in Alberta. In 1917 he s ...

. The award was created to provide recognition for Scouts when the Scout program was divided into the Scout and Venturer sections. The former Queen's/Kings's Scout award was renamed as the

Queen's Venturer Award The King's Venturer Award (formerly Queen's Venturer Award) is the highest Scouting proficiency award for Venturer Scouts in Scouts Canada that can be regularly awarded, as the Amory Adventure Award is only awarded to one venturer company each ye ...

, and is the highest award that can be achieved in the Scouting youth program in Canada. Speaking to the prestige of the award, at least one known Chief Scout has gone on to win a Nobel Prize, 4 have become Members of Parliament (currently one sitting MP

Frank Baylis Frank Baylis (born November 15, 1962) is a Canadian businessperson and politician, who was elected to represent the riding of Pierrefonds—Dollard in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2015 federal election. He did not run for reelecti ...

) and at least 1 has been a Premier. Others have become titans of industry, technology, academia, finance and media. In order to earn the award a Scout must earn the

Voyageur The voyageurs (; ) were 18th and 19th century French Canadians who engaged in the transporting of furs via canoe during the peak of the North American fur trade. The emblematic meaning of the term applies to places (New France, including the ' ...

and Pathfinder Activity Awards which require the Scout to develop

citizenship Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection". Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...

leadership Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets view ...

personal development Personal development or self improvement consists of activities that develop a person's capabilities and potential, build human capital, facilitate employability, and enhance quality of life and the realization of dreams and aspirations. Persona ...

and outdoor skills, as well as earn ten Challenge badges, at least one in each of the seven categories (athletics, outdoors, home and family, personal development, science and technology, culture and society, and environment); they must in addition hold current qualifications in Standard

First Aid First aid is the first and immediate assistance given to any person with either a minor or serious illness or injury, with care provided to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, or to promote recovery. It includes initial in ...

, hold the World Scout Environment Badge, investigate and present findings on Scouts Canada's involvement in World Scouting, design a challenging programme which will require the Scout to excel in each of the four activity areas (Citizenship, Leadership, Personal Development, and Outdoor Skills), including at least 30 hours of additional leadership to others (above those required in the Citizenship Activity area of the Voyageur and Pathfinder awards). In working towards the Chief Scout's Award, the Scout will have performed over 30 hours of service in the community, much of it self-directed. They have met with a local service agency and together have discussed and made plans for future improvements in the

community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...

. Additional work on the World Scout Environment Badge exposes a Chief Scout's Award candidate to the many environmental issues of today, and they have taken an active role in promoting those issues with the

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

. Chief Scout's Award candidates amass more than 100 kilometers in hiking camps and they spend time as trainers helping their fellow Scouts work on their own badge levels. Scouts Canada has, in the past, proposed replacing the award with a membership to the Queen Elizabeth Jubilee Youth Ensemble after completion of the same requirements, but lacking the required signatures of 250 Chief Scout recipients, this has yet to be approved. The first recipients of the award were Kevin Stille and Ian Wiggs, both of Ottawa.

External links

{{Governor General of Canada Scout and Guide awards Scouting and Guiding in Canada

See also

External links