| Distinguished Conservation Service Awards | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner | Boy Scouts of America | ||
| Country | United States | ||
| Created | 1915 | ||
| Founder | William Temple Hornaday | ||
| Awarded for | Distinguished service to natural resource conservation | ||
| Recipients | ~5,500 across all levels | ||
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The BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award Program[1] is a series of awards presented by the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) for service in conservation and ecology. Created by William Temple Hornaday as the Permanent Wild Life Protection Fund Medal in 1915, the program is designed to encourage learning about natural resource conservation and the environment, teach sound stewardship of the natural resources and the environment, and recognize those who are outstanding in this field. After Hornaday's death in 1937, the program was renamed in his honor to the William T. Hornaday Awards in 1938 and officially became a BSA award program. In October 2020, after a review of Hornaday's life, the BSA changed the name of and significantly modified the program, stating that some of Hornaday's beliefs went "against the BSA’s values," and determined that "the conservation award should no longer bear his name in order to uphold our commitment against racism and discrimination."[2]
Considered to be the highest service award a youth could earn in the Boy Scouts, it is a rare and highly prized medal,[citation needed] with only 1,200 youth medals being awarded in its more than 100 year history.
- ^ "BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award Program". Boy Scouts of America. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ^ "BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award". usscouts.org. Retrieved 2024-04-02.