Aims & Methods

Mission & Values

The mission of Outdoor Service Guides is to foster an inclusive environment where individuals of all ages develop outdoor skills, connect across generations, and engage in community service.

Outdoor Service Guides believes that diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility are central to our identity as an organization and align with the principles of our shared Scout Law. We expect all members to embody, protect, and uphold these values and to actively create and cultivate an affirming, equitable, and inclusive environment.

Scout Law, based on 1938 PO&R

1. A scout’s honor is to be trusted.
2. A scout is loyal.
3. A scout’s duty is to be useful and help others.
4. A scout is a friend to all and a sibling to every
   other scout, no matter to what class, country, or
   creed the other may belong.
5. A scout is courteous.
6. A scout is kind to animals.
7. A scout obeys orders.
8. A scout smiles and whistles under all difficulties.
9. A scout is thrifty.
10. A scout is clean in thought, word, and deed.

Modified Outlander Scout Promise

“On my honor, I promise that I will do my best
To do my duty to my conscience and my community,
To help other people at all times,
And obey the Scout Law.”

*In the original Scout Promise, this was phrased as “God
and Country”. Scouts may choose what they promise to do
their duty to as feels appropriate for them.

Additionally, we believe:

• Nature is central to human health and well-being.
• We have a responsibility to be stewards of the natural world.
• Prioritizing and protecting inclusion and diversity strengthens our community.
• Everyone can learn new things and succeed when they are supported and celebrated.
• Each person has unique skills and deserves opportunities for them to be recognized.
• It is our duty to use our knowledge and skills for the benefit of others.

Our Aims

Our goal is to further our mission as described above through the methods, programs, and policies we implement. We wish to provide an inclusive program that uses traditional scoutcraft training and community service to achieve the following aims:

1. Improving resilience and self-reliance
2. Fostering empathy, compassion, and understanding toward others
3. Increasing community engagement
4. Building a commitment to conservation and stewardship of the outdoors

Our Method

The organization is committed to using the following methods to achieve those aims:

1. Providing a system of progressive learning/training in outdoor and life skills, with
   instruction by doing
2. Adhering to the Scout Law and Promise as a guide for positive behavior and
   interaction
3. Adoption of a uniform
4. The Patrol Method (small, autonomous groups)
5. Encouraging Scout-led activities and events
6. Rendering service to our communities

Program Considerations & Changes

OSG acknowledges that, though the aims and methods that guide the organization are adapted from the original traditional scouting program started by Robert Baden-Powell, the program has been modified and updated to make it more inclusive. We also know that an organization can not truly be diverse without providing for the physical and psychological safety of all its members, and our policies and programs reflect that commitment.

OSG strives to eliminate vestiges of imperialist bias, including colonialism, racism, sexism, and other prejudices of the era when scouting was developed. OSG regularly reviews and updates handbooks and materials to account for advances in first aid, health and safety, the importance of environmental protection, and to adapt the program to allow for greater equity and participation from groups underrepresented in scouting and the outdoors due to historical discrimination.

Local conditions might necessitate alterations due to possible legal restrictions on the use of certain words and marks, the expense or unavailability of some uniform items, and the need for adaptable uniform standards based on local climates and individual comfort.

Similarly we alter wording and practices throughout the program involving flags, national anthems, monarchs, and the like to be appropriate to the United States. OSG seeks to avoid American nationalism, jingoism, and exceptionalism, and to present a historical narrative that includes greater representation from diverse voices and groups.

The International Scouting Movement

OSG seeks to have good relations with all scouting, guiding, and historically related organizations that are welcoming and inclusive and considers their members to be our siblings. We seek cooperation with those organizations with aims and methods most similar to our own through membership in the World Federation of Independent Scouts (WFIS), to acknowledge our place in the broader scouting movement while also promoting awareness and interaction with other peoples and cultures around the world.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility

OSG believes that everyone deserves a chance to participate in the scouting movement and feel safe and welcome while doing so. Our commitment to these values is codified in our DEIA policy and our Code of Conduct.