The BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Awards are the highest conservation-related awards in Scouting. This awards program was developed in 2020 to succeed the William T. Hornaday Awards program. Though there have been important changes to the types of awards available, the expectations for award projects remain virtually unchanged.
This website provides resources developed by the Blue Ridge Mountains Council Conservation Committee to help Scouts and Scouters interested in earning or learning more about the BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Awards. Because these awards are new, we will add resources to this site as they are created. The BRMC has extensive experience supporting conservation projects and awards and is happy to help you or your Council transition to this new awards program. I serve as the Council BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Awards Coordinator; please contact me at william@obrochta.net with any questions or if you are interested in learning more about the Awards. If you are not sure if someone in your Council advises these awards, contact me; I am happy to assist you and to help you find the resources you need.
BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Awards Guide
We have released the BRMC Distinguished Conservation Service Awards Guide with advice for Scouts and Councils about fulfilling the requirements for this new award. A comparison of the old Hornaday and new DCS Awards program can be found on page 10 of the BRMC DCS Awards Guide or by clicking here.
Click here to download the latest edition of the BRMC BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Awards Guide. This guide provides step-by-step instructions to help you as you work on a BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award.
The Blue Ridge Mountains Council is pleased to provide some examples of DCS Award project workbooks. Note that these workbooks are for the Hornaday Award, though the DCS Awards Worbook is essentially the same. These workbooks are from many stages of the DCS Awards process and do not necessarily represent workbooks that accompanied submitted DCS Awards applications. Project type, age of the Scout, and scope varied significantly across these projects. Example 1, Example 2, Example 3, Example 4, Example 5
Training and Other Documents
There is no formal training required to advise DCS Award projects or to be a Conservation Advisor. If you would like help with training for you or your Council, contact me and we will work with you to identify your needs and develop the best materials for your group.
We have extensive experience setting up Council Conservation Committees, Council DCS Awards Committees, and programs to locate and train Conservation Advisors. Apart from the chapter in the DCS Awards Guide dedicated to these topics, we have produced an information sheet for training Conservation Advisors that can also be used to train new Conservation Committee Members. Click here to download the Conservation Advisor training. We are also experienced in delivering DCS Award training to individuals or groups, if this is of interest.
We have a basic information guide that may be helpful in training and promotion. We also have numerous slide presentations, handouts, and flowcharts that we can customize to the needs of your audience for presentations; contact me if you are interested.
Finally, we produced a narrated slide presentation on the DCS Awards.