Purpose of this Course

Participants in the Trainer Course learn Leave No Trace skills and ethics as well as techniques for educating others about these low impact practices. Research has shown that this course significantly improves participant knowledge and understanding of how Leave No Trace protects the outdoor places we love. The goal of this course is to teach students taking the course how to introduce the concept of Outdoor Ethics in a fun and engaging way to a group with little experience in outdoor ethics. It should help youth and adults at all program levels understand the general principles behind Scouting's outdoor ethics program. Graduates of a Trainer Course are prepared to lead Outdoor Ethics Orientation and BSA Leave No Trace 101 courses and to offer Leave No Trace Awareness Workshops to their community.

We recommend that youth complete this course before serving as in the troop Outdoor Ethics Guide position.

Who should attend?

This course will be of interest to any youth or registered Scouter who is associated with either implementing or training for any BSA outdoor program at any level. It is also well-suited for anyone who would like to pass on the knowledge of how to treat the outdoors and protect its beauty for others to enjoy. Youth must be at least 14 years old. Youth must be willing and able to conduct themselves appropriately for an adult training experience that is tightly scheduled and highly interactive.

Course Structure

This course will take place in three parts.

The first part of the course is offered using a combination of online self-study modules. This portion of the course will begin about 10 days before the final outdoor portion of the course. During this portion of the course, students will also prepare a 10–15-minute lesson which they will present to other students in their assigned patrol during the outdoor session of the course. This portion of the course will take approximately 6 hours to complete.

The second part of the course is a one-hour online Zoom meeting held the Monday before the Saturday outdoor portion of the course. At this meeting, students will accomplish two goals. They will review with an instructor how they plan to present their lesson on Saturday. This is also when meal planning for the Saturday session will be done.

The final part of the course is an all-day outdoor session on a Saturday. During this session, students will:

• Present to their fellow patrol members the lessons they have prepared

• Practice Leave No Trace cooking techniques

• Learn about Leave No Trace activities and games

• Learn how to use education to help others reduce their outdoor recreation impacts

• Share ideas with other students and instructors

• Learn about the resources available to help spread the message of Leave No Trace

• Prepare an action plan for how you will use what they’ve learned

Note: Additional course details will be emailed to participants a few weeks prior to the course.

Key Dates

Cost 

This course will cost $50.00 per participant (same price for both youth and adults).