A leader’s guide to the new Sustainability merit badge

Examine the newly released requirements for the Sustainability merit badge.


JUST AFTER JON HARMON GRADUATED from high school, the Eagle Scout from Portola Valley, Calif., started acting a little strange around the house. “He was chasing us around turning the water off when we were washing our hands. He would turn off the computers at night,” says his father, Scott, also an Eagle Scout. “I was getting a little frustrated.” Sustainability Merit Badge

That frustration led to several conversations, which led the elder Harmon to think about what it means to live sustainably. It also prompted him to propose a merit badge in sustainability. “I realized that … [other Scouting families] could learn about how important it is to live sustainably, too.”

Five years later, the Sustainability merit badge debuted at this summer’s national jamboree and joined the list of Eagle-required merit badges as an alternative to Environmental Science.

The new badge begins and ends with a family meeting in which family members discuss what they can do to live more sustainably. In between, the Scout undertakes projects, often alongside his family, to understand the big picture regarding topics such as water, food, energy, and transportation, as well as waste reduction, species decline, world population, and climate change.

To learn more about the badge, we talked with four Scouters who served on the Sustainability Merit Badge Task Force: Scott Berger of Scotch Plains, N.J., chairman of the Sustainability Leadership Team overseeing the merit badge’s development and chairman of the Merit Badge Maintenance Task Force; Scott Harmon of Portola Valley, chairman of the content team; Steve Bowen of El Centro, Calif., a member of the National Advancement Committee; and David Disney of Kansas City, Mo., a member of the National Executive Board.

What is sustainability in the simplest terms? “Sustainability is more of a new way of thinking as opposed to the science in the Environmental Science merit badge,” Berger says. “The idea is not just to conserve but to truly be stewards of our environment, our energy sources, and more—to think in terms not just of having enough for our lifetime but enough for future generations.”

Those challenges can seem overwhelming. Is that why the requirements focus so much on Scout-size projects? “It’s a hard concept for a Scout to feel that he himself, as a single person, can have an impact on the world, but he certainly can have an impact within his own family,” Berger says. “We’re hoping to bring [sustainability] down to a level where a Scout can feel he can make a difference, where his actions matter.”

How does the new badge compare with Environmental Science? “Environmental Science is more about studying the scientific end, whereas Sustainability is trying to teach a way to think—to live more responsibly and sustainably,” Berger says. “It’s a state of mind as opposed to the science.” Drawing similarities between the two is kind of like comparing macroeconomics vs. microeconomics, Harmon says. “Sustainability is macro, looking outward at the whole global problem. Environmental Science is micro, looking at the science and chemistry of what’s going on.”

Should interested Scouts pursue both badges, counting the second as an elective for Eagle? “I would encourage them to earn both,” Berger says. Bowen agrees, pointing out that earning Environmental Science could be good preparation for Sustainability. “You’ve got to understand the environment a bit before you can start figuring out how we can do a better job,” he says.

Can a Scout earn this badge if he lives in an urban area? Yes, says Berger. “There are a lot of things we’ve done to make this badge viable for any Scout, regardless of where he’s living,” he says. “Sustainability is certainly not just for suburban Scouts; it’s for everybody.”

Who can counsel this badge? Bowen suggests science teachers as potential counselors, although he points out that the badge is about more than just science. “Trees are very important to it, but so is not filling up our landfills,” he says.

Disney suggests seeking out people who are doing the sorts of projects the badge requires. “Who’s helping with glass recycling? Who’s helping with the community garden? Who’s helping with other things and might have a passion for a component of this? They would be ideal counselors,” he says.

Another source would be people who have responsibility for sustainability efforts at work. “Most companies have an energy team, or a green team, or an efficiency team,” Harmon says. “There’s a huge grassroots movement going on—in big companies in particular—that was not there five years ago.”

Of course, all merit badge counselors must register with the BSA and be approved by the council advancement committee before beginning work.

What impact could this badge have beyond the Scouts who earn it and their families? “I would hope that our awareness of our footprint on this earth will be recognized at an earlier age and will start the conversation about how we protect the earth,” Disney says. “Many young people are concerned about that and don’t know how to approach it. This gives them a path.”

Harmon adds, “We really want to empower the Scouting movement to make a difference, to make a visible difference in the world outside Scouting.”


7 Comments

  1. Where are the worksheets for this merit badge? Have they been developed yet? I see this badge as one where Scouts should understand the requirements before they show up at a merit badge college, and do much of the family interview work before they show up. The purpose seems to be to stimulate the scout to think of the availability and quantity of resources that they and their family consume. I have taught Biology, Environmental Science, Marine Science, and others for many years and this looks like one to stimulate a different set of thinking. Good job!

  2. I understand that the Sustainability and the Environmental Science is an “either/or” for the Eagle Requirements, but for the other awards, such as the Hornaday and Paul Bunyan awards, is it interchangeable as well?

  3. I see that requirement 2 focuses on water usage. We live in an area where most homes are fed from wells and therefore do not have water bills. So how can the scout measure the results of his conservation efforts?

    • Here’s some ideas: They could perhaps do some research on the energy costs to pump the water via the well; together with costs to install, and typical longevity prior to needing replacement. Any studies out there modeling the aquifer? What would be the cost of having to dig further if the aquifer was overdrawn?

  4. You do realize that the worksheets are not a BSA approved method for doing merit badges? Personally, I do not use them. I expect Scouts to use the merit badge booklet, read it, and do the requirements. For the rare merit badge I agree to counsel in a clinic or class setting, I meet with the group before and after so that they understand the pre-requisites and have the opportunity to have me sign off on things they must complete after the class/clinic.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*