Merit Badge Overview
Scouting’s newest Eagle required merit bade, Citizenship in Society is a large shift from the regular merit badge formula. This merit badge will require scouts to do their own deep thinking about difficult topics such as equality, equity, and inclusion. Citizenship in Society was added to scouting in 2021 in lieu of a string of civil rights protests. This badge aims to educate scouts on how to be more inclusive and accepting in society.
Timeframe/Difficulty
While Citizenship in Society does not have any specific time consuming requirements, due to the depth and content, I recommend setting aside 1-3 months to complete this merit badge. Doing this will give you the right amount of time to process and deeply think about each requirement in order to get the most possible out of it.
In terms of difficulty I would rate Citizenship in Society a 6/10. While it is definitely thought provoking, there aren’t any requirements that will trouble the thorough scout. Although it isn’t an exceptionally difficult badge, I would recommend scouts wait until 15 or older in order to be best prepared for the content of this merit badge.
Tips for Success
The Citizenship in Society merit badge is laid out differently from most in that it requires the Scout to do most of the thinking. This merit badge is very individual and each of the requirements. This merit badge will require a lot of introspection and thinking rather than just following a counselor.
Tip #1
Take things seriously. While scouting can definitely be fun, this merit badge covers dense topics that have important world applications. Taking this badge and it’s content seriously will best prepare you for life and allow you to get the most out of this badge
Tip #2
Do good research. Much of this merit is about self learning and discovery. Doing good and thorough research will help you learn as much as possible. I will give some information later in the post but be sure to do your own searching.
Tip #3
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Scouting is all about collaboration and helping out your fellow man. If you get stuck while working on this badge, don’t be afraid to ask you counselor or another scout for some help. We’re all in this together and asking for help can be one of the best ways to learn.
Full Guide
***This guide is only intended as a starting point for your research. Directly copying the information offered here is plagiarism. Doing your own research will allow you to get the most out of this badge and maintain the 12 points of the scout law. A scout is trustworthy!***
Requirement 1
1. Before beginning work on other requirements for this merit badge: a. Research the following terms, and then explain to your merit badge counselor how you feel they relate to the Scout Oath and Scout Law: • Identities • Inclusion • Diversity • Discrimination • Equity • Ethical Leadership • Equality • Upstander
Lets start by defining these terms –
Identities
We all identify ourselves with different things. Some people might identify based off their gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or any other factor. Think about what you identify with. Then ask yourself how the scout law says we should treat others, regardless of their identity.
Inclusion
Inclusion is defined in the dictionary as “the act or practice of including and accommodating people who have historically been excluded.” But what does this mean for scouts. Think about a time in scouting when you felt like you fit in with a group. This feeling is a result of that group being inclusive. Which point of the scout law do you think best fits with inclusion?
Diversity
Diversity has long been hailed as one of America’s greatest strengths, but what is it? Diversity in its most simple sense is a collection of people with different characteristics. Scouting is a diverse organization with members of many different races, ethnicities, and skillsets. Think about the diversity in your own troop and what each member of your troop adds to it. How does doing your duty to your country apply to diversity?
Discrimination
Discrimination is the opposite of inclusion. Nobody likes to be excluded and discrimination is the systematic exclusion of a group of people based off of an identity. Discrimination is not tolerated in scouting or in the world. Think about how the scout law tells us to avoid discrimination.
Equity
Equity looks and sounds like an very common word we often hear and one that will be defined later – Equality. They do however have a distinct difference. Equity means providing different levels of support or aid based on ones need. I feel this picture gives the best explanation of the differences between equality and equity.
Think about how equity would affect how you abide by the scout oath, specifically the part about helping other people at all times.
Ethical Leadership
One of the most important skills taught in scouting is leadership. However something that is less often taught is ethical leadership. Being an ethical leader means leader based around a core set of values that you are committed to upholding. Villanova University gives 3 major traits that make up ethical leaders.
- Be the example
- Champion the Importance of Ethics
- Communicate
For more from Villanova University about ethical leadership click here.
For us scouts, being an ethical leader means leader from the front and setting a strong example. Think about which points of the scout law relate to leadership, which ones relate to ethics, and how they are related.
Equality
Equality, as discussed above is a relative of equity. Where equity means providing aid according to need, equality would mean providing everyone equal aid. There are roles for both equality and equity in both scouting and the world. Think about how the scout oath and law call for us to treat everyone equally.
Upstander
An upstander is someone who stands up for what is right even in the face of adversity. As a scout you are called to stand up against discrimination and bullying. Think about how the scout oath tells us to be an upstander. (Hint: It’s part of your duty to others)
Now that we have defined and understand these terms, we will go on to apply them in our personal and scouting lives.
Requirement 2
Document and discuss with your counselor what leadership means to you. Share what it means to make ethical decisions.
a. Research and share with your counselor an individual you feel has demonstrated positive leadership while having to make an ethical decision. (It could be someone in history, a family member, a teacher, a coach, a counselor, a clergy member, a Scoutmaster, etc.)
b. Explain what decision and/or options that leader had, why you believe they chose their final course of action, and the outcome of that action.
This requirement is rather personal but here are some things to think about to started.
What leadership roles have you served in, in both scouting and outside?
What do you think makes a good leader? For me personally, I think a good leader is someone who would never ask someone do something they wouldn’t do theirself and someone who leads by example.
What ethics do you follow in your day to day life? Where do you derive your ethics from? This could be your family, religion or from personal experiences.
For requirement 2a, I would recommend picking someone you personally know or have had an experience with. This will create a personal connection with the content and allow you to learn more about ethical leadership. If you can’t think of anyone, here are some examples of ethical leaders from history you could research.
- Mahatma Ghandi
- Martin Luther King Jr.
- Nelson Mandela
- Winston Churchill
- George Washington
Think deeply about whichever figure you pick and try to put yourself in their shoes. Would you have made the same decision if you were in that situation? It will also help to pick as specific of a situation/decision as possible for requirement 2b. Give yourself time to think and discover your answer this question naturally. Trying to force yourself to do this merit badge in one sitting will be a recipe for disaster!
Requirement 3
Consider ethical decision-making.
a. Think about a time you faced an ethical decision. • Discuss the situation, what you did, and how it made you feel. • Share if you would do anything differently in the future and if so, what that would be.
b. List three examples of ethical decisions you might have to make in the future at school, at home, in the workplace, or in your community, and what you would do. • Share how your actions represent alignment with the Scout Oath and Scout Law
c. Explain to your counselor how you plan to use what you have learned to assist you when that time comes, and what action(s) you can take to serve as an upstander and help other people at all times.
Another self reflection requirement! I think we’re beginning to see a pattern. We’ll take a similar approach to this requirement as we did with #2. Here are some questions to get you thinking.
What decisions do you make on a day to day basis? How do ethics factor into these decision?
What unethical decisions have you made? How did they make you and those around you feel? Think about times when you’ve said or done something that you could immediately feel that you did something wrong. How can you avoid situations like this?
How does making ethical decisions make you a courteous and kind scout?
How do ethical decisions act as part of your duty to others mentioned in the scout law?
Think about these questions as you reflect on times in your life for requirement 3a. An ethical decision could be something as small asking a friend if they need help. You don’t need to think of something grandiose. We make hundreds of small decisions each day, whether we realize it or not. Think about how ethics play into each of these small decisions.
For requirement 3c, review what it means to be an upstander. Create a specific plan for what you might do in a few hypothetical situations(this might help you with the next requirement).
Requirement 4
Repeat the Scout Oath and Scout Law for your counselor. Choose two of the three following scenarios and discuss what you could do as a Scout to demonstrate leadership and your understanding of what it means to help others who may seem different from you:
a. Scenario 1: While at camp, a youth accidentally spills food on another camper. The camper who gets spilled on gets angry and says something that is offensive to people with disabilities; their friends laugh. What could/ should you do?
b. Scenario 2: Your friend confides in you that some students in school are making insulting comments about one of their identities, and that those same students created a fake social media account to impersonate your friend online and post messages. What could/should you do?
c. Scenario 3: A new student in your class was born in another country (or has a parent who was born in another country). Your friends make rude comments to the student about their speech or clothes and tell the student to “go back home where you came from.” What could/should you do?
Here is where those upstander plans will come in handy! As scouts we are called to stand up for and protect people are being bullied or discriminated against. While you probably already know what the right thing to do in each situation, it can be hard to find the courage to stand up in the moment. For that reason I recommend creating an exact plan of what you would do/say if you are confronted with a situation similar to one of the three mentioned above. That way if your ever in a situation where you need to be an upstander, you won’t need to think. You’ll just take action!
Be sure to also connect your plan with the scout oath and law as well as the concept of ethical leadership discussed above. By being an upstander, you’ll act as a leader showing other scouts that it’s not okay to bully or discriminate.
Requirement 5
Document and discuss with your counselor:
a. Ideas on what you personally can do to create a welcoming environment in your Scouting unit.
b. An experience you had in which you went out of your way to include another Scout(s) and what you did to make them feel included and welcomed.
c. Things you can do to help ensure all Scouts in your unit are given an opportunity to be heard and included in decision-making and planning.
Requirement 5 will have entirely different answers for each scout. Requirement 5a and 5c will require you to think and brainstorm your own ideas. I’ll give a few examples but only use them as a starting point for your own brainstorming.
5a Ideas
- Hold patrol or troop meeting events where you learn about different cultures to be more inclusive
- Teach scouts about being an upstander
- Having a zero tolerance policy for bullying
- As as a leader, make sure you are approachable for all scouts
5c Ideas
- Include anonymous input methods for scouts who don’t want to be associated with their ideas or might not be confident in their idea
- Breakout into small groups when planning before coming together into a large group to allow scouts to pool their ideas together
For requirement 5b, I will share a personal story. When I was working on my Eagle Scout Project, I sent out an email to my troop asking for help. There was one dad who emailed back asking if I could find anything his son could help with. His son was a first year scout who was extremely small and didn’t have any real experience working with his hands. While I initially wanted to just say that I already had enough help, I decided that the right thing to do would be to include him. I figured out that he could easily do a job that only involved using a punch and a hammer to mark screw holes on pieces of work. This was something that he could easily do and allowed him to be involved with a group and gain new skills. I hope this story can inspire you to think of a similar experience in your own scouting career.
Requirement 6
With your parent’s or guardian’s approval, connect with another Scout or youth your own age who has an identity that’s different from yours. (This means a trait, belief, or characteristic different from you.)
a. Share with each other what makes the different aspect of your identity meaningful/special to you.
b. Share with each other either one of the following:
i. A time you felt excluded from a group. • What was the situation? • How did it make you feel? • What did you do? • Did anyone stand up for you? • What did you learn? • Would you do anything differently today?
ii. This imaginary situation: • You’re attending a new school and don’t know anyone there yet. You notice they dress very differently than you do. At lunchtime, you decide you’ll try to sit with a group to get to know other students. People at two tables tell you there is someone sitting at the currently empty seat at their table, so you end up eating by yourself. • How would that make you feel? • What could the students have done? • If that happened at your school, what would you do?
c. Discuss with your counselor what you learned from the discussion with the other Scout or youth.
This requirement is one of the trickier ones but if you set yourself up for it, it is pretty straight forward. Here are a few tips.
- Summer camp or other campouts where your with other troops are a great time to do this requirement as you will have lots of other scouts your age around
- Consider, with the other scouts consent, recording the conversation. If you are unable to record, take very thorough notes as these will help when reflecting on your experiences and preparing your answer to 6c.
- Prepare your own answers to requirements 6a and 6b beforehand.
This requirement can be one of the most impactful. Be sure to be respectful of the other scout you are talking with and do your best to understand their identity and what makes them special.
Requirement 7
Identify and interview an individual in your community, school, and/or Scouting who has had a significant positive impact in promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. If you feel your community, school, or local Scouting group does not have such an individual, then research a historical figure who meets these criteria, and discuss that person with your counselor.
a. Discover what inspired the individual, learn about the challenges they faced, and share what you feel attributed to their success.
b. Discuss with your counselor what you learned and how you can apply it in your life.
This requirement is fairly similar to #2. You might even be able to interview the same person you researched for requirement as people who exhibit ethical leadership often possess other inclusive qualities. If you are interviewing someone, be sure to be respectful of their time and thank them for their insight. I would also recommend, with consent, recording this interaction for reflection afterwards. If you are researching a historical figure, be sure to use reliable sources and first hand accounts where ever possible. The people listed in requirement 2 would all make great figures to research for this requirement.
Requirement 8
With the help of your parent or guardian, study an event that had a positive outcome on how society viewed a group of people and made them feel more welcome. Describe to your counselor the event and what you learned.
There are a countless number of events you could pick for this requirement. Here are a few examples.
- The Civil Rights Movement
- End of Apartheid
- Homosexual people being allowed to be scout leaders
- Feminist Movement
Pick of these or your own idea and do some research on it. This requirement is pretty straight forward.
Requirement 9
Document and discuss with your counselor three or more areas in your life outside of Scouting where you feel you can actively provide stronger leadership in.
a. Making others feel included.
b. Practicing active listening.
c. Creating an environment where others feel comfortable to share their ideas and perspectives.
d. Helping others feel valued for their input and suggestions.
e. Standing up for others.
We all act as leaders in our day to day lives. This requirement aims to further your understanding of being an ethical leader. Reflecting on our actions and working to improve yourself is extremely important. For this requirement I recommend you go through a day and take a mental note of all the times you’re leading in other people. It will probably be more than you think. Then go back and think about how you could better achieve each of the above mentioned criteria in your leadership. Remember that leading through example is a huge part of leadership and simply doing the right thing in front of others could be considered leadership. For example, if you are talking with your friends and someone says something discriminatory, you can lead by example and say that what they said is not okay.
Requirement 10
Discuss with your counselor how stereotyping people can be harmful, and how stereotypes can lead to prejudice and discrimination. Share ideas you have for challenging assumptions and celebrating individuality.
Here is another very straight forward requirement. Stereotyping is making assumptions about people based off of one of their identities. This is harmful because it reduces people to just their displayed identity and takes away their individuality. Think about you would feel if someone stereotyped you. Create a plan for how you can avoid stereotyping and help educate others to do the same.
Requirement 11
Scouting strives to develop young people to be future leaders in their workplaces, schools, and community environments. As you look at your current involvement in school, your family, Scouting, your job, and/or community, think about how you can have a positive impact in diversity, equity, and inclusion.
a. Describe your ideas on how you can and will support others with different identities to feel included and heard at your school, workplace, and/or social settings in your community.
b. Explain how including diverse thoughts and opinions from others with different identities can: • Make your interactions more positive. • Help everyone benefit by considering different opinions.
c. Give three examples of how limiting diverse input can be harmful.
d. Give three examples of how considering diverse opinions can lead to innovation and success.
This requirement really ties everything we’ve learned together. Lets go through it step by step.
11a – When talking about this requirement, I would mention things like ethical leadership and inclusion. Maybe give a specific example of something you will change after taking this merit badge. It could be something as small as trying a different cultures cuisine or being an upstander at school.
11b – Think about how diversity expands your viewpoint and can give new perspective. Have you ever been stuck on something and then a new person comes up and says something you never thought of? How can new perspectives help you be more successful?
11c – Here you could give a wide variety of examples. Historical examples, personal examples, hypothetical examples, or modern examples.
11d – The contrary to 11c, I would recommend thinking of at least one historical example. Innovation is rarely done alone. Expand your view point. Maybe give a personal example for school or something that is happening with diverse people today.
Conclusion
Phew… that was a long one. I hope this guide was helpful to you. If you think I missed anything feel free to contact me through the contact form. I would be happy to hear from you :). Wishing you the best on your path to eagle!