Cadette Eco Trekker Badge: Make it Fun and Easy
Ready to take your Cadettes on an outdoor adventure with a purpose? Earning the Cadette Eco Trekker Badge is an incredible way for Middle School Girl Scouts to challenge themselves, build essential trail skills, and learn how to protect vulnerable natural spaces.
Planning an eco trek can feel like a lot to coordinate, but it doesn’t have to be overwhelming! To help you lead a successful, stress-free adventure, we’ve broken down all five badge requirements into simple, actionable steps with low-prep activities and resources your girls will love.
Cadette Eco Trekker PDF Badge Requirements
- Learn how to make minimal impact on a trek
- Plan an eco trek with a purpose
- Practice an eco skill on your trek
- Make a difference on your eco trek
- Make a difference after your eco trek
Our exclusive “Random Acts of Eco Kindness” activity grid to help girls practice being kind to the Earth during your meetings, at home, and when outside.
Step 1: Learn how to make a minimal impact on a trek
The 7 Principles of Leave No Trace provide an easily understood framework of minimum impact practices for anyone visiting the outdoors. Visit LNT.org for quizzes, activities, and videos.
Step 2: Plan an eco trek with a purpose
Find out how you can help prevent invasive species from being
introduced into the area. Make a plan for an outdoor trek where you can
explore an invasive species.
Step 3: Practice an eco skill on your trek
From NSF | The Public Health and Safety Organization.
Ensuring your drinking water is clean and safe is a vital skill for any outdoor adventure or emergency situation. Discover the essential techniques and top health standards needed to properly filter and treat water on the trail.
Step 4: Make a difference on your eco trek
Learn about endangered species in your area. Teach your friends and family about the wonderful wildlife, birds, fish and plants that live near you. The first step to protecting endangered species is learning about how interesting and important they are. Our natural world provides us with many indispensable services including clean air and water, food and medicinal sources, commercial, aesthetic and recreational benefits.
➡️ 10 things you can do to protect endangered species in your area.
Step 5: Make a difference after your eco trek
The impact of an eco trek shouldn’t end when you leave the trail. Turn Clean-Up Trash into Advocacy Art: If your troop collected bottle caps, plastic scraps, or clean litter during their trek, don’t just throw it away. Gather the materials to create an eye-catching recycled art display or a trash map to share at a local school or community center to raise awareness about pollution
With these steps in your leader toolkit, your Cadettes are ready to lace up their hiking boots and head out on an unforgettable eco-trek with confidence! Watching them take charge of their own planning and community advocacy is exactly what scouting is all about.
