Embarking on a global journey: a Jamboree on Tour
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World Tour of the Scout Movement
If we were to choose a starting point for the World Tour of the Scout Movement, rather than using Germany, we would need to go back to the World Scout Jamboree 2019 in the United States. Five German Scouts, Sebastian, Isabelle, Lukas, Fabian and Tobias, had been involved with the German contingent several times and believed in how Jamborees could break down prejudices and promote peace. Inspired by this, they envisioned a new project that they would call the ‘World Tour of the Scout Movement’ that would bring their Jamboree experience to a broader audience by travelling and engaging with different cultures globally.
And so, the idea became a reality. Five Scouts, along with two additions (Lena and Anna-Lena), and a cultural scientist, Marion Nöldeke, formed the team behind the World Tour of the Scout Movement, which includes media experts, project managers, and travel professionals. Anna-Lena and Sebastian, together with their daughter, would be the ones travelling while everyone else in the team would provide support from home and join them at later stages. In 2020, they wrote the concept for the project and presented it for the first time to their National Scout Organization.
Mapping the journey
The ‘World Tour of the Scout Movement’ is a German Scouts initiative that will travel around the world to different Scout associations. Departing on 7 May 2024, the tour set off from Germany, charting a course through southern Europe to the Middle East. From Central Asia, the team would proceed to China and Southeast Asia, then cross to South America and drive north to Canada. Their mobile home, a refurbished Mercedes Benz 1222, will take them to more than 20 countries and engage in the broadest range of intercultural encounters possible. However, the current geopolitical situation poses a significant challenge, as finding a stable route to navigate the world safely has proven difficult.
Their goal for the next year is clear, they want to promote international tolerance in all areas they travel to. While travelling to 20 different countries, they will use social media as their dissemination platform and a website where they will also share the content created throughout the journey. The materials created will be accompanied by instructions on how to use them for educational purposes.
Another challenge is the financing of the project. While the majority is funded through private means, the team has sought support from foundations and sponsors for technology and shipping costs. Despite these efforts, additional funds are needed, especially for the second half of the tour.
Throughout the journey, we want to enable encounters between people of different cultural backgrounds. We will do this by getting to know people and individual cultural aspects in the different countries on site and sharing these encounters with others via digital media. Countries worldwide are travelled based on a set route and presented with country contributions. The resulting image of cultural diversity and cosmopolitanism should serve as a positive example to generally encourage more tolerance, international understanding and peaceful coexistence.
Sebastian Schmitt
Scout
Austria is the first stop, where the team has engaged with over 550 Rovers and Rangers at the Pentecost camp. Following this event, they will meet Scouts in Croatia and Montenegro. The anticipation is high among Scouts worldwide, who are eager to welcome the team and share in the cultural exchange.