Scouting Ireland

Scouting Ireland (Irish: Gasóga na hÉireann) is the sole World Organization of the Scout Movement-recognised Scouting association in the Republic of Ireland; in Northern Ireland it operates alongside The Scout Association of the UK. Scouting Ireland is a voluntary, non-formal educational movement for young people. It is independent, non-political, open to all without distinction of origin, race, creed, sexual orientation, spiritual belief or gender, in accordance with the purpose, principles and method conceived by Lord Baden-Powell and as stated by WOSM.

The aim of Scouting Ireland is to encourage the Social, Physical, Intellectual, Character Emotional, and Spiritual development (known as the SPICES) of young people "so that they may achieve their full potential and as responsible citizens, to improve society". Of the 750,000 people between the ages of 6 and 18 in Ireland, approximately 6% are involved in Scouting Ireland. The organisation was founded on 21 June 2003, after a merger between Scouting Ireland C.S.I. and Scouting Ireland S.A.I.. Its headquarters are at Larch Hill, County Dublin.

Scouting Ireland (CSI)

Scouting Ireland (CSI) was a Catholic Scout Association which operated in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland from 1927 until 2004 when it merged with the former Scout Association of Ireland to form Scouting Ireland. The organisation was founded as the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland before changing its name to the Catholic Scouts of Ireland and ultimately Scouting Ireland (CSI) in anticipation of the creation of a single, all-Ireland association.

History

Scouting in Ireland traces its roots to 1908 and the founding of the Scout Association of Ireland. As it was then part of the British Empire, and later the British Commonwealth, the SAI was affiliated to its British counterpart The Scout Association, sharing a common chief scout in Robert Baden-Powell.

In 1925 and 1926, Father Ernest Farrell, a curate in Greystones, County Wicklow began working with a youth programme loosely modeled on the Scout Method. Under the pen-name "Sagart", he wrote a series of articles in Our Boys, a magazine published by the Christian Brothers, advocating the formation of an official Catholic Scout organisation. This initial group, while more in line with the methods of the Boys' Brigade was viewed as an effective means of imprinting a Catholic ethos on the young men of Ireland. Father Farrell's brother, Father Tom Farrell, a curate in the Pro-Cathedral gave this fledgeling association the backing of the church and its resources. In 1927 the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland was officially founded, with a constitution drawn up and a headquarters from which the association could be organised, clothed and supplied.

Ireland

Ireland (ⁱ/ˈaɪərlənd/; Irish: Éire [ˈeːɾʲə]; Ulster-Scots: Airlann [ˈɑːrlən]) is an island in the North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest on Earth.

Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially named Ireland), which covers five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, and located in the northeast of the island. In 2011 the population of Ireland was about 6.4 million, ranking it the second-most populous island in Europe after Great Britain. Just under 4.6 million live in the Republic of Ireland and just over 1.8 million live in Northern Ireland.

The island's geography comprises relatively low-lying mountains surrounding a central plain, with several navigable rivers extending inland. The island has lush vegetation, a product of its mild but changeable climate which avoids extremes in temperature. Thick woodlands covered the island until the Middle Ages. As of 2013, the amount of land that is wooded in Ireland is about 11% of the total, compared with a European average of 35%. There are 26 extant mammal species native to Ireland. The Irish climate is very moderated and classified as oceanic. As a result, winters are milder than expected for such a northerly area. However, summers are cooler than those in Continental Europe. Rainfall and cloud cover are abundant.

Ireland (disambiguation)

Ireland usually refers to:

Ireland may also refer to:

Former political arrangements of Ireland

Ireland, Bedfordshire

Coordinates: 52°03′36″N 0°20′54″W / 52.06002°N 0.34836°W / 52.06002; -0.34836

Ireland is a hamlet in the civil parish of Southill, Bedfordshire, England.

External links

Media related to Ireland, Bedfordshire at Wikimedia Commons