| Type: | Organization |
| InterAmerican Scout Region | |
| Headquarters: | Ciudad del Saber, Panama |
| Owner: | World Organization of the Scout Movement |
| Website: | https://www.scout.org/interamerica |
The Interamerican Region is the divisional office of the World Scout Bureau of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, headquartered in Ciudad del Saber, Panama. The Interamerican Region services Scouting in the Western Hemisphere, both North and South America. Until the 1960s, the "Inter-American Scout Advisory Committee" serviced only Mexico, Central and South America, with Canada and the United States serviced through the then-named "Boy Scouts International Bureau" in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.[1] Even today, the Interamerican Region exists more for the benefit of countries south of the Rio Grande, as evidenced by the website being only in Spanish until 2011; consequently, the United States and Canada did not participate as vigorously in regional activities as do other national organizations around the world, however this is changing in the 2010s.
The headquarters of the Interamerican Region moved progressively southward from its inception until 2010, starting in Havana, Cuba, from 1946 to 1960; moving briefly to Kingston, Jamaica, in 1960; immediately relocating to Mexico City, Mexico, between 1960 and 1968; then to San José, Costa Rica, between 1968 and 1992; Santiago, Chile, from 1992 to 2010, most recently relocating to Ciudad del Saber, Panama.
The Scouts of the nations in the Caribbean basin host their own subregional jamborees.
The Interamerican Region contains one of the five countries with no Scouting organization, Cuba, due to political constraints within the country.
This region is the counterpart of the Western Hemisphere Region of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS).
The needs of Scout youth in the Region in unusual situations has created some interesting permutations, answerable directly to the World Scout Bureau. For years there was an active Boy Scouts of the United Nations with several troops at Parkway Village in New York City, with but 14 members in 1959. Also directly registered to the World Bureau were the 900 member International Boy Scouts of the Canal Zone.[2]
The Interamerican Scout Committee is the agency that directs and manages the Region based on the objectives, policies and lines of action established by the Interamerican Scout Conference.
The purpose of the committee is:
The committee is composed of eight elected members so that there is no more than one member of the same National Scout Organization. These members serve on a voluntary basis, serve three years in their positions. The Regional Director of the Interamerican Scout Organization is the Executive Secretary of the Committee.
Currently (2022 - 2025[3]) the 10 members are:
| Position | Name | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Member | Raúl Brusco | Uruguay | |
| Member | Rubem Tadeu Perlingeiro | Brasil | |
| Member | Mark Chalouhi | Canada | |
| Member | Jorge Arturo Leon | Mexico | |
| Member | Pablo Nieto | Peru | |
| Member | Lyda Pavón Avilés | Ecuador | |
| Member | Meghan Pierson | United States | |
| Member | José Vargas | Bahamas | |
| Youth Advisor | Miguel Ángel Calle Rodriguez | Ecuador | |
| Youth Advisor | Matheus Vallois Serra | Brazil | |
| President of the Interamerican Scout Foundation | Steve Kent | Uruguay | |
| Regional Treasurer | Ajey Chandra | United States | |
| Regional Director | Diana Carillo | Mexico |
The Region has run or sponsored region-wide jamborees in its member countries. Past Jamborees include:
The Interamerican Scout Conference, the highest body in the Region, is made up of delegates from member National Scout Organizations (NSOs) and meets every three years.
The purpose of the Conference is:
The World Scout authorities and observers from various governmental and non-governmental organizations, national and international, who have common interests with the Scout Movement, are invited to the Conference. Each NSO has the right to vote in the Conference sessions, and if one can not attend, the voting right can be given to another NSO.
| Year | Event | Dates | Location | Participating NSOs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | 1st Interamerican Scout Conference[4] | May 27 - June 2 | Bogota | 19 |
| 1948 | 2nd Interamerican Scout Conference | May 3–8 | Mexico City | 11 |
| 1953 | 3rd Interamerican Scout Conference | February 20–25 | Havana | 16 |
| 1957 | 4th Interamerican Scout Conference | February 22–27 | Rio de Janeiro | 17 |
| 1961 | 5th Interamerican Scout Conference | February 22–27 | Caracas | 15 |
| 1964 | 6th Interamerican Scout Conference | August 26–29 | Kingston | 18 |
| 1968 | 7th Interamerican Scout Conference | July 24–29 | San Salvador | 24 |
| 1972 | 8th Interamerican Scout Conference | August 11 | Lima | 18 |
| 1974 | 9th Interamerican Scout Conference | August 5–9 | Miami | 25 |
| 1976 | 10th Interamerican Scout Conference | August 24–28 | Mexico City | 17 |
| 1978 | 11th Interamerican Scout Conference | June 5–9 | Guatemala City | 23 |
| 1980 | 12th Interamerican Scout Conference | October 10–19 | Santiago | 24 |
| 1982 | 13th Interamerican Scout Conference | July 25–31 | Nassau | 21 |
| 1984 | 14th Interamerican Scout Conference | September 4–8 | Curitiba | 22 |
| 1986 | 15th Interamerican Scout Conference | July 20–26 | Port of Spain | 22 |
| 1988 | 16th Interamerican Scout Conference | September 18–23 | Buenos Aires | 22 |
| 1990 | 17th Interamerican Scout Conference | September 18–23 | Montevideo | 17 |
| 1992 | 18th Interamerican Scout Conference | July 12–17 | San Jose | 27 |
| 1995 | 19th Interamerican Scout Conference | September 4–8 | Cartagena | 22 |
| 1998 | 20th Interamerican Scout Conference | March 22–27 | Guadalajara | 22 |
| 2001 | 21st Interamerican Scout Conference | September 24–28 | Cochabamba | 33 |
| 2004 | 22nd Interamerican Scout Conference | July 21 - August 4 | San Salvador | 30 |
| 2007 | 23rd Interamerican Scout Conference | November 23–28 | Quito | 25 |
| 2010 | 24th Interamerican Scout Conference | August 14–19 | Panama City | |
| 2013 | 25th Interamerican Scout Conference | September 14–21 | Buenos Aires | |
| 2016 | 26th Interamerican Scout Conference | October 24–28 | Houston | 29 |
| 2018 | 27th Interamerican Scout Conference | November 27–30 | Panama City | 28 |
| 2022 | 28th Interamerican Scout Conference | November 26 | Ciudad del Este | |
The Interamerican Leadership Training (ILT) is a Leadership Training Course in the Interamerican Region of the World Organization of the Scout Movement. Sponsored by the Messengers of Peace program, the training course goals are to strengthen Scouting in IAR through a collaborative effort of sharing, networking, training, and support. The course is held once a year hosted by one of the National Scout Organizations (NSOs) of the Region. The selected NSO is awarded the rights to host the ILT two years in a row.
| Year | Event | Location | Participating NSOs | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Pilot Interamerican Leadership Training | Camp Strake, Texas | 32 | December 26, 2013 - January 1, 2014 | |
| 2014 | 2nd Interamerican Leadership Training | Galveston, Texas | 32 | December 27, 2014 - January 2, 2015 | |
| 2015 | 3rd Interamerican Leadership Training | Guatemala City | 30 | December 28, 2015 - January 3, 2016 | |
| 2016 | 4th Internamerican Leadership Training | Guatemala City | 31 | December 28, 2016 - January 3, 2017 | |
| 2017 | 5th Internamerican Leadership Training | Quito | December 28, 2017 - January 4, 2018 | ||
| 2018 | 6th Internamerican Leadership Training | Quito | December 28, 2018 - January 4, 2019 | ||
| 2019 | 7th Internamerican Leadership Training | Panama City | December 26, 2019 - January 2, 2020 | ||
| 2020 | 8th Internamerican Leadership Training | Panama City |
The Youth of the Americas Award is the only award conferred by the Interamerican Scout Committee. The award is given to persons who have made an impact at the international level.[5]