IRVING, TX (October 3, 2024) – Scouting America and Blue Origin’s non-profit Club for the Future announced a collaboration to inspire and prepare young people for careers in the space industry. Together, the organizations will develop innovative programs and resources to mobilize future generations to pursue STEM. Additionally, the collaboration will support the national Space4All initiative that is underway to promote the limitless opportunities associated with space exploration to youth who may otherwise believe that a future in space and STEM is unattainable.
“We are thrilled to partner with Blue Origin’s Club for the Future to inspire the next generation of engineers, scientists, and space explorers, opening up a world of possibilities for our Scouts,” said Roger Krone, president & CEO of Scouting America. “By combining the power of Scouting with the excitement of space exploration, we can create an environment where young people can discover their passions and develop the skills they need to succeed.”
As part of this new alliance, Scouts at the National Order of the Arrow Conference (NOAC) in Boulder, CO, had the opportunity to get up close and personal with a full-scale version of Blue Origin’s New Shepard crew capsule. New Shepard is a reusable suborbital launch vehicle capable of carrying people and payloads to space and back above the Kármán Line, the internationally recognized boundary of space.
“We are proud to align with Scouting America and support its long-term commitment to helping students be better stewards of our planet,” said Michael Edmonds, President of Club for the Future. “This initiative will help these student leaders gain skills that will prepare them for careers in STEM as well as grow their understanding of how harnessing space resources can help preserve and restore Earth for future generations.”
Scouts at the conference also had the opportunity to participate in Club for the Future’s Postcards to Space program. The initiative provides the opportunity for anyone to submit their drawings and messages on a postcard, which are then flown into space aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket. After their flight, the postcards are returned to their creator with a memorable stamp, providing a tangible way to connect youth with the experience of space exploration.
About Scouting America
Scouting America provides the nation’s foremost youth program of character development and values-based leadership training, which helps young people be “Prepared. For Life.®”
Scouting America welcomes all of America’s youth into its programs. Our goal is to give them fantastic experiences in the outdoors, and elsewhere, where they can grow with us in a safe environment. More than 130 million Americans have been through our programs since our founding, and currently more than 1 million youth are served by 477,000 dedicated adult volunteers in local councils throughout the country.
To learn more about Scouting America’s mission, visit Scouting.org.
About Club for the Future
Founded by Blue Origin, Club for the Future is a non-profit with the mission to inspire and mobilize future generations to pursue careers in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) for the benefit of Earth. The Club and its partners are doing this through the Postcards to Space program, providing space-focused lessons and events, and activating ambassadors around the world.
About Space4All
Space4All is a national space STEM awareness campaign, managed through a public-private partnership with four nonprofit organizations – American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Women in Aerospace, Blue Origin’s Club for the Future, and Space Foundation. The campaign aims to inspire, prepare and employ our nation’s future space STEM workforce, with a specific focus on underrepresented communities, by uniting the space industry and space champions from a wide variety of business fields under one core brand. Speaking with one voice, the campaign hopes to attract millions of workers into space STEM careers and spread the excitement of space and its benefits to life on Earth. For more information, visit Space4All.us.
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