I’ve been a Scout Leader for over 15 years. In that time I’ve seen young people arrive at Scout meetings looking like they’d rather be anywhere else and then completely transform the moment we get them outside. That transformation never gets old.
But here’s the honest truth: it’s getting harder to get them there in the first place.
Screen time is up. Time outdoors is down. Anxiety around new experiences is more common than it’s ever been. And as Scout Leaders, we feel that every single week.
So when I heard that people are seriously exploring how AI and VR could help encourage more children into nature, I didn’t roll my eyes. I leaned in.
The Problem Isn’t That Kids Don’t Like Nature
Last May bank holiday I took my Scouts on an expedition from our Scout Hall in London to Brownsea Island, the birthplace of Scouting in Poole Harbour. Delayed trains, a fallen tree on the line, a 2.5-hour bank holiday scramble. We got there eventually.
The following week I asked them what they’d actually got from the trip. Here’s what they said:
– Being out in nature and away from the city
– Spotting a red squirrel for the first time
– That feeling of not knowing where they were and finding it exciting rather than unsettling
– The beach. Skimming stones. Hunting for crabs.
– Freedom from the city.
Not one of them mentioned their phones. Not one!!
Scouts aren’t hardwired to prefer screens over Oak Trees and Wildlife. They just need someone or something to get them there. That’s where I think AI comes in.
AI as the Bridge, Not the Barrier
Think about the Scouts who never make it to a trip like Brownsea. Not because they don’t want to, but because they’re anxious about the unknown, disconnected from anything green, or simply can’t picture themselves in that location.
What if AI and VR could change that? A young person who can virtually walk Brownsea Island before they arrive, see the forest and the wildlife that lives there, explore the trails, get a feel for what’s waiting for them, is going to step off that ferry excited rather than nervous. That shift is everything.
And once they’re there? AI can deepen what they experience. An app that identifies the bird they just heard singing. A tool that unlocks the history of the ground they’re standing on. I already use AI for programme planning my Scout sessions, it’s something I talk about over on Big Man in the Woods and the same logic applies in the field. Technology that points outward, toward the natural world, rather than pulling attention away from it.
On my YouTube channel I’ve seen this play out already. Videos like “Leaf Bashing — The Nature Activity Scouts Actually Love” get leaders excited about outdoor activities, which gets kids outside. Digital content and real-world experience feeding each other. That’s the model.
What This Could Look Like in Practice
I’m not talking about replacing outdoor education with a headset. I’m talking about using technology to do what good Scout Leaders already do: lower the barrier, spark the curiosity, and then get out of the way and let nature do the rest.
Some ideas that genuinely excite me:
– VR previews of outdoor destinations, so anxious Scouts and even Adult Volunteers arrive prepared, not overwhelmed
– AI nature ID tools that turn a walk into a living adventure — birds, plants, leaves, all identified in real time
– Storytelling tech that brings history to life at places like Brownsea Island,because a flagpole alone isn’t enough
– VR games that you play outdoors,a bit like Pokémon Go, but built around nature and real environments
None of that is science fiction. Most of it exists already in some form. What’s missing is joined-up thinking about how to put it in the hands of the people who work with young people every week.
The Goal Stays the Same
At the end of the day, no algorithm can replicate the feeling of skimming a stone across Poole Harbour for the first time. Or climbing the tallest Oak Tree in the woods. Or standing on the tallest hill overlooking a lake.
But if AI and VR can get more young people to the point where they’re standing in that forest, curious, engaged, and nowhere near their phones, then I’m all for it. As I said in “The Real Reason I Love Being a Scout Leader”, it always comes back to that moment when a young person finds something outside themselves they didn’t know they were looking for.
Technology won’t create that moment. But it might just be what gets them there.
Further Reading & Videos
Big Man in the Woods — Website | YouTube Channel | Programme Ideas & AI in Scouting
Visit to Brownsea Island (video) | Hidden Gems: Scout Camp Ideas (video) | Leaf Bashing Nature Activity (video)
Step Into the Unknown — blog | Why Adults Volunteer in Scouting | The Real Reason I Love Being a Scout Leader (video)
Technology won’t replace the outdoors. But used right, it might be exactly what gets this generation there.
1 Comment
Great post. I do think the whole area of technology in scouting needs exploring a bit. There was post a while back about phones and I was quite shocked (and a little depressed) at how many people commented that they have a strict “no phones” policy. At a macro level, being able to use a phone as a tool and not misuse it is a key life skill that the youth are going to need in adulthood so surely that is something they should learn through scouting.
At the micro level there are lots of opportunities to use them to improve their experience. I totally agree that apps like Merlin Bird ID can transform a hike that is a boring drudge into an amazing learning experience. I’ve never considered that to be AI as it runs off line and doesn’t need much processing power, but perhaps that doesn’t matter. I’ve no problem with them using Pokemon Go, several of the mountains near us have Pokestops at the top. If getting that virtual postcard in their postcard book is what motivates them to hike 700m to the top, I’m all for it! Obviously we don’t want them spending the whole hike looking at their phone, but this is part of them learning how to use it effectively. I used MapRun to set an orienteering course for them last week without the need to put any physical markers out which made it much easier for me. It was so cool to see how the youth got really excited when their phone ‘beeped’ each time they navigated to the control point. Some of them even started running! I don’t think that everything needs to be done on a phone (obviously) but ‘no phones’ seems like it needlessly limits the program.
The one thing that I do find genuinely sad about ‘no phones’ is that this means that the youth don’t have access to a camera. They have no way of recording all those amazing scouting adventures for later. Memories fade, but photos can be a powerful reminder for them. I genuinely think that we are missing this.
I do also wonder what we have replaced the ‘learn how to use a payphone with 2p’ that I did in cubs with these day!
Anyway, great post again and lots to think about.