Every year, our guide and scout centers are visited by youth who enjoy life on a camp site. For many, memories and impressions of this time stays for a life time. Scout centers are unique also because we meet so many youth who isn’t part of the movment. It’s at our centers they too get to experience and meet part of scouting. A scout center is a place where scouting meets society.
The Goose Network is an idéa. The idéa that as flying gees in a V-formation together goes longer than alone, we too have choosen that way. That’s why being an informal network is at our core. That’s why we take turns organizing all events every year. We know every center can’t contribute equally, but the point is, and this is important: as centers we can help other centers improve and as they improve they can help others too. We sometimes even offer help to centers outside the network and of course, we love to learn from such centers as well. We all can learn, we should always learn. That’s what we expect of our scouts, so it must be true for us too.
In the beginning it was said that we aim to improve the quality of environmental, nature and cultural activities at European Scout and Guide Centers by sharing ideas, activities and information but in reality, we are very open to where help is needed.
There is also an understated principle in the way the Goose Network operates. We do a lot for the youth who sign up to be staff at our centers. Our camp staff seminar and staff exchange is very appreciated as is the international centers day.
Guiding document(s)
Our guiding document is the Mission Statement, look under Official documents.
Getting in contact with us
In order to get in contact with us, please see the Contact Info page or the listings of the centers within the network.
How to Join the Network
The Goose Network is an informal network, not a club or an organization. The first step is to get to know some people within the network. You should also have an idéa of where your center are, where you are going and how the network can help you and how you can help others.
We do expect centers in the network to be active in the network and we aim to be about 20 active centers, mostly with no more than two centers in each country in order to promote diversity.
Just because you aren’t in the network doesn’t mean the network can’t help. It all depends. We all want scouting to grow.
If you don’t know where to start, contacting the network coordinator is a good idea.
The more ‘formal’ process for joining the network is in the mission statement.
Brief History
The network was initiated during the 7th European Scout and Guide Center Managers Conference (CMC) at Burg Rieneck in 2001, and it is closely linked to the CMC.
Most of the founding centers are still in the network and more centers have joined. We are currently very close to the size envisioned at the outset as optimal for really being able to be of help to the community of scout centers, staff and in the big picture – youth everywhere.
Here is the full list of member centers.
Every two years we elect the coordinating center for the two next years.
Past and present Goose Network Managers
2019-2021 Tobias Simonsen, Houens Odde (DK) & Carlos Santos, Sao Jacinto (PT)
2017-2019 Ewoud Vielvoije-Mol, Buitenzorg(NL)
2015-2017 Maiken Nielsen, Næsbycenter (DK)
2014-2015, Myriam Heidelberg, Kandersteg International Scout Centre (CH), stand-in: Martin Eliasson.
2012-2014, Martin Eliasson, Vässarö (SE)
2010-2012, Sally Thornton, Our Chalet (CH)
2008-2010, Mark Knippenberg, Kandersteg International Scout Centre (CH)
2004-2008, Ingeborg van Dijk, Buitenzorg (NL)
2002-2004, Torben Stenstrup, Næsbycentret (DK)
Goose Network 