The Associazione Guide e Scouts Cattolici Italiani is a CatholicScouting and Guiding association in Italy. It is coeducational and has 183,638 members, including 32,898 leaders, 1,952 groups and 6,333 units, making it the country's largest Scout association. AGESCI was formed in 1974 upon the merger of the Associazione Scouts Cattolici Italiani and the Associazione Guide Italiane. Some ASCI and AGI leaders, who had disagreed with the merger and had refused to join AGESCI, formed the Associazione Italiana Guide e Scouts d'Europa Cattolici in 1976, along with disgruntled members of the early AGESCI. Since 1986, AGESCI has formed, along with the 12,000-strong non-denominational Corpo Nazionale Giovani Esploratori ed Esploratrici Italiani, the Italian Scout Federation, Italy's national member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement and the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. Affiliated to AGESCI are the Südtiroler Pfadfinderschaft, the Catholic association of the German-speaking minority in South Tyrol, and the Slovenska Zamejska Skavtska Organizacija serving Slovenes in Friuli-Venezia Giulia. In 1986 Pope John Paul II was given the Wood Badge insignia as honorary AGESCI leader.
Organisation
AGESCI has a federal structure, composed of regional sections, provincial/diocesan sections and local groups. The region with more AGESCI members is Veneto, followed by Emilia-Romagna and Lombardy. As a result, 49.2% of AGESCI members are in Northern Italy, 19.6% in Central Italy and 31.2% in Southern Italy and the Isles. Veneto is first also by groups and units. There are three age ranges/units in AGESCI :
L/C: Lupetti and/or Coccinelle, aged 8–11/12, organised into packs.
E/G: Esploratori and Guide, aged 11/12–16, organised into troops and patrols.
R/S: Rover and Scolte, aged 16–21, organised into crews.
Units can be only-male, only-female or coeducational. In the latter case they have to be led by a male leader and a female leader. Mono-sex E/G units are quite frequent. L/C mono-sex units are rare and are more likely in regions where the Coccinelle have a strong tradition and presence. Finally, R/S mono-sex units are even rarer. Each group is co-ordinated by two group leaders and directed by a comunità capi, where all adult leaders and at least a priest belong. It meets quite often to plan all educational activities in the group. Its work is driven by a multi-year progetto educativo, which gives a common thread to the programme of all units, ensuring a common focus across all age ranges. Rover scouts and ranger guides may join the leaders' community upon completing their education and leavingthe crew; more specifically, this moment is marked by a ceremony called partenza. In order to be awarded of the Wood Badge, scout leaders need to go through a lengthy training, mainly consisting of three formation camps, as well as a few years of service before, between and after these camps.
