International Union of Guides and Scouts of Europe


The International Union of the Guides and Scouts of Europe - Federation of Scouts of Europe is a traditional faith-based Scouting organization with 20 member associations in 17 European countries and also in North America, serving roughly 65,000 members. The organization, headquartered in France, was founded in 1956 by a group of German and French Roman Catholic Scoutmasters as a faith-based Scouting movement, in order to reconcile the European peoples in the aftermath of the Second World War.
In the Member organizations both boys and girls can be members, but are strictly separated in all age groups, except sometimes in the otters. Member organizations are preferably single faith, local groups must be single faith, most are Roman Catholic.
The Confederation of European Scouts is a split off of the UIGSE, it left after controversies about the importance of religious elements in the single associations' programs and co-education.

History

The Catholic Scouting tradition was started by Father Jacques Sevin, Count Mario di Carpegna, professor Jean Corbisier and others. The Federation of Scouts of Europe was founded in Europe in 1956 as a Catholic Scouting European organization in Cologne, Germany. From 1962 to 1968 under the direction of Perig and Lizig Géraud-Keraod, the FSE revised the association's constitution, drafted the Charter of the Natural and Christian Principles of European Scouting and drafted a new federal statute. The statute adopted its current name and acknowledged its "belonging to the Catholic Church". In 2003, the Holy See's Pontifical Council for the Laity granted the organization five year recognition status as a Private International Association of Faithful of Pontifical Right, and, in 2008, it granted the organization a Decree of recognition.

Governance

The UIGSE governing organization include a federal council, a federal bureau and a federal commission. The federal council is made up of member associations representatives and meets yearly to make changes in the programs and the guidelines, determining addition or expulsion of member associations, adopt the organization budget and appointment of federal bureau members and other committees or working groups.
The federal bureau consists of the president, the vice president, and the secretary of the federal council plus the federal commissioner. Consultative voting members of the bureau are the spiritual advisor and the deputy commissioners. General management is handled by the bureau.
The Commission is the day-to-day management of the organization headed by the federal commissioner. The organization publishes Nouvelles de notre Fraternité, a quarterly newsletter and Lettre aux Commissaires généraux, a quarterly liaison newsletter.

Member organizations

Associations of other churches or ecclesial communities may be accepted by the UIGSE-FSE council as associate members.
CountryAssociationFoundedMembersStatus
Austria1981100full member
Belarus2000300full member
Belgium19631,800full member
CanadaAssociation Evangelique du Scoutisme au Quebec associated
Canada
The United States of America		Federation of North-American Explorers 19991100candidate
Czech RepublicAsociace skautek a skautů Evropy 50candidate
FranceAssociation des Guides et Scouts d'Europe 195832,000full member
GermanyEvangelische Pfadfinderschaft Europas 1977300associated
GermanyKatholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas 19762,500full member
Republic of IrelandGuides and Scouts of Europe – Ireland201962observer
ItalyAssociazione Italiana Guide e Scouts d'Europa Cattolici 197620,000full member
Lithuania1992200candidate
Luxembourg2016candidate
Mexico2011100observer
Netherlands2014candidate
Poland1982/19905029full member
Portugal1979200full member
RomaniaCercetaşii Creştini Români din Federaţia Scoutismu-lui European 1991500full member
RussiaORYuR/Организации Российских Юных Разведчиков – The Organization of Russian Young Pathfinders19902,500associated
Slovakia2003candidate
Spain1978500full member
Switzerland1977250full member
Ukraine1997/2011candidate
United KingdomGuides and Scouts of Europe - U.K.2014observer

Organizations need at least 200 members to become a full member of the UIGSE.
Beyond these organisations, the UIGSE-FSE maintains good relations with several other scout organisations or small scout realities in different countries on an informal basis. UIGSE units also operate in the Republic of Ireland, United States, Argentina.