Who we are

KISC Association & Foundation

The 'Scouts International Home' Association was founded with the Centre in 1923 and has since then developed into the 'Kandersteg International Scout Centre' Association.

The Association has currently over 600 members in almost 50 countries around the world. The Association is a non-political, non-profit and non-denominational organisation (see the Statutes of KISC Association). The members range from individuals to National Scout Organisations or businesses. Being an Association Member means contributing to the development of young people by enabling KISC to run its operations. Download the latest Annual report of the KISC Association in English, and in German.

General Assembly

The General Assembly of the KISC Association is open to all its members and is held every two years at KISC  to decide the overall direction of the Centre. 

It is during this meeting that we report on the operations of the past years, approve the accounts, elect members of the Committee, as well as take strategic and governance decisions. The last General Assembly was held in 2022.

Committee 

The committee currently consists of 18 people, and can include up to 3 additional co-opted members for specific work.

Every four years, during the General Assembly, Members of the Association elect 12 Members of the Committee - six National Scout Organisation representative and six individual members. Four seats are fixed for respective bodies. The Committee is responsible for reviewing the Centre on a regular basis and aiding in the development and future policies of the Centre.

Policies

Over 12’000 Scouts and Guides visit Kandersteg International Scout Centre every year.

The success of the Centre is based on many factors and a very important one is the ability to keep scouts safe from harm. To ensure the commitment of the Centre to create a safe environment for children and young people, the KISC Association Committee has compiled several documents and policies that address potential risks to keeping our guests and staff safe from any kind of harm. They are developed, maintained and updated individually, with the aim of contributing to the overall safety of our guests and staff at the Centre.

Safe from Harm Policy

Read more about contents of Safe from Harm Policy here:

• Risk Management Policy 
• Child Safeguarding Policy
• Alcohol Policy (Guests)
• Alcohol Policy (Staff) – an internal document
• Framework for living at KISC (Staff) – an internal document
• Kitchen Hygiene Policy – an internal document

Environmental Policy

Our Environmental Policy is designed to minimise our impact on the environment,  be that locally or globally (i.e. the reduction of harmful emissions from our buildings and vehicles). Our Environmental Team, also made up of Long and Short Term Staff, regularly analyse and audit our performance, giving ideas on how we could lessen our impact. Read here more about it.

Privacy Policy

Kandersteg International Scout Centre considers your privacy of the utmost importance and we take due care of the security, integrity and confidentiality of your personal data. Answers on questions about what type of data we collect from you, what we are using it for and where we store them can be found in our Privacy Policy. 

Code of Ethics 

Purpose 

The purpose of this Code of Ethics (CoE) is to ensure that everyone who contributes in any way to KISC Centenary celebrations is treated with respect, dignity, and equality, without prejudice or discrimination. 

Correlation with the Sustainable Development Goals: 

This CoE responds to two Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): 

• SDG 10: Less Inequalities 
• SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions 

Context in Scouting 

Scouting is based on a system of values and ethics. Our founder, Robert Baden-Powell (BP), wanted us all to be equal. For example: 

• We wear a uniform so that there are no social class differences between us. 
• Scouting and Guiding are for everyone equally, regardless of faith, race or nationality. 

This was quite radical in the early 20th century because class differences were very evident, there was no equality between men and women and there was a lot of racial and religious prejudice. 

Thus, B.P incorporated equality into our Movement. Whichever national version of the Scout Law we obey, we promise to respect ourselves and others and treat other Scouts as brothers and sisters in a global family. We promise to be a friend to others and that they can trust us. 

Why have a Code of Ethics? 

We live in a world where ethics remain an ideal that is not always achieved, even amongst Scouts. Different countries have different cultures and attitudes towards equality. Have different laws and customs. Even where laws protect people from specific actions, some people do not respect them or violate them. 

Thus, it is needed to become clear to everyone that BP’s vision of Scouting being a movement of values and ethics, it’s a norm in KISC. 

What does this mean in practice? 

Code of Ethics is that: 

• Every Scout, of any age group, should be treated with equal respect and dignity, regardless of personal characteristics and social, racial, religious, or ethnic background. 
• Every Scout should have equal opportunities to participate in all aspects of KISC Centenary, provided that their personal safety is guaranteed. 
• No one in KISC Centenary shall be allowed to discriminate against or express prejudice against any other person because of their personal characteristics and social, racial, religious, or ethnic background. 

This means: 

• No sexism. 
• No racism. 
• No ageism. 
• No anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, or other religious prejudice. 
• No homophobia or transphobia. 
• No discrimination against people with disabilities or mental illness. 
• No discrimination based on social class. 

To ensure that a Code of Ethics is followed, it is accompanied by a Code of Conduct.