Right here’s a fast lowdown on Dwayne Fields, the British explorer who was named because the eleventh Chief Scout this week.
Who’s it? Dwayne Fields. He’s a British explorer who’s the primary Black Briton to succeed in the Magnetic North Pole, and the second Black particular person on this planet, after Matthew Henson, who did it in 1909.
Why is he within the information? Fields has simply been appointed as the subsequent Chief Scout.
The what? The Chief Scout is a ceremonial figurehead of the Scouting Affiliation. Began in 1907 by Robert Baden-Powell, the Scouts has grown to be one of the crucial widespread world youth actions that teaches youngsters out of doors expertise reminiscent of tenting, climbing and woodcrafts.
Who else has been Chief Scout? Fields is the eleventh Chief Scout of the Scouting Affiliation, the UK division of Scouting that stems from the unique concept by Baden-Powell. Unsurprisingly, Baden-Powell appointed himself the primary Chief Scout till his loss of life in 1941.
Most lately, the tenth Chief Scout was Bear Grylls, a British adventurer who used his former profession within the SAS to carve out a profession in tv as a survival professional. Grylls took over the position in 2009 aged 35, making him the youngest particular person to tackle the position. He steps down from the position having served the second-longest time period, solely behind Baden-Powell.
Why Dwayne Fields? Identical to Bear Grylls earlier than him, Dwayne Fields has some critical adventuring pedigree. In 2010, he walked the 400 nautical mile journey to succeed in the magnetic North Pole, for which he was invited to satisfy the Queen at Buckingham Palace and was awarded The Freedom of the Metropolis of London by the Lord Mayor.
Why is Dwayne Fields’ appointment vital? Fields is the primary Black particular person to tackle the position of Chief Scout within the organisation’s 117 yr historical past. He was born in Jamaica and moved to the UK when he was six years outdated. Rising up in London, he joined the Scouts quickly after shifting to the nation.
“I by no means thought I belonged anyplace till the second I walked into that hut,” Fields advised the BBC about his first time at a Scout assembly in Palmers Inexperienced, north London.
Fields has additionally confronted tribulations and was the sufferer of knife and gun crime in his youth however believes the Scouts supplied him “new horizons”. He’s mentioned that he desires to develop the Scout motion within the UK to encourage at-risk youth into “unlocking their potential”.
“There are plenty of teams and communities who nonetheless suppose that possibly scouting isn’t for them and I’m hoping that they’ll have a look at me and say, ‘Properly, really, I’ve one thing in widespread with that man – he grew up the place I grew up, he seems like me. If scouting is for him, it’s for me as nicely’,” he mentioned.