Girl Scouts of the USA Marks 100 Years of World Thinking Day with a Friendship-Driven Effort to Help Connect Girls across the World
On World Thinking Day, Girl Scouts and Girl Guides celebrate global friendship and mark the 100th anniversary with a special award and commemorative fun patch.
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NEW YORK (Feb. 19, 2026) — On February 22, Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) is marking the 100th anniversary of World Thinking Day, a day dedicated to helping girls expand their perspectives, reflect on their world and take action on the causes they care about. Each year, World Thinking Day centers on a heartfelt theme chosen based on issues relevant to Girl Scouts and Girl Guides. This year’s theme, “Our Friendship,” makes the celebration even more special by encouraging girls to explore their Girl Scout community and celebrate the friendships that connect them worldwide.
Connection has never been more important. Loneliness is affecting people of all ages, including nearly 70% of girls ages 5–13 according to recent research from GSUSA and Wakefield Research, making this World Thinking Day’s focus on friendship especially vital. On February 22, 10.8 million Girl Scouts and Girl Guides from 153 countries will unite to embody Girl Scout Global Citizenship and honor what connects them: friendship, sisterhood and global action.
“World Thinking Day has long served as a meaningful moment for Girl Scouts and Girl Guides to broaden their perspectives and strengthen their bonds to one another by spotlighting moments from across the movement that show what global connection looks like in action,” said GSUSA Chief Experience Officer Danielle Shockey. “It also reflects the collective work girls do to improve their communities and the world around them. This year’s theme, ‘Our Friendship,’ highlights the lasting bonds girls build through Girl Scouting and the sense of belonging that helps them grow into courageous, confident leaders who uplift others.”
First celebrated in 1926 at Camp Edith Macy in New York, and the last Girl Scout gathering attended by GSUSA founder Juliette Gordon Low just one year before her passing, World Thinking Day has become a cornerstone of the international Girl Scouting and Guiding Movement. What began as a moment to ‘think of each other’ has grown into an annual celebration that encourages girls to step into their roles as confident global citizens, leading with curiosity, courage and compassion.
This year, girls will explore the lasting impact of friendship through thoughtful, hands‑on activities like interviewing fellow Girl Scouts, talking to people from a variety of cultures and participating in troop or council events. Girls will also have the opportunity to earn this year’s commemorative World Thinking Day award, a fun way to mark the occasion and celebrate the friendships that unite Girl Scouts and Girl Guides everywhere. They can also collect the special 100 Years of World Thinking Day Fun patch, which honors a century of the global celebration.
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