The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has announced a new educational program to raise awareness about the value of copyrights among the over 52,000 Boy Scouts in the greater Los Angeles area.

The MPAA worked with the Los Angeles Area Boy Scouts to form a curriculum that met the approval of troop leaders. The curriculum is designed to teach participants about copyright theft and various forms of piracy, how to identify counterfeit CDs/DVDs, the consequences of film and music piracy, and why protecting copyrights is important to them and to the local economy.

‚ÄúThe Respect Copyrights patch is a fun way for young kids to learn more about the what goes into making movies while garnering a deep appreciation for creative works and the importance of copyright protection,” said Victor Zuniga, Los Angeles Area Council Public Relations Director for the Boy Scouts of America.

‚ÄúOne of the most important tools we have to fight piracy is education and I commend the Los Angeles area Boy Scouts for working with us to help raise awareness about piracy among their troops in Los Angeles.‚Äù said MPAA CEO MPAA Dan Glickman. “Working with the Boy Scouts of Los Angeles, we have a real opportunity to educate a new generation about how movies are made, why they are valuable, and hopefully change attitudes about intellectual property theft,‚Äù he added.

Troops can choose from a number of activities that qualify them to earn a “Respect Copyrights” patch. Activities include creating a public service announcement that demonstrates the importance of copyright protection or visiting a movie studio to learn about the people, time and costs required to make a movie and others.

The Boy Scouts program is part of a larger MPAA education initiative which includes other efforts to raise awareness among young children and their influencers through programs like Wired Kids and Weekly Reader.