Above: the Juno logo.
1st. Peace Chaplaincy; Interfaith Mission and Eco Spirituality Chaplaincy celebrated 40 years of service in 2022. The Ministry, benefits co-operative communities, encouraging an increase in thoughtful, mindful and compassionate attitudes. In the diverse society in which we all live, understanding of citizenship and democracy is offered. We work with the spirit whatever the faith. We foster interfaith dialogue between people of different religious traditions and multifaith affinity with aspects of the beliefs and philosophies of Pagan, Heathen, Druid, 1st. Nations, African Animist, Celtic and Saxon Christian and Spiritualist paths. The Chaplaincy offers expertise in spiritual ecology and wider well being programmes, alongside traditional ministry, worship and mysticism. We have found ourselves more in demand than ever, as people report feeling anxious about the social and political turmoil, fighting and war around the world and lack of action on climate change, nature loss, human and animal suffering.
Sharing understanding of justice, citizenship and democracy is an important part of our Juno Project work.
Juno Enterprise Charitable Association was established in Autumn 1984 & was up and running, delivering benefits by 1985. The Association went on to become a registered charity, charity number: 1169031. In Autumn 2024 Juno Enterprise celebrated 40 years of achievements. During that time funding was gained from the National Lottery to deliver a programme: "Out to Learn", it was a huge, popular success
Above: learning about natural and cultural heritage, South Yorkshire
After celebrating the 40th anniversary, it was acknowledged that much had been achieved and sustained over such a long period and all of the charities objectives had been met. With this in mind, the decision was taken to dissolve the charity and wind up the organisation.
However, having worked closely with two partners, Dawn Chorus Educational Initiative CIC & First Peace Chaplaincy on a co-operative partnership called Triple Helix, the chance was offered to acknowledge the historical contribution that had been made by Juno Enterprise Charitable Association, by naming a legacy project: "The Juno Project" to be delivered by First Peace Chaplaincy.
The Chaplaincy’s "Juno Project". We understand that co-operation assists implementation of strong standards. It encourages responsive flexibility; clear, simple achievable & creative concepts. Moral, ethical & meaningful action creates healthy outcomes; local enjoyment & worth. First Peace Chaplaincy Learning Community Networks and Communities of Interest Groups, engage, nurture, motivate, enable, encourage and support learning. Activities aim to increase thoughtful, mindful & compassionate attitudes; multi level community connections & potential.
The Juno Project supports understanding of democracy & governance & fosters skills for participation in decisions that affect communities & impact on our lives & economy. We encourage accessible local democracy, encouraging collective responsibility, to help assure that the basic means of life, growth & development are available for all.
First Peace Chaplaincy works within communities, discussing & exploring how their own resources & destinies can be ethically secured; growing the understanding that life resources, such as water, needed by plants, animals & humans, should be affordable & accessible to all, uncontaminated & sustainably managed.
The Chaplaincy delivers learning in organic plant based food growing, seed saving & propagation, pollination, composting & soil protection. We encourage the development & sharing of innovative low technology solutions by networking information & building co-operation with indigenous communities, in specified international locations. We respect the right of all peoples to seek inclusion in international agreements, especially giving a voice to indigenous peoples on an equal footing with other nations. The Chaplaincy Eco-spirituality programme offers & publicise opportunities & support for all, helping people meet their needs & fulfil their ethical aspirations, showing that enterprise is rooted in & responsible to communities & future generations.
Cindy Bamford, a children’s activity leader in the East Midlands, thanked us for supporting Woodborough Preschool and Little Adventurers Forrest School: “The children are really happy learning and having fun in their natural environment “.
The Chaplaincy's Juno Project offers participation, learning resources, assemblies, deliberations, communication, forums & experience with the potential to increase self determination. Benefits include increase in thoughtful, mindful & compassionate attitudes; opportunity & multi level community connections. For example at the start of Michaelmas Term 2024, our Communities of Interest Learning Groups discussed plans and expectations for the Democracy and Governance Programme, debating concepts of inclusion & involvement, transparency & truth, pluralism & neoliberalism, freedom of speech, the rise of the far right, systems & accountability.
In the course of nurturing learning in environmental protection, the Juno Project also encompass animal welfare, community development, citizenship & democracy, human rights, justice and peace & well-being.
Below: ancient bluebell wood at Launde.
The name: People ask what inspired the name, it derives from the Goddess Juno who is associated with women’s enterprise, regeneration & peacocks. Peacocks appear in the Juno Project logo, with Juno, Cupid (social engagement) & Silvanus (the environment, nature).The motto: “Educate to Rejuvenate: to aid & benefit our communities” is from concepts associated with Juno: iuvare, “to aid, benefit”, iuvenescendo, “to rejuvenate" .
Below: Percy Peacock is our project mascot. Peacocks pulled the chariot of Juno.
1st. Peace Chaplaincy Interfaith Ministry & Eco Spirituality Chaplaincy and our Lyfjaberg initiative: these three elements of chaplaincy's work, perfectly compliment the work of the Juno Project. They nurture connected communities of co-operation, encouraging an increase in thoughtful, mindful and compassionate attitudes; creating opportunities and potential. The Chaplaincy is committed to co-operation in the diverse society in which we all live, offering understanding of citizenship and democracy, justice and peace, as well as exploring interfaith and multifaith issues within a sustainable and healthy community. Our Learning Communities of Interest Networks are a perfect mechanism for delivery.
Our volunteer Andrew says: "the benefits we deliver are seen in our work; meeting people's needs & making a difference in communities"
Above: children on the Dawn Sind project in Pakistan painting Percy, our peacock mascot.
Below: children exploring the natural environment at Clumber Park, Uk.
Above: family activities.
Since 1985 we have developed a range of educational resources & learning opportunities on a range of issues: animal welfare, wellbeing, the arts and cultural and natural heritage. We often help parents, schools and pre-schools to explore nature with children. This supports our eco-spirituality and wellbeing work. We constantly update & expand our learning resources with activities directly linked to Key Stages of the National Curriculum: 1, 2, 3 & GCSE.
Activities engage people of all ages and abilities, from children to academics. The activities seem to help people to value the same natural features needed by wildlife. By protecting such areas in a wild state, for biodiversity, are we not ensuring space in which our children can exercise through physically play, a place to develop social skills and mental agility? We believe that children & young people are the most important resource in our society & we strive to enable them to make a positive contribution.
We recently helped with shelter building and story telling activities for preschool children, brewing up hot chocolate, hammering with wooden mallets, tying ropes, telling stories, practicing communication and teamwork skills and getting lots of fresh air. At Easter 2024, on a visit to Spern Head, children were able to see billions of brown-tail moth caterpillars, barn owls, curlews, stilts & mute swans. Children learn about art in the landscape. Below: colour and texture in nature.
Learning mechanisms used in our programmes:
• Through improving learning pathways & people's learning experience.
• Through engagement & involvement.
• Through inspiring people (for example, to get involved with food growing).
• Through skills support.
• Through engaging teachers & educators.
The Chaplaincy has unprecedented experience in the following areas which we strive to embed into our programme delivery:
Wider key skills and basic skills.
Outdoor and forest experience learning.
Arts education, creative and heritage learning.
Conservation, biodiversity and climate change.
Organic gardening.
Below: exploring textures and touch in nature.
Above: "What is this?" Child's found object, family walking session April 2013.
Above: a pond is a good place for contemplation & observation. Wild places can sustain psychological resilience and wellbeing.
Below: Andrea Wright Preschool Manager.
Below: Children taking part in Earth Day action and learning about responsibilities and sustainability.
Below: toddler looking for ladybirds in an old tree.
At First Peace Chaplaincy we encourage a supportive, nurturing culture, which builds early learning principles and practices based on the real world, to give meaningful, relevant experience. This can lead to positive life long learning patterns, improved confidence and self-direction. We believe that most youngsters want to be respected and trusted and want to co-operate in contributing to the community, in a responsible and sustainable way. We aim to build children's confidence & encourage mentors to experiment with approaches to learning which are filled with vitality & creativity. We use positive affirmations with the children as they create effective self-regulation and give the tools to persevere during troubled or stressful situations, boosting self-esteem and helping create positive mental attitude, thinking and outlook. We encourage Trust Nurturing and PACE parenting, where playfulness, acceptance, curiosity and empathy are key. This Opens communication, helping children to experience being listened to in a safe place. Children then start to explore, discover and learn.
Above: exploring.
We aim to: raise awareness of the vital role played by families in raising levels of attainment. We develop opportunities for parents, carers & guardians to support children and special needs family members. For example as part of our community awareness and well being work, we arranged an event where mental health service users and young people with learning difficulties visited the office of the Nottinghamshire Crime and Police Commissioner.
We work with families in receipt of pupil premium, including adoptive families and forces families. We also integrate these activities with initiatives for those who feel lonely and isolated in our communities. This often leads to intergenerational cooperation and sharing.
We foster involvement and hands on seasonal creative learning activities, which promote an understanding of the power of nature & horticulture; the arts & heritage. this help children to transform their understanding of the world and their communities. One example is our popular annual photographic competitions.
We encourage family access to intergenerational activities, events and play-learning games, to develop compassionate and creative thinking, social responsibility, healthy eating & mental wellbeing, basic skills, understanding of & skills in animal welfare, environmental and social responsibility. For example: community, family and children's cooking sessions are popular.
Below: a little angel, Laxton Church.
We understand that arts activities, stimulate learning and creativity in all academic areas. The arts develop neural systems such as motor skills and emotional balance, aesthetic awareness, cultural awareness, social harmony and appreciation of diversity. Helping children to understand cultural heritage and history, builds self-esteem and pride in place & community. Children who are read stories and who are taught to listen to music become good listeners: in lessons, in relationships, in social care roles and may become more empathetic and compassionate. 2012 saw a 30% contraction in arts funding in the UK, this makes our work even more vital and worthy of support.
Above: exploring the girth of a tree.
We deliver landscape conservation skills development & promoting outdoor education for all ages. We are working hard to help bees and pollinating insects. Our Moth-Watch Challenge had good community participation and turned up many colourful species such as the Poplar Hawk Moth.
Below: found objects.
Below: "discovering the peg" used to mark the strips in the medieval strip farming still practiced at Laxton.
Below: green spaces are important for children.
Our community engagement for all ages, in just one week, helped children's groups to: celebrate heritage festivals, take part in garden bird watching, countryside ID & pond adventures. Our community project on ammonites model making for children and our family kitchen food preserving project, has been important to our communities in lockdown, stimulating the documentation of the memories of participants. First Peace Chaplaincy set up fifteen virtual learning community event forums during lockdown, to promote thinking and awareness on a range of topics. Following this success & by demand, we will maintain this type of engagement as part of our ongoing programme delivery.
In contrast to the virtual world, our real world learning activity outings are popular & range from consideration of medieval stonework in Tickhill, South Yorkshire, to architectural furniture in Grantham & cooperation with SEND Nottingham, who work with hard to reach children and young people in an inner city area. We have been in demand in the community, to support cross-curricular immersive learning: developing compassion, spirituality, cultural and ethical experience, creativity, academic potential, social skills & outdoor learning possibilities. In one project, our volunteers helped families with children to check insect hotels, comparing designs to find out the preference of specific species for various designs.
We have endeavoured to advance understanding of:
Welfare, well-being, quality of life, peace, happiness and enjoyment.
Equality, equity, justice & ethical communities.
Spirituality and divinity.
Social, environmental & economic welfare.
The arts and cultural heritage, including sustainable ceramics research.
Landscape and natural heritage wildlife and animal welfare.
Responsible, compassionate and sustainable lifestyles.
Climate change. eco-philosophy and eco-spirituality.
“Today we begin in earnest the work of making sure that the world we leave our children is just a little bit better than the one we inhabit today.” – Barack Obama
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