Preservation and stewardship are key themes in our ongoing commitment to sustainability. Hence, preservation of the lands directly adjacent to the site, which have been protected with the help of Canadians through the Save Juno Beach citizens’ campaign, is paramount. Funds are needed to protect, preserve, and plan for the sustainability of these lands.
In 2022, Canadians, outraged at the condominium development on Juno Beach, helped us win an important victory by speaking out against the enormous insult to the memory of our soldiers — all volunteers and many as young or younger than 18 — who began the liberation of northwest Europe from that hallowed ground. This victory now makes it possible — and necessary — that a monument dedicated to all Canadians who lost their lives on D-Day be established on that former battlefield
A CANADIAN D-DAY MONUMENT
The Juno Beach Centre honours all Canadians who served and sacrificed during the Second World War.
The monument will feature the names of the 381 Canadians who lost their lives on June 6, 1944.
However, there is no single monument on Juno Beach that contains the names of each of the 381 Canadians who lost their lives on June 6, 1944.
Now is the time to permanently honour them . These Canadians sacrificed their lives to establish the foothold that, with the combined efforts of many Allied nations, eventually defeated Nazi Germany’s war machine in northwest Europe and restored freedom to millions .
A new Canadian D-Day monument is the centrepiece of our top priority: stewardship of heritage lands.
PROJECT CONCORDIA: A COMMEMORATIVE LANDSCAPING PROJECT
In early October 2022, Veterans Affairs Canada, the Canadian and French governments and local authorities secured an agreement to protect the Juno Beach Centre from a proposed condominium development. This agreement followed a lengthy legal battle costing the Centre $800,000 over multiple years. Thankfully, Canadians stepped up to write over 83,000 letters to politicians in Ottawa and France with calls to protect the site. These letters and the resulting media blitz prompted the Government of Canada to act, eliminating the threat to the Juno Beach Centre and the Canadian memorial presence in Normandy.
The result of this victory is the development of an initiative with the placeholder name of Project Concordia. For several months, we have had a team of experts working to develop a master plan for the site. Their study has recommended a direction for the project which will:
-
Land restoration will protect precious ecosystems and biodiversity
Help the Juno Beach Centre take better advantage of its changed surroundings and enhance accessibility to the Centre by adding pedestrian pathways offering both convenience and safety;
- Preserve the natural landscape of the local section of Juno Beach by restoring the surrounding dune lands, ensuring the preservation of precious ecosystems and biodiversity; and
- Enhance the memorial park surrounding the Centre as a space for reflection and learning. This will include visual and interpretive elements to remind visitors of the history of the site and to pass the torch of memory to future generations.
Interpretive signs will guide visitors through the rich history of the site from D-Day right through to the present
Project Concordia is our top priority in this capital campaign. Not only will it protect our commemorative site from urbanization but these objectives also align with the Juno Beach Centre’s sustainable development strategy. Canadians have seen a resolution to the condo dispute and now want to see the site preserved in a way that compliments the Juno Beach Centre and honours the Canadians who gave their lives to start the liberation of northwest Europe from this spot.
Now is our moment: An opportunity for Canadians to build and grow a living memorial celebrating one of our proudest moments. The Juno Beach Centre needs $7.2 million from Canadians and Canadian corporations to bring this vision to fruition.