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We live in a wonderful world |
The Chiltern Gateway ProjectOur vision
The primary aim of the project is to help the community understand better by personal experience and involvement the concept of God as Creator and its relevance to their day to day lives. The defined boundary for the Chiltern Gateway Project is the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) that makes up the Chiltern Hills and its surrounding towns and villages. Whilst there will be certain focus areas for the project such as Chinnor, Lewknor, Kingston Blount and Aston Rowant – any village within the AONB or on the periphery can take part in the project. This then could include villages and towns such as Thame, Tetsworth and Wallingford-which although some lie just outside the AONB have significant populations who would use the hills for recreational activities and events. Upcoming eventsWe meet monthly to enjoy fellowship, talk conservation, and plan future activities. If you'd like to know more, contact us at ian.swaffield@arocha.org We have a number of events, services, and opportunities in the works for 2010. Watch this space! Past eventsDawn ChorusNot deterred by the drizzle and early alarm call, a group of 20 adults and children, from the local Community, and as far away as Oxford and Marlow, joined in a Dawn Chorus Bird Walk organised by the Chiltern Gateway Project. We met at 6am at Cowleze Wood, Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve, Lewknor, and were guided through the reserve by Andy Lester, conservation director for A Rocha. He shared his expert knowledge about our native birds and migrant visitors as well as pointing out evidence of climate change and changing trends in a relaxed and engaging manner. We finished with a superb breakfast at the Jubilee village hall in Lewknor, generously provided and supported by members of St Margaret’s Church, Lewknor. Juniper planting at Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve
In November, 2009 over 60 volunteers, including our local MP, braved the cold to plant another 100 juniper trees. It was a fantastic afternoon of enjoying God's creation and each other. Glow Wild in the DarkIt was a dark and, thankfully, not so stormy night that drew us to the Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve. Natural England, with A Rocha UK assisting, put on a fantastic event designed to let people of all ages experience the reserve at night. A lantern-lit path led visitors to stations within the reserve. There were small mammal and bat stations, complete with live animals. Glow-stick lit signs along the way gave important facts about the reserve. Our own Helen Demopoulos ran a station about owls, including the opportunity to sift through owl pellets for bones. The kids (and quite a few adults) loved it. And who can forget the story of Fergus the fungus and the inimitable Green Man? The circuit was completed with a stop for tea and biscuits hosted by the local A Rocha Friends group. Before the night, 160 had booked a place! Definitely a successful evening and another chance to strengthen our partnership with Natural England. The local A Rocha Friends group met several times ahead of the event for planning and fellowship. On the night, we helped set up and then met together to fortify with warming, homemade soups and local bread. HistoryThe Chiltern Gateway Project (CGP) was initiated through a partnership
between the Parish of Lewknor, headed
From late 2006 until mid 2009 Simon steered the project on the ground-with the support of the partners. In addition to A Rocha and Natural England, the project was actively encouraged through the vision of Lewknor PCC. A number of its members helped to develop an active Steering Group which met on a bi-monthly basis to take forward ideas on funding, events and school based education activities. The project received tremendous encouragement from Lewknor C of E School – and A Rocha together with the school headmaster worked at a funding strategy to recruit a part-time education officer responsible for delivering a number of after school activities themed around the Creation-care message. This was well received by staff and children alike and remains a cornerstone of the Chiltern gateway project. From 2008 onwards the project increasingly engaged with Natural England on their Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve. A number of successful events were organised-culminating in a juniper planting programme that commenced in the spring of 2009. This mini-project seeks to monitor the growth of newly planted juniper-by using local volunteers to support Natural England’s work on the site. For the past three years the project has remained largely Lewknor focused – but in recent months it is clear that it is entering a new phase, with growing interest from other villages within the Chiltern area-and a greater emphasis on developing the project around the needs and hopes of the wider community. This meets the hopes and aspirations of all the key partners to see the project grow and expand at a local level. Getting involved in the project
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