The Juno Beach Centre in northern France honours thousands of British and Canadian soldiers while offering visitors an eco-friendly and immersive experience.
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00:00At Juno Beach in Normandy, France, the Allied landings can be discovered and relived in
00:07a museum that promotes sustainable development.
00:10Coinciding with the 80th anniversary of the landings, the Juno Beach Center is adapting
00:16to the concerns of our time.
00:18The museum is committed to reducing its carbon footprint, promoting the circular economy
00:23and preserving biodiversity.
00:25This European project has enabled the center to reduce its CO2 emissions by around 14%.
00:32In 2019, we were about 1,100 tons of CO2 equivalent emitted by the Juno Beach Center, by the activities
00:41of the Juno Beach Center, and in 2023, we were around 950, 960 tons of CO2.
00:53Juno was the code name given to this Normandy beach by the Allied command.
00:57It was here that 21,000 soldiers, mainly Canadian and British, landed during the Second World
01:03War, and more than 5,000 of them died.
01:06Today you can get to the museum without a motor, without noise, while respecting the
01:10landscape via a cycle path.
01:13As part of this sustainable development project, the museum was the first in France to offer
01:17a low-carbon fair.
01:19How does it work?
01:21It's a submission at the entrance of the museum, of a height of about 30-33%, on the presentation
01:26of a train ticket for those who come by train to Normandy, a bus ticket for those who come
01:31by bus, and a photo of the bike parked in the parking lot of the center, at the museum's
01:37reception, for the bicycle part.
01:40During this immersive experience of history, visitors are unaware of the changes.
01:45These include water management, temperature control according to the number of visitors,
01:49and lighting with 440 LEDs installed.
01:53Digital technology is also a key player in this wide range of initiatives to save and
01:58manage resources.
02:19The ecological and digital transition of the
02:28Juno Beach Center, estimated at more than 600,000 euros, was entirely financed by the
02:34REACT-EU program.
02:36Nearly 100,000 visitors come to the museum every year.
02:40I just learned about Juno Beach completely.
02:43I had never even heard of it before, I thought we were just going to the beach.
02:47I feel like it's really important to have a memorial and a space where we can recognize
02:51what happened in the past, where everyone can come together and really have a respectful
02:56moment.