Welcome to our ‘Staff Spotlight’ series where we introduce you to a valued member of the Juno Team and showcase the work they do to support women and children experiencing homelessness and family violence. This month, it’s Pai, one of our wonderful Program Managers.
Pai joined Juno in 2018 as a Senior Practitioner for the NEMA Team (North Eastern Melbourne Area). She recently stepped up to the role of NEMA Program Manager, supporting and overseeing the core case management programs and Juno’s EMPower Coaching Program.
What do you like about working at Juno:
Juno is a small intersectional feminist organization with a mission, values, framework and approaches that align closely with my values personally and politically. I enjoy working alongside colleagues who are very passionate about supporting and improving the lives of women, children and gender diverse people on issues of homelessness and family violence, which are evidentiality gendered in nature.
In addition, I was thrilled to lead the production of Coming Home, a narrative and political podcast about women’s homelessness created by Juno, and I am very excited this year to have the opportunity to be involved in the EMPower Program which aims to address gender poverty by working in partnership with participants to set and achieve goals on the pathway to economic mobility.
What is a typical day at Work:
Once I’ve dropped my daughter off at school, the day usually kicks off with checking in with staff across our programs. More often than not, this daily check-in revolves around the coffee machine. Throughout the day, I could be in multiple meetings, internal and external, providing secondary consultation and debriefing to the team, delivering supervision, brainstorming and planning with the leadership team. There is a lot of focus on collaboration with partner organisations and Juno’s internal teams to plan and implement new projects and advocacy initiatives.
Why is Juno’s work is important:
We aim to create positive outcomes for women, children and gender diverse people through our case management and additional programs. Often this is supporting with and advocating for access to secure housing and safety, and ensuring that individuals are resourced and supported when faced with adverse situations. We centre our client’s stories, strengths, and wisdom through all of our work. We also know the link between structural gender inequality and homelessness is clear – and we are constantly advocating for systemic change.
Find out more about Juno’s services here.
Read more about women’s experiences of homelessness here.
