who we are
The Nostos Institute Team
Dr.Sharon Blackie
Founder and Director
Dr. Sharon Blackie is an award-winning and internationally bestselling author, a former neuroscientist, a psychologist and a mythologist specialising in Celtic and wider European traditions.
As well as writing seven books of fiction and nonfiction, including the bestselling classic If Women Rose Rooted, Hagitude and The Enchanted Life, Sharon’s writing has appeared in a variety of anthologies and international media outlets, and she has featured in a wide range of programs from the BBC, US public radio and independent filmmakers. Her much-loved online publication ‘The Art of Enchantment’ is a top literature Substack and global bestseller.
Sharon is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and an Honorary Member of the UK Association of Jungian Analysts, awarded ‘in recognition of the importance of lifetime achievement and contribution to Jungian ideas in the world’. She has lectured at many academic institutions, given keynotes at cultural festivals, and is online faculty for Pacifica Graduate Institute, California, where she has taught graduate-level programs on myth, the mythic imagination, narrative and archetypal psychology. She has also taught elements of philosophy, with an emphasis on the imaginal, and the soul’s journey in Western philosophical traditions.
‘Sharon Blackie ventures further than most of us have the courage for – and then comes back with a map.’
Melissa Harrison, award-winning novelist and nature writer
BROUGHTON SANCTUARY
Our Home Place
Broughton Sanctuary, set in North Yorkshire, in the heart of the UK, is a centre devoted to conscious living, personal transformation and ecological renewal. It’s a place where people can gather, open their hearts and explore a new way of living. Here, the practical and the soulful are inseparable. The historic Broughton Hall has been lovingly restored into a ‘House of Transformation’, where guests come not only for nourishment and respite, but to rediscover their most authentic selves. The once-derelict farmhouses and barns have been restored and now form a collection of unique retreat houses, and the contemporary Avalon Wellbeing Centre – welcoming retreat leaders from around the world – now sits proudly at the heart of this 1000-year-old sanctuary.
Roger Tempest, the current custodian of Broughton Sanctuary, is the 32nd generation here, in a recorded line dating from the 11th century – making the Tempests one of England’s oldest Catholic landed gentry families. More recently, figures closely associated with Broughton include Mother Theresa of Calcutta, as well as Bede Griffiths and Cyprian Smith, whose work incorporated Platonic elements. Broughton, then, blends innovation and imagination with long-established spiritual tradition.
Alongside the ongoing rewilding of the estate, Broughton is a place to witness – and to participate in – the unfolding co-evolution of land, people and spirit. Here, humanity and ecology flourish together, as inner awakening and outer well-doing rise in harmony, guided by the quiet wisdom of Nature and the presence of all who share this place.
Anna Engel
Program Assistant
Anna Engel is a depth psychologist and archetypal filmmaker. She has worked on various studio projects for Netflix and Amazon, and she is now focusing on developing her slate of documentary and narrative projects. Anna weaves mythology into the various forms of her artistry in order to tell impactful and soul-reaching stories.
Core Contributors
Contributor
Vanessa Chamberlin
Vanessa Chamberlin is an artist, writer, spiritual director & practical theologian whose work is held together through a shared practice of deep listening. She hosts a number of spaces for people outside of religion to be encountered by wisdom from spiritual traditions, and has a Master's in Theology, an MSc in Violence, Conflict & Development and a Diploma in Art Therapy.
Contributor
Mark Vernon
Mark Vernon is a psychotherapist, writer, and philosopher exploring how ancient wisdom can illuminate modern life. A former Anglican priest with degrees in physics, theology, and philosophy, his books on Blake, Dante, and spiritual intelligence invite a reawakening to depth, meaning and the sacred dimension of experience.