Friends of Waldorf Education

Friends of Waldorf Education, legally known as Freunde der Erziehungskunst Rudolf Steiners e. V., is a German charitable association founded in Stuttgart in 1971 to support the international development of Waldorf education and related initiatives. It operates as a coordinating, funding, networking, and service organisation rather than as a school operator or conventional education company. Its work is connected to schools, kindergartens, anthroposophical special-education organisations, community projects, and social institutions that use or are influenced by Waldorf educational principles. The organisation emerged during a period when Waldorf education was expanding beyond its original German base. Ernst Weissert established the association on 10 October 1971 to create a body able to gather moral and financial support for the growing school movement. Early leadership included Manfred Leist, Günter Ziegenbein, and Armin Scholter. In the late 1970s, former Waldorf students helped redirect the organisation toward international school cooperation and support. The association subsequently adopted its current German name, which refers to the educational ideas of Rudolf Steiner, the founder of the first Waldorf school. A central activity is international project support through donations, advice, mentoring, networking, and cooperation with foundations and public development institutions. The association does not operate as a foundation with its own endowment; instead, it receives donations and legacies and generally applies them according to donors' stated preferences. Supported projects may include Waldorf schools, kindergartens, social communities, and special-education organisations. Its International Aid Fund helps channel resources to projects that often have limited access to public financing. Friends of Waldorf Education is also a major organiser of voluntary service. Since 1993 it has arranged international placements in Waldorf schools, kindergartens, social communities, disability-related institutions, and other educational or social projects. Its programmes have included German government-supported schemes such as the International Youth Volunteer Service, development-oriented voluntary service, and service abroad under the alternative service framework. The organisation later expanded its work in Germany through the Federal Volunteer Service and the Voluntary Social Year. It has also hosted international volunteers in Germany and holds the Quifd quality seal for voluntary-service work. The organisation's educational godparenting programme provides individual assistance for children whose families might otherwise be unable to afford attendance at Waldorf schools in countries where such schools receive little or no state funding. Friends of Waldorf Education also supports WOW-Day, a student-led fundraising initiative in which pupils undertake work or artistic activities and direct the proceeds to Waldorf projects around the world. Since 2006, its Crisis or Emergency Education branch has provided psychosocial and educational support to children and young people affected by war, displacement, and natural disasters. The approach combines trauma-sensitive interventions with methods derived from Waldorf education. The branch was developed after Bernd Ruf encountered traumatised children in a refugee setting during the Lebanon conflict. Subsequent missions were reported in Lebanon, China, Gaza, Indonesia, Haiti, Kyrgyzstan, Japan, and Kenya, among other locations. The organisation has worked with humanitarian partners and is a member of Aktion Deutschland Hilft. The association has maintained international institutional links, including cooperation with UNESCO. It was invited to present Waldorf education at the International Education Conference in Geneva in 1994 and established official relations with UNESCO in 2001. It remains an international support organisation for the Waldorf movement, combining philanthropy, volunteer placement, educational networking, student engagement, and emergency relief. Public reference material describes a staff of approximately 90 people and offices or branches in Berlin and Karlsruhe, while its legal registration is associated with Stuttgart.

Friends of Waldorf Education was created against the background of the international expansion of Waldorf education in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In 1969, Waldorf schools marked the fiftieth anniversary of the movement's first school, while new schools and related initiatives were emerging in multiple countries. Ernst Weissert responded by founding the association in Stuttgart on 10 October 1971. He did not take a formal place on the executive, leaving early administrative leadership to Manfred Leist, with Günter Ziegenbein and Armin Scholter also involved. Their links with the Waldorf school in Stuttgart-Kräherwald helped provide the new association with an institutional base, and former pupils of the Waldorf school at Uhlandshöhe became an important membership constituency. During its first years, the association had limited capacity because several early figures were also engaged in building Germany's Waldorf school movement and in the leadership of the Bund der Freien Waldorfschulen. A new phase began in the late 1970s, when former Waldorf students proposed creating a worldwide school association. Weissert made the existing association available as the legal vehicle for this initiative. In November 1978, Andreas Büttner, Nana Göbel, and Justus Wittich joined the executive, while Ziegenbein and Scholter withdrew. The association adopted the name Freunde der Erziehungskunst Rudolf Steiners and developed a more deliberate international support role, including cooperation with a newly established International Aid Fund. The organisation's project-support model is based on donations, legacies, institutional contributions, and cooperation with foundations and aid funds. It is not an endowed foundation and generally directs restricted gifts toward the purposes identified by donors. Its assistance can include capital projects, operating support, counselling, mentoring, and connections between Waldorf initiatives and potential partners. Supported institutions include schools, kindergartens, anthroposophical special-education organisations, and social communities. For larger investments, the association has worked with foundations, other aid funds, and Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. International voluntary service became another major area in 1993. The association has placed volunteers in educational, social, community, and disability-related settings, both in Waldorf institutions and in organisations influenced by anthroposophical practice. It has operated within several publicly supported German frameworks, including the International Youth Volunteer Service, development-oriented voluntary service, and alternative service abroad. From 2006 it was authorised to host international volunteers in Germany, and from 2011 its domestic work included the Federal Volunteer Service and Voluntary Social Year. Its service operations have been associated with the Quifd quality seal. At the end of the 1990s, Friends of Waldorf Education added educational godparenting. The programme helps individual children attend Waldorf schools in countries where public funding is limited or absent and school fees would otherwise exclude some families. The association has also supported WOW-Day, a student campaign launched in 1994. Participating Waldorf students raise funds through temporary work, performances, and other activities, with the proceeds transferred to selected Waldorf projects. The campaign connects fundraising with civic engagement and international awareness. The Crisis or Emergency Education branch was established in 2006 after curative teacher Bernd Ruf encountered the effects of war-related trauma among children in a refugee camp in Lebanon. It developed a trauma-sensitive model drawing on Waldorf educational insights and began missions following armed conflicts and natural disasters. Reported assignments have included Lebanon, China, Gaza, Indonesia, Haiti, Kyrgyzstan, Japan, and Kenya. Activities focus on psychological stabilisation, structured educational work, and support for children and young people exposed to displacement, violence, or disaster. The organisation has cooperated with humanitarian partners and belongs to Aktion Deutschland Hilft. The association's international profile also grew through contact with UNESCO. It participated in the 1994 International Education Conference in Geneva and established official relations with UNESCO in May 2001. Public descriptions identify Berlin and Karlsruhe as operational locations and report a workforce of approximately 90 people. The association continues to function as a nonprofit support infrastructure for Waldorf education, linking donors, schools, volunteers, students, humanitarian partners, and international educational initiatives.

• 2011

  Domestic voluntary services expanded

  [1]Friends of Waldorf Educationen.wikipedia.org

  The organisation incorporated German Federal Volunteer Service and Voluntary Social Year activities into its service portfolio.

• 2006

  Crisis or Emergency Education launched

  [1]Friends of Waldorf Educationen.wikipedia.org

  The association began international emergency-education work for traumatised children and young people.

• 2001

  Official UNESCO relations established

  [1]Friends of Waldorf Educationen.wikipedia.org

  Friends of Waldorf Education established official relations with UNESCO.

• 1994

  WOW-Day student campaign begins

  [1]Friends of Waldorf Educationen.wikipedia.org

  Waldorf students began an annual fundraising day for educational initiatives worldwide.

• 1994

  Participation in UNESCO education conference

  [1]Friends of Waldorf Educationen.wikipedia.org

  The organisation presented Waldorf education at UNESCO's International Education Conference in Geneva.

• 1993

  International voluntary services promoted

  [1]Friends of Waldorf Educationen.wikipedia.org

  The association began organising international voluntary-service placements in educational and social institutions.

• 1978

  International orientation strengthened

  [1]Friends of Waldorf Educationen.wikipedia.org

  A new executive involving former Waldorf students expanded international support and adopted the name Freunde der Erziehungskunst Rudolf Steiners.

• 1971

  Association founded in Stuttgart

  [1]Friends of Waldorf Educationen.wikipedia.org

  Ernst Weissert founded Friends of Waldorf Education on 10 October to support the growing Waldorf movement.

A nonprofit international support and coordination organisation for Waldorf education, combining donor-funded project assistance, volunteer placement, student engagement, educational sponsorship, and trauma-sensitive emergency work.

• Educational development and charitable support

  International Aid Fund

  A donor-funded mechanism supporting Waldorf schools, kindergartens, special-education organisations, and related initiatives internationally. Assistance may include grants, advice, mentoring, networking, and cooperation with foundations or public development bodies. The association generally applies restricted donations to purposes selected by donors rather than using an institutional endowment.

• Volunteer placement · 1993

  Voluntary Services

  International and domestic placement programmes send volunteers to Waldorf schools, kindergartens, social communities, disability-related institutions, and other educational or social projects. The portfolio has included German state-supported international and domestic service frameworks and an incoming programme for international volunteers.

• Educational sponsorship

  Educational Godparenting

  A sponsorship programme that helps individual children attend Waldorf schools where public funding is unavailable or insufficient. Godparents contribute toward school attendance and support broader inclusion within the school community.

• Student fundraising campaign · 1994

  WOW-Day

  An annual student-led fundraising initiative in which Waldorf pupils raise money through temporary work, artistic activities, and community events. Funds are channelled through Friends of Waldorf Education to Waldorf institutions and projects requiring support in different countries.

• Humanitarian and trauma-sensitive education · 2006

  Crisis or Emergency Education

  An emergency programme for children and young people affected by war, displacement, and natural disasters. Its interventions seek to stabilise traumatised children through structured educational, artistic, and psychosocial activities informed by Waldorf education.

• 1994WOW-Day

  International

  Waldorf students dedicate a common day to work, artistic performances, and other activities that raise funds for educational projects in need.

  Outcome. The campaign expanded to schools in more than 30 countries and channelled student-raised funds to supported initiatives.

  Source

• 2006

  Added crisis and emergency educationStrategy

  Background

  Bernd Ruf's experience with traumatised children in a Lebanon refugee setting highlighted the need for specialised educational and psychosocial responses.

  Action taken

  The association established an emergency-education branch for children and young people affected by armed conflict and natural disasters.

  Aftermath

  The branch undertook missions in several countries and developed cooperation with humanitarian organisations.

  Source

• 1978

  Reoriented the association toward international school supportStrategy

  Background

  Former Waldorf students proposed a worldwide school association as the Waldorf movement continued to expand internationally.

  Action taken

  The existing association was used as the legal vehicle, a new executive was elected, and the organisation adopted the name Freunde der Erziehungskunst Rudolf Steiners.

  Aftermath

  International aid, networking, and cooperation became central elements of the association's identity.

  Source

1. 1Friends of Waldorf Educationen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Freunde der Erziehungskunst Rudolf Steiners e. V. official websitefreunde-waldorf.de