Julian Scholl and his family have been educational sponsors for many years. For example, they currently have educational sponsorships in Hungary and Brazil. In an interview with us, Julian Scholl talks about his connection to Waldorf education and the enrichment that an educational sponsorship means for his family.

From 1st to 5th July, at the beginning of the summer holidays, the second major transnational conference of the Central Eastern European Waldorf school movement took place in Košice, Slovakia. Around 250 teachers took the opportunity to take part in a wide range of training programmes, covering science, art and social issues.

People with disabilities have been supported at the Phoenix therapeutic education school in Kharkiv for over 20 years. It is almost impossible for them to flee the war abroad, or even within the country. Not all pupils have been able to leave the city, even though it has been the target of repeated attacks by Russian troops since the start of the war in 2022. From the beginning of the war, the Phoenix staff tried to continue working with the pupils as best they could. The Friends of Waldorf Education have been supporting the school for many years. And thanks to the numerous donations in favour of the Friends' appeals for Ukraine, we were able to send remittances to Kharkiv and support the teachers in their important work. In time of war, the original rooms of Phoenix cannot be used as there is no bunker in the building. However, since the summer of 2022, schools have only been allowed to hold lessons, face-to-face, if there is a bunker that can accommodate all pupils and staff. For…

Shortly after the incursion, the Waldorf school in Horodenka became a refuge for many families from eastern Ukraine. This was also made possible through donations that the Friends of Waldorf Education were able to pass on to the school. Yurii Shkremetka from Shkola Pokuttia reports on the second half of last year:

The inclusive Waldorf school Stupeni (Steps) was founded in Odessa in 1992. In an email, Natalia Lukyanchenko told us about the school's work in the winter months of 2023/24:

The Waldorf School in Dnipro was founded in 1995. At the beginning of the war, the city of Dnipro was the target of several air raids in which many civilians died. Despite the ongoing situation of threat, the school manages to run a reliable, daily school routine. In February 2024, the school community reported to us about the past winter months.

The Sonyachne Podvirya (Sonnenhof) Centre for Special Education has been caring for children and young people with different degrees of disability since 2004. There were several serious drone attacks on Kyiv during the winter months. Nevertheless, lessons and the winter festivals were able to take place reliably, as the school management reported to us in February 2024.

Reports from the Waldorf schools in Ukraine clearly show that, after two years, the conflict has become a sad everyday occurrence. This is also the case at the Sophia School in Kyiv, which was founded in 1997. Currently, 200 students are being taught in person and an additional 110 refugee students are being taught online. In an email, Serhiy Zabolotnyi from Sophia School reports:

What we do today affects tomorrow. Our children learn this, for example, in horticulture lessons. If something happens today, something will grow so that I can feed myself in future and that will bring me sustenance and joy. In this issue we look at how we can influence the future. What does a good education mean for a child‘s future? What effect does your donation, or your educational sponsorship, have? How does a young person‘s future change after volunteering, and what impact does this service have on those he or she works with during this time? You can read about this and much more in the current issue of ‘Waldorf Worldwide’.

As most of the pupils at Rudolf Steiner School Mbagathi in Kenya come from families with very low incomes, the school management attaches great importance to providing the children with school meals. Mercy Njoki, a member of the school staff, reports on why this is currently being given a special focus.