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Turkey: Breaking the ‘silence’: emergency pedagogical support for young children following the earthquake

Shortly after the earthquake that severely affected parts of Turkey and Syria in 2023, the Friends of Waldorf Education began implementing emergency pedagogical measures. The Turkish Waldorf teacher Cansu Kaygısız Vardar, who is currently also writing her doctoral thesis in the field of early…
Learn moreUkraine: Completion of Advanced Training Programs in Emergency Pedagogy

In February 2026, the full-scale invasion of Ukraine will mark its fourth anniversary. Since March 2022, Friends of Waldorf Education have been able to provide on-site support primarily to children and young people, as well as to educators, through four cycles of professional training, each…
Learn moreAhr Valley: Rap Workshop builds Trust and Motivation

Nils Claßen, theatre pedagogue and rapper, has repeatedly held rap workshops at two flood-affected institutions in the Ahr Valley on behalf of the Emergency Pedagogy Department of the Friends of Waldorf Education. At the Erich Kästner Secondary School Plus in Bad Neuenahr, young people participated…
Learn moreEmergency Pedagogy for Children with Disabilities in Crisis Regions

For this year’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities on December 3, we would like to offer insights—using examples from Ukraine and Kenya—into our work with children with disabilities, who are additionally confronted with the challenges of living in war and crisis zones. All too often,…
Learn moreWest Bank: Between Tension and release at the Hope Flowers School in Bethlehem

Since October 2023, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the West Bank has intensified significantly. Even the current ceasefire between Israel and Hamas brings only limited peace. On one hand, strengthened security measures and new checkpoints make everyday life more difficult; on the other, the…
Learn moreTurkey: Being able to look up at the sky without fear

After the devastating earthquake in Turkey in 2023, the emergency education programme of the Friends of Education became active in various locations within the earthquake region, including in Hatay. The initial efforts developed into two child protection centres (child friendly spaces) to care for…
Learn moreMyanmar: Finally, able to breathe again

At the end of September, Lina Bäuerle from the Emergency Pedagogy Department of the Friends of Waldorf Education travelled to Myanmar with a team of five for ten days. The earthquake in March shook many regions, destroyed villages, and put many people in acute need. In addition, the country has been…
Learn moreGaza: Art as a Bridge Between Pain and Hope

Since 2009, the Emergency Pedagogy department of the Friends of Waldorf Education has been repeatedly active in Gaza. Among other initiatives, we have helped establish and support Child Friendly Spaces and offered training and further education. Since October 2023, only occasional small-scale…
Learn moreUkraine: Spaces of hope and healing for children in Pokrov

When the full-scale invasion began in Ukraine, psychologist Alona Liashenko, pedagogue Hanna Romanova, and coordinator Nataliia Andrushchenko recognized that people with deep emotional wounds needed special approaches for healing. The training in emergency pedagogy offered by the Friends of Waldorf…
Learn moreTurkey: Completion of the Training in Emergency and Trauma Pedagogy

Since the earthquake in Turkey in February 2023, the Emergency Pedagogy department of the Friends of Waldorf Education has been supporting children and young people while at the same time providing advanced training for pedagogues in the field of emergency and trauma pedagogy. Beginning in October…
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