Thanks to donations from our International Cooperation Fund, we have been able to equip the Rudolf Steiner School Mbagathi with laptops. In the school's latest newsletter, one of the teachers describes how their work is facilitated at this time by using the equipment: "At the beginning of the year, due to the COVID 19 outbreak, the government closed schools for an indefinite period. This meant that we had to prepare ourselves for a lengthy period of distance learning. We investigated several ways to do this effectively, and it became clear that distance learning cannot be adequately carried out with mobile phones alone, so we were not adequately equipped. This created a need to acquire laptop devices. The laptops, individually and collectively, have made our work easier, more efficient and more enjoyable during this phase. Today we are well equipped to work better with our children during the shut-down caused by the Corona crisis. Towards the end of each year, it was always a…

A strict lock-down was also imposed in Nepal due to the pandemic. More and more often we receive reports that the police sometimes react to infringements of the lock-down with violent force. Many people have lost their incomes and are barely able to support themselves. Nepal is heavily dependent on imports, especially for food, which is leading to hefty price increases, due to the crisis. "The government has announced that it will raise taxes", we hear from the recently founded Himalayan Waldorf School in Kathmandu. "But if people are not allowed to work and consequently have no income, how are they supposed to pay taxes?" Ambiguous statements from the government are adding to the unsettled mood: "One day it is said that the regulations are being relaxed and the next day the rules are even stricter." The school tries to help by distributing food to people in the area. We were able to secure the salaries of the teachers for four months with €4,760 from your donations. It is totally…

In Bosnia-Herzegovina there are currently no Waldorf Schools. but a small number of Waldorf kindergartens. Due to the Covid 19 pandemic, closures and work-bans have been imposed on professions that are not part of the public services. This has led to a severe loss of income for many families. For the Kolibica kindergarten in Sarajevo, founded five years ago, the consequences were felt quickly. Arising from our appeal for donations: "Mitigating the consequences of the Corona crisis", we have been able to support three kindergartens in Sarajevo with financial support of more than €35,000. One of them is the kindergarten Kolibica, to which we will provide the kindergarten in Kolibica with a monthly amount of approximately €2,800 for five months, starting in April. This will enable the kindergarten to continue paying the salaries of the kindergarten teachers. In an email, the kindergarten leader thanked us from the bottom of her heart: "Our thanks for your support is huge! The help came…

Besides the Bruh Tesfa School in Hawzien we received a second application for support from Ethiopia, from the Waldorf Kindergarten Hamer in Addis Ababa. The kindergarten, founded just two years ago, will be closed for at least five months. In an e-mail to us the kindergarten teachers report on their current everyday life: "The pandemic has changed everything we are used to - now we are making new experiences. To stay in touch with the children, we put together work-packs of paper and crayons, stories, cards and handwork materials for the different age-groups twice a month. These packs are collected from us by the parents. We are six teachers, two in each class. Two colleagues come every two weeks and prepare the packs for the children. We also use the time to work together through a module on the twelve senses, as part of our teacher training. Thanks to the Friends of Waldorf Education we can continue paying the salaries of all the teachers. In economic terms, most of the parents have…

Over 400 families in Hawzien, Ethiopia, were able to be supplied with wheat flour. A 25 KG sack of flour will ensure the supply of the families for one month. The sacks are collected by the women, sometimes they can sign for the goods, more often they make a thumbprint. 90% of the parents of the school children live below the poverty line. The livelihoods in many families, especially day-labourers, are threatened by current restrictions on public life. Many people are dependent on the sale of agricultural and handicraft products. With the loss of the weekly markets they have suddenly became destitute. The Finks Hawzien Waldorf School is trying to provide the families with the best possible support at this time. A further distribution of food is being planned. In the new round, 2 litres of cooking oil will be provided for each family. "The number of people infected with Covid-19 in Ethiopia is rising dramatically," the founder of the school, Dr. Atsbaha Gebre-Selassie told us in…

During the summer months in Chile, the small school in Arica was able to conduct a large construction project right up until the beginning of March. The construction materials for building a classroom for the third grade were funded by the Friends of Waldorf Education from donations out of the International Cooperation Fund. The school was actively supported by volunteers so that a beautiful classroom was created during the summer. But with the onset of autumn in South American, the Corona pandemic also reached Chile. A strict lock-down was imposed which, out of the blue, brought unemployment to many students' households. In view of the country's poorly funded public health system, many parents are rather sceptical regarding the safe reopening of schools. The Corona crisis is hitting Chile hard economically, and the situation is compounded by five months of ongoing civil protests. The Waldorf School in Arica is also feeling the effects and some parents are no longer able to pay…

The Friends of Waldorf Education have joined forces with various foundations and international Waldorf organizations to support Waldorf Schools and Waldorf Kindergartens affected by the economic consequences of the lockdown in their countries.

Thanks to your donations, the Rudolf Steiner School Zanzibar is able to offer its students better and more regular school meals - with significant effects on the health of the children.

The latest version of the List of all Waldorf Schools was published in May 2020. In the Waldorf World List you will find the addresses of all Waldorf Schools, Waldorf Kindergartens, Waldorf Associations and Waldorf Teacher Trainings worldwide. It is updated at least once a year and published as a PDF on our website.

Nanyuki is a small town at the foot of Mount Kenya, established by the British in the early 20th century. They came because of the altitude - the city lies almost 2,000 m above sea level – and because of the very pleasant and attractive climate. Today, as then, many members of the military, then the British, now the Kenyan military, live there. For just over a year now some mothers and the Waldorf Kindergarten teacher Silviah Njagi have been setting up a Waldorf Kindergarten. The foundation of a new Waldorf School is to follow this year. It would be the fourth Waldorf School in Kenya.