72 · Reports from Current Projects of the Research Institute

Rudolf Steiner Library Accommodates Sleuths from the Research Institute David Mitchell

n autumn 2005, the Research Institute for Johannes Stein, Rudolf Treichler, and, of course, received a grant from the himself, had written on a variety of IWaldorf Curriculum Fund. The grant funded a topics. visit to the Rudolf Steiner Library in Ghent, New There were exclamations of glee and uncon- York, to research its archives in order to discover tained excitement every time one of the pair materials of interest to Waldorf teachers, materi- found something new or unusual to share with als that might exist in old periodicals, journals, the other. It was a rich time and altogether more and newsletters. In short, this was an invitation than 60 articles were collected and passed on to to participate in an intellectual treasure hunt. the online Waldorf library (OWL), found at The Research Institute Board of Trustees www.waldorflibrary.org, for posting and free asked two stalwart buccaneers, Roberto Trostli downloading by English-speaking teachers world- and David Mitchell, to undertake the challenge of wide. The surface has been scratched and the this treasure hunt. Two months later, with a hope is that the team can return at a later date gleam in their eyes, they arose at dawn and set for the next phase of exploration. out on a grey November New England morning. An unexpected find was an educational book They soon became engaged in a conversation so by Rudolf Steiner that has not been translated deep that the two-hour drive seemed to last five into English, Erziehung zum Leben: Selbsterziehung minutes. und pädagogische Praxis (Education for Life: Self- They entered the library and found that Education and Educational Practice), lectures Judith Soleil and Judy Kiely were ready for them. given between February 24, 1921, and April 4, Two chairs and a long oak table with a half dozen 1924; GA 297a. An anonymous donor has since catalogs had been prepared for their research. stepped forward with a generous donation to see Roberto and David joyfully divided the papers and the translation completed and published. The wrote down the names of articles from sources Research Institute has received permission from they never knew existed. There were periodicals the Nachlassverwaltung (the administrators of entitled The Present Age, Forerunner, Free Deeds, Steiner’s publishable estate) in Switzerland to Anthroposophical News Sheet, Anthroposophical carry this forward. It is now being translated and Review, and Star and Furrow,tonameafew,with will be available in book form this coming many articles from the original teachers of the autumn. You will also see it serialized in future first Waldorf school in . Caroline von Research Bulletins. Heydebrand, , , Walter

Research Bulletin · Spring 2006 · Volume 11 · #2