Team
OFFICE TEAM
General Manager
Richard Steel
Richard Steel studied Linguistics, and then completed a training at the Camphill Seminar for Curative Education in 1975. He lived and worked with his family in a Camphill community for children and youngsters with special needs in Germany until 2008. Since then, he has been in charge of Karl König’s literary estate and founded the Karl König Institute.
Richard is a speaker and poet, and is responsible for the new edition of Karl König’s written works. He has been involved in establishing a Camphill life-sharing community with elderly people in New York State. He is managing director of the Karl König Institute und runs its office in Kleinmachnow near Berlin.
Archive and Research
Dr. Anne Weise
Born in Schwerin/Germany. Degree in Cultural Studies in Berlin. PhD in art history in 1995. Lived in the US for several years, working in various Camphill communities. Numerous articles on various topics. Published two books about the Holocaust: “Alfred Bergel Skizzen aus einem vergessenen Leben“, 2014 (English expected 2019), “Marianne Brandt”, 2018 and Robert Fisch „Licht vom Gelben Stern“, 2016. Since 2010 responsible for archive and research in the Karl König Institute. Since 2017 part of the editing team at the Rudolf Steiner Archive, Dornach, Switzerland.
Winfried Altmann
Winfried Altmann studied German and Philosophy in Marburg and Munich, Germany, after which he worked for the publisher Verlag Freies Geistesleben. In 1974 he began working for the publisher Urachhaus in Stuttgart, Germany, and from 1994 for the Rudolf Steiner Verlag in Dornach, Switzerland.
He has now lived in Berlin since 2009, and is a member of the Karl König Institute, where he is responsible for printing and design. He has been involved with the subject of Kaspar Hauser since the 1980s, when Johannes Mayer’s comprehensive Kaspar Hauser documentation was published by Verlag Urachhaus.
John Byrde
Born and bred in southern England, John joined Camphill at Ringwood in 1963 during a break from social sciences studies at Leeds University and followed the Curative Education Seminar at Camphill Schools, Aberdeen. In 1968 he moved to Perceval at St-Prex, Switzerland, where he helped build up the remedial school as teacher, shared a rich community life and married with four children, until in 1993 he moved to Romania where, with his second wife, they lead an initiative for inclusive social development. Since 2014 John has assisted in developing the Camphill Archive.
Cherry How
Born in New Zealand. After graduating from university she travelled to the USA and UK and joined Glencraig Camphill Community in Northern Ireland in 1972, where she was a carer and teacher for nine years. Cherry was active in building up contacts and cooperation among the newly founded Camphill communities in Ireland as the work spread in the 1970s and 1980s. She later moved to other communities throughout Ireland as homemaker, training coordinator and senior coworker.
Since 1990, she has lived in Clanabogan Camphill Community. Cherry has a special interest in training, the cultural activities of the community and community development. She has represented Ireland at international Camphill groups, as well as supporting the development of anthroposophical social care throughout the UK and Ireland. Since 2014 she has been part of the Camphill Archive team.
Anne Martin
Born 1947 in Frankfurt / Main, since 1973 in Berlin. Kindergarten teacher, graduate social pedagogue and social worker. 33 years in Thomas-Haus for Curative Education and. speech therapy (Camphill), curative education with small children.
Since 2011 free for creative work: puppet theater, felting, arts and crafts. Since 2016 active for the Karl König Institute and still connected to the Camphill-ideals.
Crispian Villeneuve
Born in 1950, Crispian Villeneuve discovered Anthroposophy in 1973 and since the 1980s has worked in Camphill centres in England, Wales and Ireland. He has published articles and books in the field of the history of Anthroposophy. He is one of the Trustees of Karl König‘s Estate and is active for the Camphill Archive, also with a particular focus on the history of Camphill in Ireland.
Deborah Grace
Deborah’s childhood was guided by her father’s devotion to Albert Schweitzer’s ethic of “Reverence for Life”. Her first experience of community came during young childhood years growing up on the Navajo reservation. After high school she spent a year at the Albert Schweitzer Hospital in Lambaréné, where subsequent to Schweitzer’s passing the community life was still strong. She then lived and volunteered in Hartley House, a Hell’s Kitchen settlement house community in NYC, while attending Barnard College. A seeker out of the 60’s, Deborah next joined the Penland School of Crafts community, training in ceramics and making a close connection to MC Richards, who pointed her to Camphill Copake.
The community at Copake became Deborah’s home for 25 years as well as her school of life, guided by Carlo Pietzner and also Renate Sachs. Deborah raised four (wonderful) children and fulfilled many roles, from householder to administration and fundraising. During those Camphill decades she became closely connected to Karl Koenig and anthroposophy. She then spent 15 years in the Pacific Northwest, training and working in life/executive coaching and facilitation/mediation, before moving back East to become director at Camphill Ghent for 5 years. Deborah worked closely on Ghent’s leadership with Richard Steel, who was part of its visioning and was living with Christiane for a year in the community. Being part of the Karl Koenig Institute and community and taking up its work in a new way in North America is a step Deborah meets with great enthusiasm.
Angela Stintzing
After her diploma in natural sciences (Food technology/University of Hohenheim) and a 10month research residency at the Oregon State University/USA together with her husband, she worked as a team leader in the manufacturing department at WALA Heilmittel GmbH/Germany until the birth of their first son. Living in the south of Germany together with her husband and their three children she assists Richard Steel with text and document processing and with editorial work for the New Edition of Karl König’s works.
Laura Hansen
After training as a tailor, Laura Hansen studied clothing design at the Berlin University of the Arts and then founded a sustainable fashion label.
She has been working as an operations manager for the institute since July 2023.
BOARD MEMBERS
Anita Pedersen
Born in Hanau in 1961, grew up in Hessen. Married, 4 grown children
Nutritionist, radiesthetist, curative educator and MA of arts: Education, SEN (Special educational needs)
Encounter with anthroposophy at the Dottenfelderhof after graduating from high school.
Studied nutritional sciences (Dipl.oec.troph) in Giessen, followed by a study visit to Emerson College, southern England.
Worked as a nutritionist in the working group for nutrition research in Bad Liebenzell in 1988 with Dr. Renzenbrink. To this day active participation in the Dornach Section for Nutrition and sporadic journalistic work for the “Nutrition Circular” of the Working Group for Nutritional Research. Since 2000 part-time lecturer (anthroposophical aspects of nutrition) at the Camphill training courses in Frickingen. Teaching and lecturing activities at home and abroad (curative education conference in Dornach, IPMT (International postgraduate medical training for doctors) Serbia and the Czech Republic, Camphill and other institutions in England and Ireland, seminars and lectures in Portugal and China)
1989 – 1992 Teaching German as a Foreign Language at the Moray Steiner School in Forres, Scotland.
1992 – 1995 House responsibility at Camphill Coleg Elidyr, Wales
1995 – 2013 In the Camphill school community Föhrenbühl as a curative educator in house responsibility with family living and working there. Establishment and management of the canteen kitchen there for 3 years. Activity as a practical instructor and practical teacher for the Camphill seminar. Organization and teaching in the Föhrenbühler internship course. Part-time master’s degree at the Ita Wegman Institute in Wuppertal, branch of the University in Plymouth.
2013 - 2020 First deputy, then home management in the Lautenbach living and working community. Responsible for 22 residential groups in the staff management, representation vis-à-vis authorities and participation at management level.
Since November 2020: Takeover of new areas of activity in Lautenbach: Organization and support of voluntary services, team management and support in outpatient assisted living, advanced training.
Regine Bruhn
Born in 1960 in Germany; teacher and educationalist (M.A.); Camphill Seminar in Aberdeen, Scotland; worked and lived for many years in Camphill, Scotland; teaching at the Bodensee Camphill Seminar and at the Waldorf Education Training in Berlin; in the past member of the Council of Camphill Scotland and the Board of the Camphill Village Community Hermannsberg; presently Chairperson of the Karl König Institute; offers workshops on Karl König's plays regularly.
Cornelius Pietzner
Cornelius Pietzner: served as Managing Director of Mind and Life Europe until 2021. He is Chief Executive Officer of Alterra Impact Finance GmbH, an impact investment firm near Basel, Switzerland He served on the Executive Board at the Goetheanum, General Anthroposophical Society, Switzerland between 2002-2011. He has had leading roles in social impact enterprises, financial management, philanthropy and investments. Cornelius Pietzner serves as Trustee/Advisory Board on a number of organizations and foundations in the USA and Europe. Pietzner was born in Camphill Glencraig, and grew up in Camphill in the United States, where he later had various responsibilities.
Dr. med. Stefan Ruf
Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist / Founder of Meander Youth Services, Potsdam, Germany
Between 1992 and 95 he worked in several Camphill Communities in the US, mainly in Minnesota and Pennsylvania – including one year training in curative education. Afterwards medical studies and activities as a doctor in internal medicine, psychiatry, psychosomatics and child and Youth psychiatry. 2013 Co-founder of Meander Youth Services, where he works as a managing director and therapist. He has great interest in bringing together social, ecological, psychological and spiritual issues - in this respect he has great interest in Karl König.
Dr. Jan Göschel
Dr. phil. Jan Göschel is a Member of the Leadership Team of the Anthroposophic Council for Inclusive Social Development, the international umbrella organization of the network of anthroposophic organizations and initiatives in active in the disabilities field. He is also the founding President of the Camphill Academy, the professional education, training and research organization of the Camphill Movement in North America. He is a member of the Camphill community at The Camphill School - Beaver Run in Pennsylvania, USA, where he has his home.
Brigitta Waldow-Schily
Author, art historian. After high school two years in Camphill, in Copake, USA and Pitten, Austria. Then degree in English and Art History, 1991 - 1999 self employed at the Von der Heydt-Museum Wuppertal and coworker in the education center Hof Kotthausen near Wuppertal. 2001 – 2012 Lecturer at the Artaban School for Artistic Therapy in Berlin. Collaboration with the Karl König Institute since 2013.
Publications: Maria Hiszpańska-Neumann: Life and Work, Info3-Verlag, 2011. Greg Tricker and his Artistic Journey with Kaspar Hauser Info3-Verlag, 2014 (on behalf of the Karl König Institute)
Christoph Hänni
Christoph Hänni was born in Switzerland in 1959, interrupted university studies to spend a year in Camphill School Aberdeen, and never left, living the Camphill live, especially with young adults with special needs, and is still very much involved in day to day community life.
He lives near the Karl König Archive, the rooms where Karl König lived in Camphill House, and where the manuscripts are held, always able to access the originals when required.
CO-FOUNDERS
Dr. Konrad Schily
Dr. med. Konrad Schily, medical doctor, specialist in neurology and psychiatry, co-founder of the Community Hospital Herdecke, founding president of the University of Witten / Herdecke, co-founder of the European University Foundation, Luxembourg, member of the German Bundestag 2005 to 2009, Consultant and supporter in the development of the Medical University of Brandenburg.
Dr. Kurt Becker
Dr. phil. Kurt E. Becker, journalist, communication expert and executive coach, co-founder of the Karl König Institute, publisher of 10 volumes "Rudolf Steiner Selected Works", Frankfurt am Main: 1985, as well as editor and author of more than 40 books on questions of being human in our time.
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