Circular 101 Summer 2012

Dear readers,

The co-ordination of the world-wide biodynamic movement is an important task of the Agriculture Section. What does that mean? We would like to characterise it as follows: fostering and encouraging relationships between people and groups and actively forming new ones. This theme brings us to the new theme of the year, “Alliances for our Earth”. In order to form alliances with others relationships must first be formed and strengthened in such a way that something powerful and new can emerge.

With this summer issue we would like to invite you to continue working on the theme of the year in your thoughts and also practically as a preparation for the conference in 2013. After the 2012 conference, in which we went in common search of the essentials and principles of biodynamics, we want to take the next step so as to find through alliances answers to current issues and to concrete agricultural themes that are in keeping with our times.

In the sense of strengthening relationships we want to extend the agricultural conference in 2013 at the Goetheanum to include an “annual conference of the world-wide biodynamic movement”, by inviting all international biodynamic groups to meet at the conference (times will be planned for this). So we hope that the 2013 conference will become a great festival of the biodynamic movement.

We wish everyone a most inspiring and fruitful summertime and look forward to your contributions.

Ueli Hurter Jean-Michel Florin Thomas Lüthi

CONTENTS

Editorial.............................................................................................................................1

New Theme of the Year..................................................................................................4

On the new Theme of the Year 2012/13 – Alliances for our Earth......................................4

Who does the Earth belong to? How can we gather our Forces through Alliances with civil Society? An example from France: Terre de LiensRené Becker........................................................................................................................6

Experiences from Working with Building AlliancesJean-Michel Florin...............................................................................................................7

A Study of the Leading - Thought Gnosis and AnthroposophyBrigitte von Wistinghausen..................................................................................................9

The Art of FederalismUeli Hurter........................................................................................................................12

The 2012 Conference Results and further Deepening ...............................................15

An attempt to summarize the principles of the biodynamic impulse following the conference and presentation of the annual theme 2012/2013 (This article has also been published in the Conference Report, which appeared as a special issue no. 17 on 28th April 2012)Ueli Hurter........................................................................................................................15

The Secret of Relationships: Review of the 2012 ConferenceJean-Michel Florin.............................................................................................................17

The 2012 Conference: Correspondence between Martin Bührer and Ueli Hurter...........................................................................................20

Reports from around the World...................................................................................26

Argentina: Growing Interest in Biodynamic Agriculture Antonio Heinze, President AABDA....................................................................................26

Brazil: Biodynamic agricultural ConferenceSimon Blaser.....................................................................................................................27

Impressions of a Visit to biodynamic Initiatives in South IndiaThomas Lüthi....................................................................................................................28

From the Work of the Section ......................................................................................31

State of the Planning of the Agricultural Conference from 6th-9th February 2013............31

International Meetings at the Agricultural ConferenceUeli Hurter........................................................................................................................32

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Report on the Founding of the French Section for Agriculture and Nutrition of the High School for Spiritual ScienceMichel Leclaire..................................................................................................................32

Progress in the ‘Les Ambassadeurs’ ProjectAmbra Sedlmayr................................................................................................................34

The Motivations for working biodynamicallyJohanna Schönfelder.........................................................................................................34

Staff Matters - ArrivalAmbra Sedlmayr................................................................................................................35

Meeting of the Circle of representatives 1st – 4th of November Villhof in Schlanders South TyrolErich Vill............................................................................................................................36

Report on the Work of the Section, Spring 2011 to Spring 2012......................................36

On the Death of Maria Thun

Life and Work of Maria Thun Jean-Michel Florin.............................................................................................................40

The Origins of the International Biodynamic Conference of Farmers’ Wives and Women FarmersGretel Koloska...................................................................................................................41

Agenda............................................................................................................................43

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New Theme of the Year

On the new Theme of the Year 2012/13 – Alliances for our Earth

We want to shape the future togetherFollowing the emergence of a new impulse during the conference of 2011 and its subsequent deepening in 2012, we are now ready to take a third step and have chosen the following as the theme for the year leading up to the conference of 2013: To actively encourage each other to take responsibility for bringing our unique biodynamic impulse into the world using our personal connections, regional partnerships and global networks. What is my/our mission in relation to planet Earth? What responsibilities do I/we carry in the coming years? What do the times demand of me/us? We find that not only are these questions coming to meet us from outside, they also live as burning issues within us. We see them not as alien to the biodynamic impulse, but on the contrary as belonging to its very core. We are also aware of the inspirational pictures, new horizons and deep insights we have received from Rudolf Steiner and that we cannot view them as being reserved for the biodynamic movement alone but need to share them with others. May we then engage actively with the diversity of today's civil society.

How can we help shape the future?How can such cooperation be realised? We can take up an issue that deeply concerns us and then in sharing it with others, find that they too are existentially affected by it. This is a first step on the road towards forming alliances. Forming partnerships and alliances towards a specific goal is a skill that needs to be learned. It is naive to think that everything can be shared and agreed among the partners. It is equally naive to believe that anything can be achieved without forming alliances. What matters is to define a common goal, develop a common position and agree on a common plan of action with the alliance partners. It is then necessary to learn the art of working and cooperating with one another. Each person's individual qualities are welcome and can bring a unique contribution towards achieving the goals of the alliance. Each one may feel themselves special with their own outlandish ideas – others certainly think this way about us biodynamic farmers – but rather than being a hindrance it should spur us on to find common cause in partnership. We need to show interest in and learn the art of working together in partnership.

What themes can we contribute to?We do not want to remain on a general level and learn solely about social techniques. We want to work concretely on subjects which are suited to an alliance. The following subjects and themes have emerged so far:

• Bees: what are bees telling us?

• Landsharing or Landgrabbing, future land ownership structures

• Regional currencies: how and where can money be realigned to the real economy?

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• Regional culture and regional marketing;

• Urban farming: are there biodynamic street farmers and roof gardens?

• Seeds and plant breeding: who should own the seeds? Sowing the future;

• Economic communities, CSA

• Research groups concerned with life: Universities of life

• Biodynamic apprenticeships, training, Biodynamic Ambassadors project;

• Agricultural policies: business as usual is not an option, World Agriculture report

Good experiences have been made and there are successful examples of alliances in many countries in different fields of work. It is a matter of strengthening embryonic alliances and making good use of the existing potential on an inter personal, regional and global level.

Suggestions for working with the theme of the year• Everyone can ask himself: What issue affects me personally and existentially and

impels me to join forces with others in the public sphere to help shape the future?

• Every person and every group can ask itself where it has already made experiences of working together cooperatively

• Groups and organisations of different regions and countries can ask themselves: Are we isolated or sufficiently connected? Who are our partners in civil society? Are we working in partnership towards specific objectives?

• Where can we find interesting examples, in history, in literature, of personalities within functioning alliances, who have developed the skill of reconciling the independence of individual actors with the commitment required to achieve a goal.

• The suggestions made by Rudolf Steiner about working together cooperatively can be followed up and studied. How do I engage with the cause as a responsible citizen of our time while remaining a free and sovereign individual? There are many indications given by Rudolf Steiner that address this, from the individual schooling path, to collegial cooperation – for example the founding of the experimental circle at Koberwitz – through to the threefolding of the social organism.

• To the theme of the year also belongs the next Michael letter of 15th February, “Gnosis and Anthroposophy”, with the leading thoughts 159 to 161, GA 26.

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Who does the Earth belong to? How can we gather our Forces through Alliances with civil Society? An example from France: Terre de LiensRené Becker

The initial SituationIn the late nineties some people met in France who were actively concerned with the issues of land law, land ownership and decommodifying land. All of them were involved in farming communities and public limited land companies. Since the seventies there have been a lot of groupings in France (GFA and SCI), which have formed around organic and Demeter farms. Thus a meeting took place with people from the Demeter movement, the organic movement, the ecological banking movement (the NEF= nouvelle economie fraternelle, originally an anthroposophical initiative) and from the association RELIER (a civil society initiative, which stems from the big ‘education populaire’ movement). In 2003 the association ‘Terre de Liens’ (TDL) was founded. In the meantime there is a regional TDL Association in every region and over 40 people are now working for TDL. By means of events, organic trade fairs and articles in the press the appeal is made to members of the public to take a greater interest in these questions and to get involved. TDL endeavours to draw the attention of the public to the debate with the authorities and M.P.s about the distribution of land. This is a political task.

The Idea of FoundationsHow can a farm really be ‘bought free’? Immediately we found ourselves facing the ideal of a foundation. It was obvious that you can only free up a piece of land through gifts. The biodynamic movement had wrung with these questions for decades without making any concrete progress. Time and again people had, indeed, had the impulse to bring about a Demeter foundation, yet the resources for it were inadequate. Now at last, the time had come to sit down around a table with other partners, sharing this interest, and to work on practical, common solutions. This impulse to have a foundation is now soon turning into reality and around 20 farms will be given away.

”Fonciere Terre de Liens” How can the circle of shareholders who had gathered around farms integrate more people from the public? This was the second burning issue, for the GFA and SCI initiatives have the advantage of gathering a close circle of people around a farm. Each person knows the farm and is either a consumer, a friend or else otherwise connected with the project. In the long run, however, these initiatives are often faced with great difficulties, when shareholders, above all, those with the biggest stakes, want to withdraw. Thus, in 2006 the big step was ventured of founding a nation-wide limited partnership. Any citizen is now able to purchase shares. At the beginning of 2012:

• 7,000 people have put together about 26 million Euros in capital.• It has been possible to buy 80 farms.• Another 20 will be added this year.• There are roughly 160 people, who are able to run organic and Demeter

farms. The range of farms includes smaller scale vegetable growers (2-3

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hectares) as well as larger dairy producers with up to 160 hectares.

All the farms are leased to the farmers long-term with special rules. It is not just ecological farming that is a precondition, but also the conservation of the landscape with its hedges, trees, old walls, etc. A new contract for civil society is being built up, for the farmers and the shareholders are uniting for a forward-looking form of agriculture. Capital can have a major impact, if new experiments are ventured upon. TDL tries to bring together a lot of people from different directions. By means of ‘Fonciere TDL’ it is becoming apparent that members of the public are willing to co-operate to bring about a turning-point in agriculture and this is happening not only on the level of the consumers, but also through the limited company.The earth as a common good is a theme that is becoming more and more relevant in public debate. TDL is currently experiencing that broad alliances are not only more efficient than narrow corporatism, but that they are unavoidable, if people want to change something in the world with financial solutions. The biodynamic movement should definitely get to grips with these issues .All the other movements are needed, in so far as they share our ethical and ecological values, in order to work against the modern tendency in an alternative way.

Experiences from Working with Building AlliancesJean-Michel Florin

The concept of building alliances can easily awaken the impression that we are dealing with a new catchword , thus a sort of miraculous remedy to enable us to solve our problems. Likewise, you might also perhaps think that it is just a superficial recipe so as to be able to work more efficiently in society. Put briefly, we can say, there is a problem, people do not feel strong enough to face the problem on their own and, therefore, they join up with other groups in order to be able to work more strongly and efficiently.

This legitimate aspect, in my opinion, is only an outer, superficial view of this work. There is an inner aspect, which is just as important and in the modern world means a kind of path of schooling. I want to endeavour to describe some steps along this path, drawing on concrete experience. When do we feel called upon to build alliances?

1. Being affected. There are special moments, in which you feel deeply touched by an issue, by a problem. It may be something that affects me concretely, for example, the difficulty as a young farmer of getting land (see the article of Rene Becker on terre de liens) or a ‘world event’ that touches my conscience without affecting me personally in any tangible way, e.g. “it cannot be that in rich countries as e.g. in Europe people have no homes”. With each problem I can decide whether I resign (“you cannot do anything anyway”), whether I try to solve the problem on my own (“me against the whole world”), or whether I join together with other people. The next question is then whether I enter into an alliance, only wanting to solve my

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personal problem – then the alliance would be a sum of egoisms – or whether I link up with others out of an impulse of conscience for a more general human cause and thus extend my conscious awareness. This is an important distinction.Let us take the example of land again; I observe that, when I extend my conscious awareness, this issue affects and preoccupies many farmers across the whole world: there are very many landless smallholders, especially in the South (e.g. India, Brazil, etc.). This subject contains such a huge set of problems that you can hardly get around joining with others.The first step of joining together is based on an issue which touches me personally in an inner, profound way. This opens me up to people and groups who are concerned with the same set of problems. Issues abound plentifully nowadays: we can work upon every burning issue, every question so as to find new ways forward together.

2. Opening up to the world. Instead of only wanting to know better as biodynamic farmers, we try to understand the problem more deeply, to be more deeply interested in it. When we wake up in this direction, we notice that a lot of other people are affected by the same problem. We are not at all alone.

3. Interest in others. I may take up contact with a group outside biodynamics once I have seriously concerned myself in advance with the idea guiding them. It is interesting to observe how differently people react, if you really take them seriously (not just as a strategy), if you are interested in them with an aim to pick up other points of view, to find out how they stand on this issue or the other, which ways of resolving the problem they are striving for, etc. If you waken up to the other person in this way, the picture of civil society arises within you. To take one example, in a study group in France we had studied the charter of an agricultural association intensively, in their language, in their own motives in order to understand them ‘empathically’ from the inside. Then we invited people from this group. It usually happens only when the problem is acute, when the issue is burning, that people spontaneously get together in order to fight their battles. This ‘battle against something’ is the foundation, which forms the group. The demonstrations of the past year (los indignados, occupy wall street) show this characteristic. As a first phase they are legitimate. Great strength can come from a sense of outrage. In a second stage of building a community of interests, where alternatives to a problem are to be developed, the work on a social level becomes much more demanding. For this the following steps have to be taken. A lot of groups founder here.

4. Renunciation: in order to connect ourselves with other groups, it is important not to put our own values in the centre and thus not stand in the way of the others being able to find their space. I must (inwardly) take a step back, so to speak, in order to keep space free for the others. Actually each person must take a step back so that something new that will gradually bond the group can arise and make its appearance in their midst (out of the ‘avenir’/ future).

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This phase is very important, otherwise there is the danger that I exploit the others for own goals. Frequently this happens quite unconsciously. To begin with I consciously give up my personal goal, trusting that we will find new common goals by working together. It may even be that I have to drop a thought or project dear to me or, at least, that I do not want to realise it necessarily within the alliance. It may even be painful; maybe I feel misunderstood or else the others still see me as the biodynamic farmer and not yet as a person. However, perhaps that is telling me that I do not yet see the others as individuals and continue to see them too much as representatives of particular world-views. Thus we can gradually take steps towards the realisation of the goals. Once you have consciously taken this path, you will notice that you have developed new abilities. You will become more capable of forming alliances and this will be noticed by people. You will be asked by various groups to join them. That is then really exciting. However, ‘social technique’ has to be nurtured and developed further, it must not fade into the background, as it is never fully achieved.

A Study of the Leading - Thought Gnosis and AnthroposophyBrigitte von Wistinghausen

In this letter Rudolf Steiner portrays the development of the human being in his soul members from the aspect of the change in his cognitive faculties.

In the period when the sentient body is bestowed on mankind (the Persian cultural epoch, 5th -3rd millennium B.C.) the human being experiences the revelations of the gods in his sense-impressions. This kind of cognitive faculty is an outer experience. If he or she turns to their inner life, then they have merely a vague feeling of life.

In a further step man comes to the sentient soul (Egyptian- Chaldean cultural epoch, 3rd-1st millennium B.C.). Now the sense impressions are gradually becoming spiritually empty for him. In contrast, in his inner soul life there rise up the divine-spiritual revelations in spiritual form, in picture-ideas, if he can unfold and maintain his inner life in purity. This is the time when gnosis came about – an experience of inner knowledge, out of the forces of the sentient soul , the revelations of the gods in spiritual picture-ideas. However, this form of knowledge is no longer possible for all human beings, but rather for those who can keep their inner life pure, whereas the form of knowledge available to the sentient soul was given with the sense impressions.

In the third stage of soul development man acquires the intellectual and mind soul. Now the soul efforts have to be greater and greater in order to allow the revelations of the gods to rise up in picture-ideas inwardly through the enlivening of the forces of the sentient soul. It becomes necessary for man to have a proper schooling, which takes place in great seclusion from the daily activities of the world in mystery centres for the selected few individuals.

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The intellectual and mind soul turns its attention strongly to the world of senses. By discovering and knowing the laws inherent in the sense world man develops his thinking. The sensory phenomena turn into questions for him. He can find answers within himself, as forces from his thinking activity stream towards the sense world. These forces also help him to enliven his inner world pictures and he develops philosophy as a new possibility of attaining knowledge, as it is to found in the Greek period, in particular in Plato’s world of ideas. An exoteric form of gnosis arises, which results from a mixture of philosophical thoughts with memory pictures from the time of the sentient soul; thus it is not based on inner spiritual experience.

In this period the Mystery of Golgotha takes place. People who rely upon the esoteric mystery gnosis, can muster understanding of the cosmic Christ. The more the intellectual soul progresses in its development, the more the inner pictures from the forces of the sentient soul fade. The way people experienced this in classical times is rendered by the saying: better to be a beggar in the light of the upper world (the earthly world of the senses) than a king in the realm of the shades (the spiritual world after death). Thus, the esoteric gnosis dies away more and more, and the exoteric gnosis is systematically eradicated by the spread of Christianity. This is possible because the former gets weaker and weaker. Gnosis is regarded as heathen spirituality, although the attitude of the mysteries of seeking and fostering the spiritual well away from the bustle of the world enters into the life of the hermits and the monasteries.

Everything that resulted from the way of knowledge of the sentient soul by way of spiritual understanding and a relationship to the spirit was in danger of getting lost. And thus, a spiritual understanding of the Mystery of Golgatha would not be possible. What would be left over would be holding on to tradition and study on the basis of history. We have experienced how, since the nineteenth century, the latter has begun to falter so that only the so-called teachings, the counsel on social life and the example would remain. Is that enough to give the earth a new significance and to re-enliven the development of the earth and humanity? How has our development worked out with the intellect’s taking hold of the world of the senses? It attempts to understand matter, which it is quite unable to, as it is purely and simply only able to apply itself to sensory phenomena, i.e. only the surface appearance of reality. In its incomprehension of life it destroys it more and more, taking it apart = analysing it to understand it.

The consciousness soul, arising as the next step in development from 15 th century, has, from the outset, a particular affinity to the physical world and crudely emphasises this direction, which the activity of the intellectual soul pointed people in. If all former understanding of spiritual processes were to die out and be lost and thus the relationship to spiritual beings would be broken off, the development of humanity would necessarily lead to the absolute dearth of spirituality, to spiritual emptiness.

Thus, I can understand as a necessity that, during this period, in which humanity completely immerses itself in the appearances of the sense world and finally merely the physical world, spirit beings themselves keep and preserve these spiritual picture-ideas from the way of knowledge of the sentient soul, from gnosis, in ‘divine mysteries’ – for

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humanity. From these ‘places’, which are not to be sought in the physical world, these spirit beings endow people with soul warmth, in whose souls the yearning for the spirit has not faded away or else is newly awakened; soul warmth, which originates in the feeling substance of these picture ideas. The substance of the knowledge from that period no longer accords with human consciousness. Distinguishing the content of knowledge from the content of feeling is not easy for people today, because we modern ones are so strongly inclined towards the content of knowledge and inclined perhaps to regard anything else as ‘beating about the bush’, as of second-rate importance, as icing on the cake. This approach that is focused on ‘content only’ makes for the coldness of the consciousness soul period. However, no child, no life can develop in this coldness. For everything we need the right mood, genuine soul warmth in order to find the way again to a real spiritual experience, to spiritual knowledge.

If we consider the folk fairy tales from this perspective, we will be able to recognise them as such a form of blessing from the ‘divine mysteries’. In the grail legends it becomes even clearer how this ‘blessing’ makes it possible to have a real relationship to the working of the Christ and an understanding of his dimension that embraces the whole world. This is all preparing the consciousness soul to develop its ability to devote itself to the spirit in the world once more, which is at work behind and in all outer phenomena and in man. “If you want to know yourself, you must know the world; if you want to know the world, you must know yourself.” That is the task, the essential concern of the anthroposophical approach, which came into the world through Rudolf Steiner after 500 years of consciousness soul development. The consciousness soul can school thinking in such a way that it can devote itself to the world of outer phenomena as well as the spiritual world. The cultivation of the intellect has given us an appropriate schooling for the world of outer appearances. On the basis of anthroposophy we can undergo a schooling suitable for the spirit. And this ability to grasp with our knowledge the world of outer phenomena as well as the spiritual world gives us human beings who are endowed with the consciousness soul the quite new possibility of taking in the Christ impulse in its significance for the earth and mankind using our understanding. The soul warmth living in us from the feeling substance of the old gnosis, which is working in the depths of our souls, allows earthly deeds and an inner attitude towards life and the earth to arise from this new understanding that can benefit all areas of life. Knowledge which leads to an appropriate inner attitude and appropriate actions means living in the service of Michael!

If viewed in the right way, this attitude forms the basis of the biodynamic way of farming. In this way we, as people who work biodynamically, can understand our position as servants of Michael.

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The Art of FederalismUeli Hurter

With the formulation of the theme of the year there is some talk that with the kind of civil society co-operation in alliances, as we have them in mind, federalism as an art should get a look-in as well. What is meant by it? Probably everyone understands something different by the concept of federalism, for in the present day it is politically influenced and thus has in every country and region its own history, colouring and values attached.

In the last circular in an article about Rosicrucianism I portrayed how, on 15 th December 1911, Rudolf Steiner used the concept of federalism in the specific context of an attempt at community building, which he named “Foundation for an anthroposophical Style and Art”. The passage runs thus, “...that the circle, in a certain way, sees the principle of the sovereignty of spiritual striving, the principle of federalism and the independence of all spiritual striving as an absolute necessity for the spiritual future,...” (GA 264). If we take this passage as a starting-point, then it will become obvious that, firstly, federalism can be valid as a quality, a ‘style’ a basic attitude of co-operation, which has a general validity and is not confined to the political arena; and, secondly, it becomes clear that co-operation in the sense of federalism does not restrict the individual character and independence of the members, but rather presupposes them and in a certain sense can strengthen them.

Concrete co-operation, not through giving up one’s own independence as, for example, in the medieval brotherhoods, but based on individual independence, indeed directly encouraging it, - such co-operation we feel is something that we want to strive towards, which we must strive towards, in a small setting, e.g. in the farm community as well as in the larger framework, e.g. in co-operation across civil society. For, after all, nobody these days can give up his independence, if he is honest about it, and at the same time no single individual, no single organisation is able to achieve something substantial or of importance on their own without anyone else. However, how does this federalist co-operation work in practice?

At this juncture I would like to refer to a second source. It is a speech by Denis de Rougemont, which he gave on 27th August 1947. The historical context is as follows: Europe lies in ruins after the Second World War. How can people build up a new Europe? There are the Unionists, who say we will make one huge state out of the whole of Europe and there are the Federalists, who say the cultural, political and economic diversity of the countries in Europe should not be unified, but, at the same time, should not be played off against each other as rival nation states in a way likely to lead to conflict, but rather should be kept and strengthened through a federal Organisation of Europe. Denis de Rougemont is the one who can best formulate this federalist perspective. He is not a politician but a philosopher, writer, intellectual. Born Swiss, Parisian by choice and a good expert on Germany, he returns to Europe after the war from his exile in the U.S.A. and is asked to give a speech at the Federalist Congress in Montreux. This speech is a truly great moment for Europe. In inspired words Denis

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de Rougemont succeeds in describing the essence of Europe which belongs together for all its diversity. Succinctly he portrays how a federal Europe might be shaped, which he does by naming six principles of federalism. These are generic and not limited to political co-operation, which is why they are of interest to us. They can form a basis for us for learning the art of federal collaboration. I will endeavour to summarise the speech of Denis de Rougemont, highlighting the main thread with quotations in the following. The essential thing, when reading it, is to translate the political parts into a general context or else directly into our circumstances.

First of all, Denis de Rougemont postulates that an image of man underlies every form of politics. “Therefore, we remind the individualists that the human being cannot realise him- or herself completely without at the same time engaging in a social context. And we remind the collectivists that social achievements are nothing, unless they lead to making each individual freer in pursuit of his self-determination. The human being is thus simultaneously free and engaged, autonomous and acting in solidarity. This human being who lives in tension, in creative debate, in permanent dialogue, is the individual concerned.Thus we have defined three types of people , who prefer three different political systems and who are preferred, in turn, by them. To the person who is only looked at as an individual, as free but not engaged, a democratic system corresponds that tends towards anarchy, leads to disorder and thereby prepares the way for dictatorship.To the person who is regarded as a political soldier, as totally engaged but unfree, the totalitarian system corresponds.Finally, to the person who lives as a free and engaged individual, who lives in the tension between autonomy and solidarity the federalist system corresponds.”

Then he introduces the idea that and how he intends to learn from the example of Switzerland on a small scale for the wider European situation. He enters an initial characterisation of federalism:“Like all great ideas the idea of federalism is quite simple, but is not at all simple to define with words or a formula. It is organic rather than rational – and rather dialectic than logical in the simple sense. In my view, the inner movement of the federalist way of thinking can be compared with nothing better than a rhythm , with breathing, with the enduring alternation of systole and diastole. This two-fold movement, which characterises the federalist way of thinking, cannot be overemphasised, this interaction, if you like this dialectic, this polarity, which is the actual beating of the heart of every kind of federalist life. True federalism does not consist only in the union of the cantons and also not only in their autonomy. It consists in the continually newly adjusted balance between the autonomy of the regions and their union. It consists in the lasting joining up of these opposite forces with the intention of strengthening them mutually.”

After a longer passage on Switzerland he comes to the formulation of the principles of federalism.“First principle:The federation can only proceed from each of the participating nations giving up any claim to organised hegemony of any kind.

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Second principle:Federalism can only come about by giving up thinking in terms of any kind of system.What I have said about imperialism and the hegemony of a nation is equally valid for the imperialism of an idea. One could define the federalist attitude as continual and instinctive rejection of solution with systems; to form a federation means simply to regulate jointly the concrete and many-layered realities of nations, of economic regions and of political traditions and to join them together, as well as it goes; in other words, to order them in accordance with their distinguishing features by respecting them, on the one hand, and by joining them together to make a whole, on the other. Third principle:For federalism the issue of minorities does not existFor federalism it is a matter of course that a minority can have just as much value as a majority, or in certain cases even more value, because a minority, in the eyes of federalists, represents an irreplaceable quality, one could say a function.Fourth principle;The federation does not set itself a goal of eradicating the diversity and of melting down all nations into a block, but, on the contrary, of preserving their specific qualities.Each of the nations that make up Europe has its own irreplaceable function within it, like the function of an organ in the body. The normal life of the body depends on the vitality of each individual one of its organs, just as the life of the individual organ depends on its harmonious relationship to all the other organs.Basically, one of the lungs does not need to ‘tolerate’ the heart. All that is asked of it is to be a good lung, to be as good a lung as possible, and, to that extent, it helps the heart to be a good heart. Fifth principle:Federalism is based on the love of complexity in opposition to brutal simplification, which characterises the spirit of totalitarianism.I say love consciously and not respect or tolerance. The love of the cultural, psychological even of the economic complexities results in the health of the federalist form of government. And its worst enemies are those, whose coming from 1880 on the great Jakob Burckhardt announced in a prophetic letter and for whom he coined the French expression ‘terribles simplificateurs’ (terrible simplifiers).Sixth principle:A federation develops progressively from what the individuals and groups contribute to it, and not at all coming from a central body or from government measures.”

He concludes his account by outlining his conviction that the actual conflict in twentieth century social life is not that between left and right, between capitalism and socialism etc., but that between totalitarianism (in all its forms) and federalism. And he describes really subtly how totalitarianism waylays us all, even in our thinking.” “Totalitarianism is simple and intransigent like death. Federalism is complex and flexible like peace, like life. And because it is simple and intransigent, totalitarianism is an

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unrelenting temptation for us to become weary, fearful and doubting and to abdicate spiritually. The spirit of totalitarianism is dangerous not only because it is triumphing at present in other people, but because it waylays us all in our inmost thoughts, when our vitality, our courage and our sense of our own self-determination flags just the smallest bit.

The concept of federalism, as I use it and as it is used in the formulation of the theme of the year, refers to these two sources: Rudolf Steiner 1911 and Denis de Rougemont 1947. Especially, because in the sense of these two sources federalism – and perhaps we will find a more suitable word – is not a system, not a technique, but an attitude, a kind of fundamental attitude and inner stance, it is possible to work with it fruitfully in all forms of social co-operation. People should try to illuminate their own situation in the social realm on a small, medium and large scale with the six principles – my experience is it is very fruitful.

The 2012 Conference Results and further Deepening

An attempt to summarize the principles of the biodynamic impulse following the conference and presentation of the annual theme 2012/2013 (This article has also been published in the Conference Report, which appeared as a special issue no. 17 on 28th April 2012)Ueli Hurter

The conference yielded a wealth of material to the question as to what essential impulses the biodynamic commitment receives from the sources of practice, anthroposophy and current events. This wealth is confusing; like a mosaic where you see the individual pieces without being able to make out the whole picture. Is there a meaningful structure behind the colourful dots of contributions, discussions and plenary sessions? One needs to observe and order and inwardly reflect and listen for a while before, step by step, the essence appears.

The first step reveals essence as an inner attitude rather than a catalogue of outer activities. That certainly has to do with the methodical approach of the conference. There is a positive quality about the fact that the biodynamic impulse originates in the attitude of the people who are actively involved in it. The actual method, that is, the set of patterns for working with soil, plants and animals, is, from this point of view, secondary. Can we characterize this attitude in a second step, objectively and openly, without implying any kind of creed? Four qualities emerge:Honesty – openness – solidarity – initiative

Maybe these qualities are characteristic of anybody who acts responsibly and with initiative in our time. The biodynamic approach is rooted in a commitment to the needs of our time. It is connected, or has the possibility to connect itself, with many other

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people and initiatives. In a third step the four qualities of the “inner” attitude can be related to the “outer” reality of biodynamic life – in practice, anthroposophy and current events.

We learn honesty from the soil, openness from the plants and solidarity from the animals. Initiative can only come from human beings.

It is an actual relationship because we, as biodynamic farmers, have the will to take the soil with its mineral foundation and local conditions seriously. It is a matter of cultivating a particular place on earth, without tricks or artificial fertilizers. That is hard work and it can be disillusioning. Honesty is needed and is rewarded. The relationship between honesty and soil is also one of principle. The soil represents the factual world, the way things and people are. Thinking this principle reveals that it holds the power of identity. Biodynamic farming creates identity for the earth and for us and this quality is reflected in the authenticity of its products.

Openness is born from the liveliness of working with the plant world. The developmental stages of the individual plants, their life in the cycle of the year and devotion to the cosmos: they are the reality that leads to openness. Plants represent life, diversity and metamorphosis – the principle of development. Biodynamic farming seeks out and fosters the capacity for development everywhere and in all beings, as we can see from the specific The conference yielded a wealth of material to the question as to what essential impulses the biodynamic commitment receives from the sources of practice, anthroposophy and current events. This wealth is confusing; like a mosaic where you see the individual pieces without being able to make out the whole picture. Is there a meaningful structure behind the colourful dots of contributions, discussions and plenary sessions? One needs to observe and order and inwardly reflect and listen for a while before, step by step, the essence appears.

The first step reveals essence as an inner attitude rather than a catalogue of outer activities. That certainly has to do with the methodical approach of the conference. There is a positive quality about the fact that the biodynamic impulse originates in the attitude of the people who are actively involved in it. The actual method, that is, the set of patterns for working with soil, plants and animals, is, from this point of view, secondary. Can we characterize this attitude in a second step, objectively and openly, without implying any kind of creed? Four qualities emerge:Honesty – openness – solidarity – initiative

Maybe these qualities are characteristic of anybody who acts responsibly and with initiative in our time. The biodynamic approach is rooted in a commitment to the needs of our time. It is connected, or has the possibility to connect itself, with many other people and initiatives. In a third step the four qualities of the “inner” attitude can be related to the “outer” reality of biodynamic life – in practice, anthroposophy and current events.

We learn honesty from the soil, openness from the plants and solidarity from the

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animals. Initiative can only come from human beings.

It is an actual relationship because we, as biodynamic farmers, have the will to take the soilbiodynamic cultivation of plants, the vitality of the produce and the search for future-oriented social structures.

Solidarity grows from the way we treat animals. The animals are the networkers, they create life space, form inside and outside, create atmosphere and close the cycle of farming with their dung. We really experience this. We could summarize this quality as a striving for cooperation. The principle of cooperation is fundamental to the biodynamic impulse and is expressed in the integration of animals, composting, the ripeness of products, the striving for cooperation in the process of generating value.

Only human beings can take initiative. Cows can’t do it, nor can star constellations. Initiative can, however, not be separated from responsibility. Initiative and responsibility towards nature and our nutritional needs lead to dynamic activity: the preparations, the leading thought of agricultural individuality, the potential of Demeter food, the promotion of free and responsible action and the ideal of building up social structures that make freedom possible and promote it. In a fourth step we can formulate four principles of biodynamic agriculture. Each principle has an outer quality that relates to farming and an inner quality that relates to our attitude as human beings:Identity and honestyDevelopment and opennessSolidarity and cooperationInitiative and responsibility

The Secret of Relationships: Review of the 2012 ConferenceJean-Michel Florin

In our search for the essentials of biodynamics, on our first day of the conference, we came across a ‘surprising’ theme that, at first glance, may seem to be rather remote from agriculture: love. The risk of misunderstandings with such a powerful word as love is great. On the one hand, this word generates warmth in us, at the same time, though, the thought is stirred that it is just too simple, too luciferic.

This theme has led me into doing some further research. What could they be meaning, when a lot of people talked about love so as to describe the essential element of biodynamic agriculture?

To be able to explain it better I shall briefly sketch the development of agriculture in the past century. For roughly the past 100 years and more strongly since the fifties agriculture has taken over the principles of industry. In other words, every being, with which we are dealing in agriculture (the soil, plants or animals), is seen as an object, a

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thing (as raw material). Thus, the realms of nature lose their qualities and their inner being. If you are then only dealing with dead things, you can realise the complete set of rationalisation measures that lead to increased efficiency. Three important directions appear as the consequence of this ‘objectification’ – these tendencies are recognisable in organic and biodynamic cultivation -; they usually appear with a time lag.

SpecialisationWhere, in the past, we had a diversified farm with various soils, plant cultures and kinds of livestock, today we find a factory of substances, which has specialised in the production of a ‘raw material’ for a processing company. In the past 50 years the steps on the way to specialisation can be clearly followed. First of all, it started with the reduction of diversity: several kinds of livestock were got rid of (horses, chickens, etc.). Then it comes to a separation of livestock keeping from plant growing. Specialisation goes on apace, in livestock-keeping right to the keeping of only one kind of animal, frequently only in one phase of life. Thus, a pig breeder can get young pigs, without exactly knowing where they were born. He feeds them for a time and when they are fattened up, they are picked up by the same company that delivered the piglets and feed. There is no longer any breeding or livestock keeping (in French you say elever for keeping, which is to raise), but only fattening up, mere meat production. Nowadays the various parts of the food production chain are scattered around the whole world.

IsolationSpecialisation has totally changed the farmer’s relationship to what he is producing. For instance, the producer of maize hardly knows whether his produce will be used as food, to produce plastic or for other purposes. This specialisation has led to total isolation. Industrial farming of the present day has taken it so far that all relationships have disappeared. This isolation is seen in the necessity for pig farmers to isolate themselves physically with protective clothing from their pigs in order to avoid being contaminated by germs. Plants which are grown without soil are separated from heaven and the earth.

Standardisation To improve efficiency, to be able to do all the work with machines, people go a step further: they standardise. In other words, the living creatures (plants and animals) must be as similar as possible (it functions best of all through cloning: all creatures are exactly the same). A bull can father 2 million calves. This leads to an enormous loss of diversity.

For a farmer such farming has no meaning any more, since the meaning lies in the relationships, which we can form, in the love for the animals and nature. The only meaning left is to earn money while the going is good. I have the impression that this question of love, of relationships, is a key aspect of biodynamic farming. Rudolf Steiner begins the Agriculture Course with the concept of the agricultural organism, which means we would be coming to our theme. In the ecology of agriculture the farm is seen as an ‘agricultural eco-system’. What is the difference between a system and an organism? With a system relationships remain external: the ‘system of a car’ needs a material relationship to a source of energy. The being, the quality, of this source of

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energy is unimportant; whether it is gas, petrol or electricity, the main thing is it is energy. In an organism the relationships are essential, they have qualities on several levels. It is not all the same whether a cow eats grass itself, or gets silage or meat and bone meal.

Separation or RelationshipIn the Agriculture Course Rudolf Steiner gives us guidance as to how to strengthen the relationships on the farm and also how to create new relationships completely from scratch, out of our own impulses. He says, for example, that the farmer should develop a personal relationship to fertiliser. With chemical fertiliser but also with bought compost that is not possible; I often do not even know how the latter was produced. Establishing a relationship to the fertiliser may not seem the easiest thing to do, but if you concern yourself with the compost, you will notice how the compost heap gets more and more interesting. It is a micro- world, in which all the four big phases of the earth’s development take place (see “Das Leben des Composthaufens” , The Life of the Compost Heap by Jochen Bockemuehl).

I would like to draw attention to the different levels of relationships which we can create. A picture from social life will help us (for our theme of the year as well) to better understand the power of relationships. In a group of people who work together regularly we can observe the following steps: first of all, getting to know one another: we try to understand the other, spontaneously we have sympathy for one person, less so for another, maybe even antipathy. We find ourselves in ‘soul’ relationships; we are not properly present with our egos. Then we carry on working together and gradually notice that the relationships change. There may be difficult moments in which we notice that the other one is not the person we took them to be, after all. If we go through such moments together and, nonetheless, the group remains together, then new, more mature relationships come about. We know each other better; we value each other and we know better what each person can do and what they cannot do so well. It also means that the group has the ability to hand over tasks to particular participants (giving mandates). Such a group will then develop a strong power of resistance (we could even speak of resilience) against outside influences. The relationships have really created something new; they have become a reality. The group has become much stronger.

Biodynamic Farming, Relationships FarmingIs it not similar in farming? Might it not be that all the relationships, which we actively form with animals, plants, with the fertiliser, etc., by taking an interest in them and bringing them into relationship in manifold ways, form the inner, spiritual substance of the agricultural organism (which can then lead to individuality)? And would it not be possible that these relationships make the agricultural organism much more resistant to extreme, outside influences, which are occurring more frequently (climatic fluctuations, events due to our civilisation, etc.).There are at least four levels of relationships:

• The material level (cycles of the elements)• The level of life: where do I receive life forces through foodstuffs from?

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(cycles of nutrition)• The mutual relationships as an intimate part of nature, which Rudolf Steiner

especially describes in lecture 7. It seems that they come about of their own accord, if we shape the landscape of our farm in the right way (with wetlands, meadows, trees, etc.).

• The individual relationships, which we must actively form, by deliberately connecting ourselves with a ‘being’. A special quality comes in here, that of the ego. For example, it is definitely not meant that we should find manure pleasant (you can do that too), but that we take an interest in it and thereby step for step form a relationship to it. This process is described very precisely by Antoine St. Exupery in his book ‘The little Prince’: the fox describes to the little prince how he can be tamed. Is it not an important task of biodynamic agriculture taming the beings of nature? When I give animals an ‘individual’ name, I form a quite special relationship and ‘individualise’ the animal.

It is also very interesting to consider the biodynamic preparations from this perspective. What do we do exactly, when we produce them? We pick blossoms from various healing plants (when they have reached the highest stage of their development), then they are put into and enveloped by animal organs and the whole thing is buried in the earth. And then the preparations (transformed plants) are added to the compost. Of course, we take plants and organs which from their nature already have a relationship to one another. Nevertheless, we create new relationships among the three realms of nature and with the seasons. If we carry out this work ourselves, we can connect ourselves with each step personally and inwardly. From this point of view, which one could elaborate, one can say that the preparations are ‘concentrations of relationships’.

With this sketch I wanted to point to this aspect of relationships, which is partly hidden in the concept of ‘love’. What does it mean to love another being? It means to develop quite special relationships to it. Nowadays, where the tendency to separate is so predominant, walls are erected between peoples, between rich and poor, between different districts. With all the more urgency must we take up the task of forming relationships.

The 2012 Conference: Correspondence between Martin Bührer and Ueli Hurter

We are publishing this correspondence with Martin Bührer’s permission, since it appears to us to be interesting for the whole movement, especially because the very different way in which the past two conferences were organised must have definitely given rise to questions in this direction from more people.

Dear Mr. Hurter,I am concerned to put the criticism, which I expressed at the concluding plenum of this year’s agricultural conference, into the following words, for which there was no time as

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far as those standing on the stage in a row with young farmers were concerned and which would not have occurred to me, nervous as I was. I am directing this letter to you because your opening lecture moved me and stayed with me; I realised after the conference that it was the only one in which there was space for an episode of everyday, practical life.

I would like to introduce myself briefly. After a four-year course (North Rhine-Westphalia/Hesse) I passed my final exam and completed my training as a biodynamic farmer in January. I trained on five different farms, among others at the Schloss Hamborn Farm , where I got to know Alexander Reiske and finally followed him to the Lehenhof. In February I was able to participate in the agricultural conference for the first time. I heard a lot about the conference of the previous year and now wanted to know how I would find my place in the biodynamic movement, because I am very interested in this kind of husbandry and in anthroposophy. If I look back at the conference, there are two questions, above all, which occupy me:Where is the ground we are standing on?Who is driving the biodynamic movement?People thought hard about what is essential in biodynamic agriculture. At the conference everyone was encouraged to find what is essential for them. At the end, though, was the taking stock of what we, as a movement, at the moment have as essentials uniting us, which was very sobering. It is the Agriculture Course, a historical document, which people have been trying to understand and bring into their practical experience for the past nearly ninety years. It is the guide-lines of the Demeter Association, which are lagging behind the practical work on the farms and the current development in agriculture. Biodynamic agriculture does not give guidance on the main points in relation to burning issues of the practical work, as not just the example of the castration of piglets makes apparent. Other associations are ahead of us in this respect. People discuss intensively how we get on with one another as people, discuss us as individuals, who shape the farm organism. In this years’ conference, though, people forgot about the organs of the farm organism. Where were the plants the soil, the animals? This development leaves out essential steps. We arrive too hastily at the level of dialogue and social dynamics, without being aware of the ground beneath our feet that is holding us. Rudolf Steiner formulated it in 1924 in Koberwitz as follows, “For everyone should know as a matter of course that you can only speak about agriculture, even on shaping the social aspects, if you, first of all, have this solid basis in farming, if you really know what growing root vegetables, potatoes, grains means.”The situation of society and the earth raises burning issues for us: what contribution can we, as farmers working biodynamically, make so that our children and grandchildren find an earth, on which human life is possible? And where do we start? – in the cowshed, in the field, in the garden. We should be giving ourselves this framework. It is here that the spiritual development of the individual will find its place – otherwise, we will quite quickly fall down “the side of the mountain ridge”, where we can talk about love, but the development of the farm is stagnant, because we are going round in a circle with all the sharing and inwardness; farms where people, who do not work in farming, feel immediately at ease, immediately join in the conversation and can be grateful for this feeling of belonging. However, they are not the ones who

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will move our farms forward. Many of those who will do so remained on the farm this year.

If the agricultural conference is intended to remain the nucleus of the movement – in as far as it still is -, then we must become concrete again. Then we must set about working out what our future contribution may be. Biodynamic agriculture is faced with an enormous task, which results from its holistic understanding of the spiritual background to nature and, which requires a high standard of professionalism and competence, something lacking in many areas; separate plant growing and livestock breeding, keeping calves with their mothers, field cultivation that takes care of the soil, keeping of laying hens and pigs for fattening in good numbers but still in an appropriate way for the species and , last but not least, a new understanding and enlivening of the preparations.

The market share of ‘Demeter’ is still marginal, although it is the most trustworthy brand and although we are convinced about having the best method and gladly and frequently tell each other this. We feel at ease in our own circles for this reason , because we are not capable of opening them up in a way which will convince others. How can spiritual truths be experienced by those people too, for whom Steiner’s lectures do not leap off the page? What strength can arise from experiencing these truths , becomes apparent with the example of Sekem, where the question whether people are farming biodynamically or not is decided much more by the practical outcome than by the way people work together or the spiritual background. This leads me to the question whether and how the biodynamic movement wants to grow and how it projects itself to the outside world accordingly.

I intend to close now with this last question – in the hope not to have shown disapproval towards anyone’s endeavours. I would be very glad to hear from you.

With greetings and thanks, Martin Bührer

Dear Martin Bührer,I would like to thank you most warmly for your letter. I have great respect for your commitment to the biodynamic cause, especially for the practical side of the work as it is living on the farms. It is of great concern for me, who am still practically involved on my own farm, for the Section to achieve something valuable and inspiring for those of us in particular, who are engaged with the daily demands of our farms and gardens. Now from your viewpoint we did not succeed by far in the last conference in this and, therefore, the question arises what the task of the conference can be in view of the challenging tasks for the whole biodynamic movement.

How did we arrive at this form of the conference, which we have now carried out twice? It was in autumn 2009, when there was a completely open situation at the meeting of the Circle of Representatives, as to how the next year and the next conference were to be taken hold in terms of the theme. I can remember one person’s comment, “Not potato growing again, we have been doing now for years, we are able

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to do it, that is not the essential thing for there are burning issues on the farms, socially and individually. We must not look away, we must face the flames. What are the actual burning issues of the present, for each person and each farm?” This was the starting signal for the work that was expressed in the last two conferences. A most varied collection of material came to the surface through this questioning through dialogue about the burning issues – which we did under the guidance of Claus Otto Scharmer, and especially Ilsabe Zucker and her co-workers in the run-up to the conference and then all together at the 2011 conference. We condensed, synthesised individual statements, in the sense that we endeavoured to hear common threads in them. The result was very simple, on the one hand, on the other, also most striking. We found that actually each one of us in the movement is faced with three challenges. They can be formulated like this:

• We need good farms, from every point of view, from within, from the soil, the plants, the livestock, the people, the economic viability, the customers and the produce, the atmosphere; there is no reason to not look after the farm whole-heartedly so that it can come into its own and radiate something out.

• I want to follow an inner path. Each of us can clearly sense that alongside or in the 14-16-hour working day it is necessary to have times and quality moments, in which cultivation of the inner life, an inner conversation, an inner path can come into their own. The orientation in our biographies has brought us to this kind of agriculture. This involves a way of dealing inwardly with ourselves and with the work in hand.

• We do not want to sleep through the events of our time. The great challenges of our time, e.g. world famine, the question of climate change, the challenge from gene technology in agriculture, these are our questions as well. Each of us feels that, as a contemporary, he or she cannot answer to him- or herself, unless he collaborates concretely at least for a time on the one or other issue, living in our society.

All three demands are facing us at the same time, a situation which makes for an unstable mix. At face value, they exclude one another, for running a biodynamic farm really properly is a 150% job. Going an inner path means seeing the outer, practical work more relatively in any case, in the first instance. A commitment to an issue in the public domain will pull me away physically and time-wise from the farm. How then can we manage to do justice to these three demands at the same time?

With this question we started off into the new working year, and the 2012 conference, which you have experienced, was organised with these three questions: practical work as a source, anthroposophy as a source, current events as a source. The whole thing was summarised by the question, “What the essential core of the biodynamic impulse?”; and here again working in the direction: what is essential for me, for every participant and not so much, what is essential in and for itself, for who should say what the essential aspect is? Are there any knowledgeable people

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anywhere or relevant authorities, who could give an answer to this question? We do not think so. We think the source of a possible answer is, in the first place, everyone involved in and committed to the movement. That is why we organised the conference once again mainly as a working laboratory of dialogue. The dialogue form means venturing into dimensions and layers in verbal and non-verbal communication which are not normally accessible. It involves discovering these deeper or more essential layers individually in their qualities as sources and thus the responsibility for them – directly having my responsibility, my possibilities for shaping something in the world. The fact that this is a difficult undertaking and you can easily get stranded in the shallows – or else quickly tumble down the side of the mountain ridge – or as you say, you find yourself in a place where it is just socially warm and cosy and there is no more quality light of knowledge, this fact we became painfully aware of at the conference. I can assure you that, as the conversation in the plenums in the Great Hall failed to get going, I suffered pretty badly, up there on the stage, and we subjected ourselves to the strongest criticism and the strongest reproaches. Now, with some distance and, above all, as a practitioner we can tell ourselves, o.k. it did not work. That does not mean that the whole undertaking is going in the wrong direction. The direction we are striving for is one, in which we in the biodynamic movement arrive at approaches to working, where the spiritual sovereignty of each committed person can flow in as a source, as a potential for taking responsibility and for shaping things in full measure. It is essential that we develop a future orientation in which we learn to collaborate as equal partners. This means that instead of simply obeying authoritarian instructions or falling prey to the conflicts of opposing ideas and opinions, we need to ensure that the biographical motivation living as an impulse in everyone committed to and engaged with biodynamic agriculture, can come to full expression in the context of the great cultural impulse that Rudolf Steiner gave for the whole of humanity in the Agriculture Course.

Now I would like briefly to go into the end of the conference, as I believe that here there is a misunderstanding. As you correctly mention, in my concluding lecture I portrayed that a gap is opening up between the Agriculture Course and the defining Demeter guidelines. I sought to make it clear that I feel it is a legitimate requirement of our times to fill this gap with an up-to-date formulation of the aims of the biodynamic impulse, which we can answer for. I have written something as a first formulation of it; in the Conference report, which appeared as a special issue in ‘The Goetheanum’ under the title “Common Sources and Goals”. In this article it is shown that as a result of the 2012 conference the essential element of the biodynamic impulse can be described as an inner attitude. I have tried to capture this attitude in four concepts and have related them to the organs of the agricultural organism; honesty, which we learn from the soil, openness, which we learn from the plants, co-operation, which we learn from the animals and initiative, which is the possibility of us human beings. Honesty, openness, co-operation and initiative, this attitude, which corresponds to the biodynamic impulse, is thus described in a first step. This is a basis for further work and this will happen in the near future. In mid June the General Members Meeting of Demeter International will take place in Slovenia. Here, in another body of the biodynamic movement, these questions will be further worked

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on. Four sessions are available in order to go on working on the vision and the principles of our movement. The result of this work will be sifted again in Dornach next year and rounded off. There is thus a stream of work involving the various organisations and bodies within the world-wide biodynamic movement that aims to formulate a contemporary, concise and open statement of identity. The 2012 conference was a really essential step in the course of this effort and was no isolated event. Maybe this did not emerge clearly enough for first-time participants – for which we would like to apologise. The work is however underway throughout the movement and the results will be presented in about a year.

Well, how will it continue with the conferences in Dornach? A year ago we spoke about a set of three steps. The third step is imminent. “Alliances for our Earth” is the theme of the year and thus the working title for the next conference. Just as we have formulated it in the theme of the year, it is exactly the point – as you have written yourself – to do justice to the responsibility that we have. The viewpoint concerned here is that we not only keep the essentials of the biodynamic impulse for ourselves, but that, via the work connections, via alliances, as we have mentioned, we let them flow into the battle, emerging with the great issues of our time. The outcome of this battle will determine in which direction our civilisation and culture will develop. If I see it correctly, that is the direction which you mention as essential. From the last two conferences we have learnt how the danger of ‘only’ acting in the social realm can be counteracted, by resolving to tackle this theme in a more strongly focused way. We want to try to develop this ability to form alliances, using concrete themes; themes, which are core themes and core areas of competence in our biodynamic work, e.g. the question of seed with the problems around G.M.O., the question of the bees with the bee deaths, the economic questions with finance policy tied to the real economy and questions of shaping future agricultural policy. I think that, in accordance with your suggestion, the conference will turn increasingly again to the soil, the plants and animals, but we will remain with the approach of wanting to develop ourselves further, especially personally and socially. The reasoning behind this is that, according to our analysis, the farmer (or farmers) as the entrepreneurs belong as a key figure to the whole farm enterprise. If an enterprise, understood in a wider sense, is a social place, where values are developed, not only mainly financial values, but also cultural, human values, then our farms are enterprises in the best sense and we are entrepreneurs. From my life experience the entrepreneur is quite clearly the most decisive and important factor in an enterprise. This is why I consider it justified to put the focus for one more year not on the technical farming issues or practical, material questions, but on the development, further development and capabilities of us farmers as entrepreneurs. As already mentioned, we consider a stronger orientation towards the professional-practical basis of our work as entirely necessary for our conversations. We will organise the 2013 conference with this focus in mind.

Once again my warmest thanks for your involvement as a young biodynamic farmer. The position you take as a representative of the younger generation is very important to us. We hope that the dialogue, which does not always have to be only harmonious, will continue.

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The weather is rainy, probably with you too at Lake Constance, luckily we here at the L’Aubier Farm have the hay harvest completely safely under cover and I hope that you are pretty much up to date with the work.

With warm greetings, Ueli Hurter

Reports from around the World

Argentina: Growing Interest in Biodynamic Agriculture Antonio Heinze, President AABDA

Biodynamic agriculture in Argentina is attracting more and more interest from lots of directions. Our meetings, events and training courses are organised by consumers and home gardeners, the growing movement for urban agriculture, representatives of smallholder organisations, representatives from huge fruit plantations and renowned vineyards and from a diversity of small and medium-sized farms. For over ten years the Argentinian Association for Biodynamic Agriculture has been holding one- to four-day introduction courses in various regions as well as the four-week foundation course. This course is divided into four modules and takes place on four different biodynamic farms in Cordoba, Misiones, Santa Fe and Buenos Aires. With 20-45 participants in each course, around 800 people altogether have attended one or more modules. There are a growing number of people in the whole country, who are studying the Agriculture Course, both in the towns and cities and in the country.In Uruguay, our neighbour, courses and lectures on the production of the preparations and composting have been held in co-operation with Argentinian course leaders. There are regular common activities with two Waldorf schools in Buenos Aires and Cordoba.

The group of AABDA advisors meets regionally and nationally for further training and to extend the group in order to meet the growing demand. The Seed Calendar is being published for the third year running in co-operation with the INTA (Public Institute for agricultural Research and advisory Work), something which makes wide distribution possible. The internet side of the association is versatile and active and contributes largely to new people continually finding access to information, events and courses. A journal of the association is about to be published. Representatives of the association take part in the most varied events of the organic movement, e.g. in seed exchanges. The AABDA members are informed monthly by email about events, they receive reports and articles, also articles translated from other languages. This year representatives were able to participate in the Agricultural Conference in Dornach as well as in various biodynamic meetings and conferences and exchange knowledge and experience.

A laboratory for rising picture methods is being planned. Last month at the Faculty for

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Agriculture of the University of Buenos Aires it was possible to hold the first biodynamic introduction course.

From the mid-eighties an annual meeting has taken place, which has developed in the course of time into a South American (cono sur) meeting. Since last year, when it took place in Bolivia, it has been extended into a Latin American meeting. This year the Latin American Conference will be in Costa Rica from 29th September- 2nd October:http://www.biodinamicacostarica.blogspot.comOur 27th Annual General Meeting took place in Mendoza with 60 participants from various regions as well as representatives of the biodynamic movement in Chile.AABDA (Associacion para la Agricultura Biologica-dinamica en la Argentina) http://www.aabda.com.arContact (Spanish/English) Julia Lund Petersen secretaria@aabda.com.arTranslator: Simon Blaser simoncblaser@yahoo.com.br

Brazil: Biodynamic agricultural ConferenceSimon Blaser

Every two years a big biodynamic conference takes place in Brazil. This year it is to be held from 13th-16th September - in the spring of the southern hemisphere – on the farm of the Volkmann family in the South of Brazil. The title is:X Conferencia Brasileira de Agricultura Biodinamica - The rebirth of Agriculture with the Awakening of our Society

In this conference it is intended to look at new social forms of providing food in view of the evident inability of modern agriculture to fulfil its task socially, economically and ecologically in the long-term. Questions of human, social and antisocial impulses, the supply of food by means of independent weekly markets, home delivery, farm shops, CSA and social sculpture are to be worked upon in the main part of the conference, whereas artistic and technical knowledge can be worked upon and exchanged in various workshops. Around 200 participants are expected to attend the conference; they will be accommodated on the farm, in tents and in the neighbourhood or in hotels nearby.

Contact: Simon Blaser simoncblaser@yahoo.com.brhttp://www.biodinamica.org.brhttp://www.abdsul.org.br/

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Impressions of a Visit to biodynamic Initiatives in South IndiaThomas Lüthi

Upon arriving in Chennai around midnight my first, truly special impression on the way from the airport to the city was the cows which were lingering in the almost empty streets of the city.The research institute, Shri AMM Murugappa Chettiar Research Centre in Chennai, South-East India, began its research into biodynamic cultivation in 1998. One of the goals of the institute’s research is to support farmers in their practical work. The institute with its 60 co-workers is financed through contributions of the authorities and companies. Two PhD theses have already been written on field and compost preparations.

One of the areas of research is the compost preparation plants. They are searching for plants which are indigenous in this climate in order to replace the classical preparation plants. In this search there is the interesting approach of comparing the effects of the preparation plants on human beings with other plants, well-known in India, which have similar effects. Another aspect is examining the chemical composition of the preparation plants and of other indigenous plants. Also trials with the production of field preparations have been carried out.

A further significant area is soil investigations. Dr. K. Perumal, the head of the institute, has learnt the round image chromatogram method from Herr Balzer. Dr. Perumal, returning to on the work of Ehrenfried Pfeiffer, has further developed this method for soil investigations in India. A computer programme has been developed for this with the aid of 20,000 soil investigations. The completed chromatograms are scanned and then processed by the computer and evaluated. In this manner a soil analysis report is created. On the basis of this report the computer works out recommendations for fertilisers for various cultures and various methods of cultivation such as biodynamic, organic and conventional. Besides nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sulphate, PH, organic carbon and humus, micro nutrients are determined by the programme. In comparison to analytic investigations generally 90% accuracy is achieved, for organic carbon, for instance only 70%. Within a single day soil investigations and fertiliser recommendations are carried out simply and without great expense. The parallel double round image chromatograms demonstrate considerable consistency in the images. So as to be able to carry out the investigations on th spot quickly and efficiently a special bus was fitted out with a laboratory. In Tamil Nadu State in South India the arrival of the bus in various places is announced well in advance, which allows the farmers to prepare for the soil investigations. This service can be made available to the farmers free of charge, as the costs are carried by the authorities. Of interest with this approach is the fact that it starts off from a whole entity, the round image chromatogram, on the basis of which the details are determined.

Also in South India, in Kodaikanal in the mountains at 2,000 metres, Jakes Jayakaran has created a most varied garden, in which the complete range of preparation plants is

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grown. The climate so high above sea level is favourable for this purpose. The temperatures are considerably cooler and the seasonal differences more marked than on the plains. Here all the preparation plants grow and blossom in the wonderful garden. The dandelion and the stinging nettle do not have the lush growth, which we are accustomed to in Europe. Yarrow has chiefly beautiful pink and reddish blossoms.

In Kodaikanal introduction courses and courses on the production of the preparations are held regularly twice a year. Thus, a six-day introduction course took place in March, followed straight away by a three-day preparation course.

The courses were held in the Sacred Heart College; in the quadrangle of the former monastery sections for the zodiac signs were marked out on the ground. The planets in their correct proportions were set on stands in their current zodiac positions and they could be pushed along, which meant that the relationships and the movements were presented clearly and tangibly. The cosmic aspects accompanied people throughout all the days.

During the preparation course, as the connection of the cosmos with plant growth was being dealt with, the absorbed and reverent silence in the lecture room was abruptly broken. One of the many wild monkeys leapt onto the bars of the open window with a loud noise and stared into the lecture room with its big eyes until it was driven off. Perhaps the news of the course had got about among the monkeys too? In the large forests and on the steep slopes monkeys live pretty undisturbed alongside wild elephants and other animals.

The making of the preparations was especially impressive. Jaison Jerome, the adviser, led the way with the practical steps involved. To begin with, the manure of the grazing cattle with its wonderful structure was kneaded by hand for a time with great joy and intensity. The whole thing seemed completely natural; there were no signs that the participants who were eagerly kneading the manure with its pleasant smell wanted to keep their distance from it. The same was true of the making of the compost preparations. For example, it was with great dignity and interest that chamomile blossoms were filled into cows’ intestines, dandelion blossoms were filled into stomach fur and quartz was ground most finely.

The cow horns, filled with manure, were sorted according to size. The biggest were buried at the back, the medium-sized ones in the middle and the smallest right at the front. Then the small horns at the front are dug out and used first and the biggest remain somewhat longer in the ground. The tree trunks were coated reverently with a cloth or with bare hands with great care. Thus, by the making of the preparations you could experience just how many people were involved so close together. For me the question arose as to what role this, in particular, plays in the production of the preparations?

In this garden but, above all, on Kurinji Farm, the farm of Jakes Jayakaran, below the mountains on the plain, considerable quantities of the preparations are arte produced

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and sold to interested farmers. They are produced and stored most carefully. On this farm there is a large drying unit, where biodynamic pomegranates, mangos, bananas and other fruit are dried, primarily for export.

In the village of Sevapur a Belgian woman has founded a boarding school for children. At present there are 300 children there altogether. Before their morning lessons the children are occupied for a short time in the Botanical Gardens, where 256 different plants are flourishing. Immediately next to the school there is a biodynamic farm with 12 hectaresof arable land. This is home to nine beautiful, delicate-looking cows which bear their wonderful, long horns sedately and proudly. The great numbers of compost heaps are mature after only three months. The shady coconut palms produce 20,000 coconuts each year. Young men climb nimbly up the long trunks and bring the coconuts down. The farm has the important task of providing ten different kinds of vegetables each month for the kitchen of the boarding school.

With the support of this school 300 women in the locality have been able take up work in self-help groups.

Jakes Jayakaran is planning a biodynamic training course as a new project, which is to be linked up to this boarding school in order to convey to young school leavers from the country the possibility of a future in the countryside. The training course is to take place in this remote village, where 70 families live. This village has been built for Indians who have returned from Sri Lanka. At that time each family received a small house, a hectare of land and a cow. The school, which is being developed, has 65 hectares at its disposal. The first course is planned for five students. The main purpose is to learn to work with their hands, for which 2 hectares of land are available. 80% of the time is set aside for practical work and 20% for classroom learning. Each person should have the opportunity of learning and experiencing that through manual labour and with a piece of land a living can be made. Flight from the countryside is a major problem in India and this is meant to make a contribution to making it possible for at least some young people to find a living in the country. In future they are reckoning with 120-150 students.

The Biodynamic Association of India organised a biodynamic conference in Hyderabad. 80 participants from various regions of India, an impressive number, met there. The conference conveyed a good insight into the biodynamic impulse and the extensive biodynamic work in India. Here are some impressions I gained:

Binita Shah reported on her work. She works in the State of Uttarakhant, which made a political decision in favour of organic cultivation in 2002. In this region there is the greatest biodiversity in the world. Since 2003 3,000 farmers and guests have been trained in organic and biodynamic cultivation. In a new one-year organic and biodynamic course there are 12 students. The official organisation has 58 co-workers and works with 70,000 farmers on an area of 40,000 hectares altogether. They co-operate with a research institute on an ongoing basis. The authorities have published a brochure about the biodynamic preparations. They have very good experience of the

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effects of the horn silica preparation against fungal diseases. The cow manure preparation is applied by thousands of farmers. The question remains as to how many people in India in the present day want to work with their hands. Binita Shah explained that money does not mean wealth, but cow manure is a symbol of wealth.

In the State of Maharashthra 600,000 compost heaps have been made in the years 2004-2012. This development has been led mainly by women. Currently, there are 2,000 biodynamic farms. In November last year this work received the highest recognition of the state.

People look back with gratitude at the long years of advisory and development work of many biodynamic farmers, but, principally at the work of Peter Proctor.

It is a great joy to experience the vital interest in the biodynamic impulse and the co-operation of very different active individuals in the biodynamic work in India.

From the Work of the Section

State of the Planning of the Agricultural Conference from 6th-9th February 2013The content of the conference will be based on the theme of the year “Alliances for our Earth”. Learning to building alliances with regard to the inner aspect as well as the outer aspect (see the article by Jean-Michel Florin in this issue) is an essential aim of the conference. Nicanor Perlas from the Philippines, whom we already know from the 2011 conference, will practise and work with us on this faculty of the future. He has developed the technique of resistance by civil society against the dictatorship in the Philippines at the time to a masterly level.

In contrast to the 2012 conference the laboratories are to be organised according to content (see the theme of the year). On 4th and 5th October there will be a preparatory workshop with Nicanor Perlas for the laboratory facilitators. In this way the whole thing is meant to be approached from a more factual side and less will happen ‘just’ in the social realm. The contributions in the afternoons will be composed from the thematic areas that are indicated in the theme of the year and with which the laboratories will be concerned. In particular, we would like to report on successful alliances from across the world in connection with the biodynamic movement. The daily plenums will not be taking place any more, perhaps just a summarising one on Saturday. For Wednesday, the opening and introductory day, for which lectures are chiefly arranged, Patrick Holden has definitely committed himself. The organic farmer, Maya Graf would like to come, if her diary permits it; in 2013 she will become President of the National Assembly and thus the foremost Swiss woman. Other outstanding personalities have been asked.

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We would like to ask you warmly to let us know at the Section, if you feel competent to take on one of the themes, mentioned in the theme of the year or something else and can imagine offering a contribution or facilitating a laboratory with other people.

International Meetings at the Agricultural ConferenceUeli Hurter

The days of the agricultural conference are also characterised by the fact that for a lot of people in the biodynamic movement from the greatest variety of countries they offer a unique venue for meetings. It is, therefore quite logical for people to look for a possibility of meeting for all possible international groups and groups of a common interest in these days. Some meetings are set before or after the conference, others do not take place, because time and space are lacking.

We want to change this unsatisfactory situation. Within the time framework of the agricultural conference we want to create time and make spaces available so that these meetings have the best possible preconditions. The time framework will be changed so that on Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 14 to 15.30, one and a half hours will be available for such meetings, which will be organised by the international groups themselves in consultation with the Section. Thus this time will not be available for the actual parts of the conference programme itself, but with this step we would like to underline our efforts to ensure that the Section increasingly becomes a social space for committed people to work together. This would require changing the title to for instance: “Agricultural Conference and Annual Gathering of the Biodynamic Movement”.

We ask the groups of various kinds that want to meet to let us know so that we can help with the co-ordination and preparation of the infrastructure. We also ask the groups, which have been meeting before or after the conference to check whether they could set their meetings in these times. Please contact us with a brief description of the purpose of the meeting by 30 November 2012 at the latest at:sektion.landwirtschaft@goetheanum.ch/ fax: +41 61 706 42 15.

Report on the Founding of the French Section for Agriculture and Nutrition of the High School for Spiritual ScienceMichel Leclaire

After four years’ preparation work, during which a group of more or less ten has met each time, on 25th and 26th April 2012 the French Section for Agriculture in a very fine hall on the Baume Rousse in the Drome department could be founded. The Agriculture Section of the Goetheanum was represented by Ueli Hurter. Thomas Kuhn

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was able to be there too, an especially lucky circumstance, for after all he was the one who had been suggesting this founding for years. He counts as the godparent of this undertaking. Thirteen people gathered for these really fine days, which took place by in an atmosphere of earnestness and responsibility.

First of all, we remembered those who had worked for the biodynamic impulse in France who had died; this was the start of an intensive programme. Ueli Hurter presented the work of the Agriculture Section at the Goetheanum to us, in particular the relationship to the farms and biodynamic farmers, scattered throughout the world. This was illustrated by the sentence, the periphery must nourish the Section as the centre. Moreover, he appealed for earnest co-operation that builds up trust, to some extent beyond and above all possible divergences within the biodynamic movement. Then we read Goethe’s ‘Hymn to Nature’ together, a suggestion of Joel Acremant. The text was specially selected for this official opening, since it shows simultaneously the poetic, spiritual and scientific sides of nature.

In the evening Joel Acremant spoke to us about the physical body as the instrument of the soul. Based on his many years’ experience of nutritional issues, he was able to demonstrate that ‘only’ organic or natural foods are not sufficient to stay healthy. It is of fundamental importance that nutrition is connected with leading a conscious soul life. He illustrated this knowledge with a lot of examples and also showed where the difficulties may lie.

René Becker gave us an introduction to the first Esoteric Lesson of the First Class. It is the key to the path to knowledge of the spiritual world.

The second day began with some summarising of the themes of the previous day. Then Thomas Kuhn introduced us to the subject of elemental beings. Biodynamic agriculture is constantly brushing up against this world of the elemental beings and it requires our close attention. With an example from a text by Rudolf Steiner Thomas Kuhn spoke of a new generation of elemental beings, fire spirits, who are connected to the silica preparation. Through his explanations a lot of possibilities emerged of understanding and accompanying these beings and seeing their intimate relationship to the practice of biodynamic farming.

We used the rest of the time to speak about the form, rhythm and content of the work of this newly founded group. At the close three people recited the Foundation Stone Meditation. In a solemn atmosphere gratitude for these moments could be sensed, in which a new seed could be laid before the spiritual world, a seed which, as everybody present hoped, was intended to bring rich blessings to biodynamic work in France.

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Progress in the ‘Les Ambassadeurs’ ProjectAmbra Sedlmayr

The ‘Les Ambassadeurs’ project consists in arranging for biodynamic farmers who have completed their training to go to pioneer farms abroad. The ambassador’s task is, whilst standing at the side of the farmer, to bring biodynamics down to earth on the farm concerned. For the biodynamic ambassador there is the opportunity of applying their skills and abilities in a meaningful way, while they are experiencing a gap year as ajourneyman before they tie themselves long-term to a farm. The ‘Les Ambassadeurs’ project has moved on a step further through collaboration with the organisation ‘Friends of Rudolf Steiner’s Art of Education’. While we were searching for a way of putting the ideas of the project into a concrete form, we came across the ‘friends’, who have been actively supporting Waldorf schools and social work organisations around the world by sending volunteers since 1976. We were impressed by the experience of the ‘Friends’, the know-how they have gathered about the administrative and organisational processes and the competent mentoring of the volunteers from an educational point of view. The ‘Friends had long been considering extending their field of activity to biodynamic farms. Through this co-operation both organisations will complement each other with their knowledge and their experience.

There are a lot of legal and financial issues to be sorted out. Nonetheless, we hope to send out the first biodynamic ambassadors to the pioneer farms in autumn 2012.

Please help us to make this project known more wide-spreadly; we would be glad to hear from you, in case you would like to become an ambassador or would like your farm to be the pioneer farm! Contact; biodynamic.ambassadors@goetheanum.ch

The Motivations for working biodynamicallyJohanna Schönfelder

Johanna Schönfelder is a student in the course, Ecological Agriculture at the University of Kassel. She wrote her Bachelor dissertation in connection with the Section. We are printing a summary of her dissertation here:

The aim of the dissertation is to show what motivates practitioners in the present day, 88 years after the Agriculture Course, to work biodynamically. In order to gain a picture of current motivations, eight practitioners are asked on this matter within the framework of a qualitative case study by means of expert interviews what drives them in their everyday biodynamic work, what is the ‘core’ of their commitment for them and what they find essential with regard to the future of the biodynamic work.

The expert interviews are carried out as dialogue interviews, a method devised by Claus Otto Scharmer, which replaces the neutral, distanced interview situation with an interview aiming to arrive at a joint result. The interviews are transcribed and evaluated

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by means of a qualitative analysis of the content. The information gained is presented in the form of portraits. These show the motivations of the interview partners on the basis of their own particular, personal path of biographical development. In the discussion the results of the study are presented graphically and, above all, ordered in their significance as possible future impulses for biodynamic agriculture. Essential motivations of the interview partners are:

• The involving of spiritual aspects in the daily practical work.• The wish to understand better and better the significance of the connections

experienced in the practical work life for themselves, the farm and the earth.• A fundamental Christian impulse and a profound love of nature.• The wish to make development possible for people through the biodynamic

work (‘the idea of development’).• To further develop their own perception and faculty of judgement (quality of the

preparations, quality of food).• With a view to the future to make a contribution towards biodynamic

agriculture being better seen, valued and understood by the general public.• More openings and access for society.

This study reveals a many-sided picture of the quite personal and individual motivations of the interview partners. At the same time it also becomes apparent which motivations they share.

Getting to grips with the motivations offers the chance of making biodynamic agriculture altogether more transparent and make it easier to access and understand; both ‘within our own ranks’ and in the representation of biodynamic work to the public. In this sense the results of this study can serve as a basis and stimulation for further research. For instance, it would make good sense to follow it up with a study, which examines the connections between age (generation) and motivation and, with regard to the many farm handovers in the near future, contributes to a greater mutual understanding of the generations. A further important research task is in co-operation with the practitioners on the farms to develop the next steps in order to present biodynamic work in a more comprehensible way to the public and thus to give impetus to the opening, accessibility and esteem wished for by the interview partners.

Staff Matters - ArrivalAmbra Sedlmayr

From mid March the Section for Agriculture has had a new co-worker in the office, who is me. I grew up in the Beira Alta in Portugal on a self-sufficient organic farm, producing medicinal herbs, and went to a state school. I was so enthusiastic about nature that I went on to study biology. Towards the end of my course I noticed increasingly that, in order to really work on nature conservation, you have to start off with people and that farming is the essential meeting-point between society and nature. It worked out that, initially, I found possibilities in research to work for

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sustainable agriculture. I took a Master’s in Environmental Studies at Essex University in England and gained a doctorate in the field of economic policy and sociology of agriculture. I was interested in grasping the historical background to the side-lining of small-scale farming, for I realised that the economic and political forces were busy eradicating the self-sufficient, sustainable and meaningful way of life which is possible in farming smallholdings. I would like to continue working for the furtherance of a sustainable, self-determined way of life in farming and believe I am in the right place at the Agriculture Section with my concerns. I am eager to know what there is to be done and discovered in the biodynamic movement.

Meeting of the Circle of representatives 1st – 4th of November 2012This year the autumn meeting of the Circle of representatives will take place in Tirol/Italy on the farm of Erich Vill.

Villhof in Schlanders South TyrolErich Vill

Our farm was first mentioned in the 11th century as the „farm near the sand“, because it was located near the sandy banks of the river Schlandraunbach. The little Saint Nepomuk chapel in front of our gate reminds us of these times. White buildings with plenty of wood, farm owned stables, spacious barns, a colourful farm garden, chicken, cats and happy horse neighing – all this is part of the bio-horse farm Vill in Schlanders, the main town of the region Vinschgau.

We work according to the motto: „we have borrowed the earth from our children.“ Our joy in organic farming made us try out his method over 25 years ago on our farm. Since 1989 our entire farm is converted to biodynamics. Currently we farm 6,5 ha, of which 6 ha are orchard and 0,5 ha is used for vegetable production. The apple varieties in our orchard are Gala, Topaz, Golden Delicious, Jonagold, Braeburn and red Delicious.

The spraying of the preparations is done with our horses, as we feel that the subtle qualities of the preparations come best to expression when we use the gentle power of the horses. It is good to see that the next generation is already fully engaged in the biodynamic work on the farm, and thus the future of our biodynamic fruit production is secured.

Report on the Work of the Section, Spring 2011 to Spring 2012This report is meant to convey an insight into the events and the work of the Agriculture Section. There can be no question of presenting the full scope of the Section’s work, because the task of the Section only partly consists in carrying out particular functions; the complex and ongoing communication and co-ordination work

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and the efforts to further the depth of our understanding are hard to encapsulate in key points.

We see the main task of the Section as fostering the further development of the biodynamic work world-wide, drawing on from the source of anthroposophy. This is a continual process and is carried for the most part by far by individuals. These people work all over the world and are part of the actual field of the Section. In the dialogue with them the Section as a quality emerges anew time and again, as an inner attitude, which, in the aftermath of the conference, we can describe with four simple words, honesty, openness, co-operation and initiative.

Theme of the Year and Agricultural ConferenceAfter the exciting, successful conference in 2011 it was a question of formulating the new theme of the year. After a thorough digesting and review of the conference the new theme of the year could be settled, “Forwards to the Sources? What are the Essentials of biodynamic Cultivation?”. By the summer the conference proceedings were completed; a special issue of ‘The Goetheanum’, a brochure in four colours, which appeared in German, English and French (in Spanish as a download) and many thousands of copies were sent across the world.

With the preparations for the conference in February 2012 there were a number of hurdles to be crossed, among others we decided relatively late to carry the main thing with our own resources and to manage without outside facilitators. In December there was a workshop for the leaders of the laboratories, which were to take place during the conference.

By and large, the conference from 1st-4th February 2012 came up to people’s expectations and the extremely cold temperatures supported the efforts of all the participants to seek the essentials of the biodynamic movement inwardly and through dialogue. The conference was well attended with 500 participants and was a lively meeting place. This conference was also documented in a special issue and will be available in four languages.

Projects and Events• In summer 2011 Jean-Michel Florin was involved with the Summer University of the

Science Section. Two weeks later students from Western Washington University from Seattle/USA paid a visit in order to spend a week getting to know agricultural themes from a biodynamic perspective.

• Since autumn 2011 people have been working on the ‘Les Ambassadeurs’ project. The point is to get a platform for exchange going for the collaboration between young biodynamic farmers and pioneer farms, primarily in the South and the East.

• From 15th to 20th January 2012 a study week took place for the first time with the title “How do I become viable for the Future? Knowledge, Tools and Methods of conducting Dialogue” with 15 participants. The result was positive in the view of the participants as well as in ours as the organisers. In January 2013 we shall offer

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this course again.• In March a ‘stage cuisine’ with 12 participants was held in French by the chefs from

the Sonnenhof, the Ita Wegmann Clinic and the Lukas Clinic. This small project was very much in demand and was a great success.

• For September 2012 the preparations are running at full steam for the Landscape Week on the Goetheanum park land. The project has been selected and supported by the IBA, the International Building Exhibition in Basle; it is meant to mark the beginning of several years’ working on the integration of landscape and residential areas using as an example the Goetheanum grounds, the Dornach and Arlesheim districts and the landscape of the lower Birstal (Birs Valley).

• From 16thto 18th November the Section and Demeter International are organising an international wine-growers congress in three languages in Colmar/France with a visit to the Goetheanum; the preparations here too are in full swing.

Travel and ContactsTravelling and fostering contacts where people live are among the fine tasks of the representatives of the Section.

• From 19thSeptember to 8th October 2011 Thomas Lüthi visited China on behalf of the Section and Demeter International. On the first farm to be Demeter certified, 15 km. outside Beijing a large forum took place about biodynamics with representatives of the regional authorities. This was followed by a further biodynamic conference and farm visits in Shanghai with participants and reports from Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan and New Zealand.

• From 6th to 9th March 2012 Thomas Lüthi travelled to South India/Kodaikanal, where he joined in with introduction courses and courses on the production of the preparations, visited various farms and was present at the biodynamic conference in Hyderabad.

• In November 2011 Thomas Lüthi gave a course in Vilnius, Lithuania.• Jean-Michel Florin visited Slovenia, Italy, Belgium and was twice in Spain.• Ueli Hurter was invited to two events in Germany, to England and France to give

lectures.

Lectures and PublicationsLectures were held at the events and on the travels abroad mentioned, then there were single lectures at the Goetheanum, within the biodynamic and anthroposophical movements and also at events in the realm of organic agriculture. Among other things Jean-Michel Florin held a lecture in Bologna at the great congress on the 150th

anniversary of Rudolf Steiner’s birthday.

Networks and Co-operationThe Section sees it as its task to be a reliable and innovative partner in the networking of the world-wide biodynamic movement and in the public realm.

• The International Biodynamic Association (IBDA) has a close involvement with the Section. Since the founding of the tax-exempted association with its seat in Arlesheim Ueli Hurter has been president. The principal task of IBDA is keeping

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the ownership rights on the trademarks Demeter and biodynamic. Its members are the national biodynamic associations, currently 24of them. Its office has been at the Goetheanum since 1st January 2012 and is run by Therese Jung.

• The heads of the Section meet twice a year with the Councils of IBDA, DI and Änder Schanck from Luxemburg. This committee has now been institutionalised and is called “International Biodynamic Council” (IBDC). The chair is Thomas Lüthi.

• ELIANT was able to hand over more than one million signatures to EU Commissioner John Dalli in Brussels. Since autumn 2011 a team of five has been working intensively on establishing an ELIANT NGO in the domain of Brussels. Ueli Hurter and Susanna Küffer Heer of Demeter International are also in this steering group. Ueli Hurter travels to Brussels at least twice a year for this.

Collaboration at the Goetheanum The Section is a part of the organism of the Goetheanum. The leaders of the Section endeavour to make a contribution to the work of the community, even though they are not resident in Dornach.

• Ueli Hurter represents the Section in the weekly meeting of the heads of the Sections. The same goes for the involvement with the meetings of the General Secretaries and national representatives and the Annual General Meetings, where on request short contributions were given. With exam papers and also in special meetings of the Section leaders, in which it was a question of the current basis of working together, Jean-Michel is also present each time. This matter went well and the meeting has come out of it strengthened.

• Jean-Michel Florin keeps up the contact with the Science section and the Research Institute at the Goetheanum.

• Ueli Hurter and Jean-Michel Florin have made smaller contributions at various events.

• Jean-Michel Florin has run a six week-end seminar at the Goetheanum on meditation and cultivating the inner life with Bodo von Plato and Gioia Falk .

Bodies of the Section• The Circle of Representatives met in November 2011 in Norway and before the

agricultural conference in February 2012 in Dornach. The Circle consists of 89 members. People have resigned, but new people have also joined the circle; a certain amount of renewal is under way, which we rate very positively. The rules of the Circle of Representatives have been brought up to date.

• In the past year the Circle of Friends has gone on developing, we are glad to say, and provides human and financial support to the Section. Ueli Hurter maintains the contact with their council and on 9th June 2012 we welcomed members of the Friends to our annual social gathering in the Glashaus, where we were able to report in person on what goes on in the Section.

• The International Working Group for biodynamic Preparations met straight after the conference in February 2012.

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• Circulars 99 and 100 appeared in June and December 2011 in German and English and received a good response.

• Susanna Küffer Heer and Heini Heer have moved into the Glashaus with their own independent office. They are working especially for Demeter International, Demeter in Switzerland and ELIANT. Thus an actual centre of excellence for the network of the biodynamic and Demeter movement is coming about.

• Jean-Michel Florin, Ueli Hurter and Thomas Lüthi, as heads of the section, have met four times and have telephone conferences every month.

• There has been a change in the co-worker team: Karin Lundsgaard, who has been working at the Section for ten years has taken on a new challenge. Ambra Sedlmayr has been a co-worker here since March 2012 with an 80% position and is running the office with Therese Jung. Reto Ingold is an independent co-worker for the ‘Les Ambassadeurs’ project.

• Financially we came out of 2011 well and were able to open a new fund. The current year is still within the budget so far.

We would like to thank all friends of and donors to the Agriculture Section most warmly.

On the Death of Maria Thun

Life and Work of Maria Thun Jean-Michel Florin

Her work as an important pioneer of biodynamic agriculture has had a strong influence on the developing biodynamic movement in many countries. Maria Thun's Biodynamic Sowing and Planting Calendar - this year is the 50th edition - has provided an opportunity not only for making biodynamic farming and gardening known to a wider public, it has also given many Associations a financial base upon which to develop. This was an important part of her personality: An ability to give practical and detailed development help (techniques, finances etc.).

Born in 1922 on to a small farm, Maria Thun always lived with the wish to be of help to farmers throughout the world. For more than 60 years she tirelessly gave courses, lectures and advice alongside her experimental work and the production of her calendar and other books. Her intimate connection to plants and the elements surely contributed to the successful outcomes of the many field trials she carried out each year: Stella and planetary influences, the effectiveness of the biodynamic preparations etc.

Always interested in understanding life better, Maria Thun decided to follow Rudolf Steiner's indication that in order to develop a lively thinking capacity it is important to practice the skill of nature observation. So in 1952 she began a daily observation of

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radishes and studied their growth patterns. She soon noticed significant daily differences in both form and yield. The calendar existing at that time referred only to the effects of the waxing and waning moon on plant growth. With this alone however she was unable to explain the differences she observed. All the radishes sown during the waning moon were of differing shapes and sizes. It was this observation that inspired Maria Thun to start practical trials on a larger scale. She then realised that these differences were connected with the moon's position in the zodiac constellations. She sowed a new row of radishes each day and carried out countless trials. Her findings showed the many and varied influences of the moon and planets upon plants, animals and weather phenomena. These she published along with guidelines for their practical application in her "Biodynamic Sowing and Planting Calendar" and made them accessible to a very wide circle of people.

Along with being very pragmatic Maria Thun was a deeply committed spiritual researcher. She understood her anthroposophy very well as is demonstrated by her continuing work on the core of biodynamic agriculture - the preparations - whose application she continually sought to improve. As with all pioneers who dedicate themselves to a particular line of research, her results often caused controversy. Biodynamic practitioners have nonetheless learnt to look at the fruits of her work and judge for themselves, through their own often surprising observations.

Her social engagement has also been remarkable. 30 years ago, in order to enable women farmers and farmer's wives to have their own conference (at the time it was usually only men who attended the agriculture conference), she organised an international conference of women farmers. This annual gathering was a kind of 'school of emancipation'.

The Origins of the International Biodynamic Conference of Farmers’ Wives and Women FarmersGretel Koloska

The spiritual mother of the conference was Maria Thun. Why? She experienced that there were primarily male farmers attending the courses and conferences for biodynamic cultivation, quite simply because their wives had to remain on the farms at this time so as to run the farms for their husbands. The longer it went on, the more it became a concern for Maria Thun, for all farmers’ wives ought to have the possibility of further training. Nevertheless, at the Agricultural Conference in Dornach she would always meet individual women farmers and farmers’ wives. She would get into conversation with them and present them with her concern that more farmers’ wives should also get away from the farm for once so as to be able to participate in a conference. Surely the farmers would be able to quite simply replace their wives for once in the winter time in the house! After all, there would be farms as well, where they could hold a farmers’ wives conference. Mrs Rosa Oswald (my mother) was in on this right away and decided to host this first farmers’ wives and women farmers

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conference on our farm, the Oswaldhof, in Klarsreuti, Switzerland. But how on earth are the wives to get away from their farms? Therefore their husbands had to be persuaded to send their wives off and to let them take their embroidery, for the farmers’ wives were not accustomed to sitting there without anything to do. Thus, Mrs Thun started to school us. In these conferences she impressed Rudolf Steiner’s Occult Science on us and explained to us convincingly how forces from the cosmos work on the earth and influence the growth and flourishing of the plants, for at that time she already had experienced and learnt a great deal in her research into plant breeding and growing.Thus, a truly great schooling began for us farmers’ wives and women farmers . Year by year she trained us further. On our farms we began to pay attention to the constellations of the stars to work with them and the Maria Thun Calendar became our steady companion on our farms.

The first biodynamic conference for farmers’ wives was in March 1974 on the Oswaldhof in Klarsreuti in Switzerland.

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AgendaDiary Dates Title Short Description

2012

23rd July-4th August

Sommeruni/Université d'été Discovering and experiencing the worlds of mineral, plant, animal and human being. Bilingual G/FDornach and Lötschental/CH

2nd-8th Sept. Landscape Planning Week: “Visions for the Landscape of Birstal

Expert meeting for the of new plans for the landscaping of the Goetheanum gardens, especially of the North-East area and in relation to the green area between Gempen and Birstal. Dornach/CH

4th-5th October Workshop with Nicanor Perlas

For those involved with the 2013 agriculture conference

1st-4th November Circle of Representatives Meeting of the Circle of Representatives Schlanders, South Tyrol/IT

16th-18th November

Int. Biodynamic viticulture conference “New Ways for the Regeneration oft he Vine“

Questions and study in depth on biodynamic wine cultivation in Colmar/FR, with visit to the Goetheanum. Trilingual G/F/E

9th-11th November

Preparations Working Group Meeting for Researchinto PreparationsDottenfelderhof/DE

5th-6th December Workshop Conflict Management

With Friedrich Glasl, Dornach/CH

2013

13th-18th January Study Week “Shaping the Future - Knowledge and tools for those carrying responsibility in the work environment of the biodynamic movement.”

With the help of the U-process of C.O. Scharmer questions from the participants in order to plan a new step in the enterprise.Dornach/CH

4th-6th February Circle of Representatives Meeting of members of theCircle of Representatives Dornach/CH

6th-9th February Agricultural Conference Working title “Alliances for our Earth”. Dornach/CH

10th-15th March Atelierd'alimentation dynamique

Workshop for chefs on biodynamic nutrition. In French. Dornach/CH

7th-9th November

Nutrition Conference Dornach/CH

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The Circular letter is published in German and English by the Section for Agriculture at the Goetheanum and can be ordered free of charge.

Hügelweg 59, Postfach, CH-4143 Dornach, Tel. +41 (0)61 706 42 12, Fax +41 (0)61 706 42 15 sektion.landwirtschaft@goetheanum.ch / www.sektion-landwirtschaft.org

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