Dr Rudolf Steiner (February 27, 1861 – March 30, 1925) was an Austrian philosopher, literary scholar, architect, playwright, educator, and social thinker. A polymath whose work and career spanned the humanities, the arts and the sciences, he was trained in Mathematics and Science in Vienna, held a PhD in philosophy from the University of Rostock and went on to write plays, design a world renowned building, the Goetheanum in Switzerland, and advise professionals in a wide range of fields.

He is the founder of Anthroposophy, which literally translated from the Greek means "the wisdom of humanity" and which he described as 'a path of knowledge leading from the spiritual in the individual human being to the spiritual in the universe'.

In addition to education, Dr Steiner had a remarkable impact in many areas including medicine, the creative arts and biodynamic agriculture, which today is one of the pillars of organic farming. From this single individual who worked so quietly and tirelessly for the benefit of humanity, there has come many impulses for personal and social renewal: today there are around the world schools for children, medical practices, scientific research institutes, homes for disabled children and adults, artists' studios, banks and organisational development companies, and thousand of hectares of land under biodynamic farming principles.

In 1919, Emil Molt invited him to lecture on the topic of education to the workers at Molt's Waldorf factory in Stuttgart. Out of this came a new school, the Waldorf school, and Waldorf Education — also known as Steiner Education — which has grown to be one of the largest independent schooling systems in the world. There are now over 1000 Steiner schools worldwide and over 50 full-time teacher-training institutes around the world.

For more information about Rudolf Steiner visit these web sites:-
http://www.elib.com/Steiner/
http://www.anthropress.com/aboutrudolf.html