Photo: C. Fischer

The Friends of Waldorf Education have set up an emergency hotline for children, adolescents and parents to help them cope mentally with the coronavirus crisis. Anyone who feels overwhelmed, anxious, unsettled or threatened in their home environment, will find first aid for the mind and spirit here. Under the nationwide phone number 0721-680786622, experts in emergency pedagogic counselling can be reached every day from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm. The confidential phone counselling support is provided during the pandemic in cooperation with the outpatient clinic for emergency pedagogy at the Parzival Zentrum Karlsruhe and the outpatient clinic for emergency pedagogy in Munich – Tessin gGmbH.

In the current situation, the network considers the ongoing mental state of emergency and social isolation as especially challenging. Anxiety or stress may weaken the immune system further. The cancellation of sports, educational, cultural and other community programmes, cramped living conditions and existential concerns even pose a risk in the worst-case scenario that domestic violence against children will increase.

The hotline’s staff with experience in crises provide practical tips on stabilising physical and mental health to all those seeking advice. In this way, they can build up and develop their resilience. At www.freunde-waldorf.de/notfallpaedagogik the team also presents videos with specific exercises, which may help them to cope better with anxiety and the new daily routine. Other short videos will follow shortly, which, according to the association director Bernd Ruf, are intended to inspire and invite you to exercise, paint or sing.

As such, the Friends of Waldorf Education cannot only rely on their many years of experience from global emergency operations but also count on financial support. The Tessin Foundation in Munich and Darmstadt’s Software AG Foundation (SAGST) support them and their commitment with €50,000 each. “We have long been convinced of the concept of emergency pedagogy”, explains SAGST project manager Andreas Rebmann, “and this is also why we have supported the International Institute for Emergency and Trauma Pedagogy in Karlsruhe and the Association of International Emergency Pedagogy for some time. With our current donation, we wish to strengthen the valuable work of the Friends of Waldorf Education, so that in this particular situation it can stimulate many healing processes.”