Sebastiano Cossia Castiglioni is the owner and chairman of one of the most esteemed and forward-thinking wineries in Europe, Querciabella, located in the heart of Chianti Classico in Tuscany, Italy. Sebastiano has developed his winery to become not only organic and biodynamic but also 100% vegan from the soil to the glass. (Tuesday July 10th, 2018 — LIVEKINDLY )

Biodynamic methods - sometimes described as "organic-plus" - are based on writings by Austrian philosopher Rudolph Steiner. As well as excluding chemicals, the focus is on soil improvement - hence the cow horn and other homeopathic enhancers - as well as working the vines when the plants and conditions are ready, rather than to human schedules. An estimated 15 per cent of European wine production is biodynamic, with the US not too far behind, while it is also growing in Australia, where about 50 wineries have adopted it. (Tuesday July 10th, 2018 — The Australian )

A globally respected special needs institution in Scotland has launched a call for architects to design a $10m upgrade of two of its three campuses. Camphill School Aberdeen was founded in 1940 by a group of Austrian refugees inspired by the teachings of Rudolf Steiner. An independent charity, it offers education care and therapy for children and young people with additional support needs, either as day pupils or on a residential basis. (Monday July 9th, 2018 — Building Design - UK)

"Biodynamic agriculture goes beyond widespread methods as it bans the use of treatments involving synthetic chemicals and pays close attention to other issues such as the origin of fertilizers."- Massimiliano D'addario, Marina Palusci (Monday July 9th, 2018 — Olive Oil Times )

Ripe for Change (Harvard Education Press, 2015), by Jane S. Hirschi takes a look at one way it can be done by introduction garden-based learning into educational systems. Hirschi takes a big-picture view of the school garden movement and the state of garden-based learning in public K-8 education. This excerpt, which explains the benefits that come from taking the classroom to the school garden, is from Chapter 2, "What Learning Looks Like in the Garden: Making Connections Across Subjects and Grade Levels." (Monday July 9th, 2018 — UTNE - Ogden Publications Topeka, Kansas USA)

Seven Stars Farm has its origins with philanthropists Mabel Pew Myrin and husband Alarik Myrin. In 1939, they purchased 1,000 acres of farmland northwest of Phoenixville, naming it Kimberton Farms. Followers of Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner, the father of biodynamic farming, they wanted to put into practice both his agriculture methods and his Waldorf approach to education. Next door to the farm, they established the Kimberton Waldorf School, which is still in operation. The property was eventually divided between the school and Camphill Village Kimberton Hills, a farming, gardening and handcrafting community that caters to adults with developmental disabilities. (Monday July 9th, 2018 — Mainline Today - )

Organic, biodynamic and natural wines are increasingly apparent on menus across London's restaurants and wine bars, though most customers are unaware of the distinctions between them. Organics are grown without synthetic pesticides or fertilisers, and with far fewer chemicals, colourings and preservatives than conventional wines. On organic vineyards farmers will avoid intervention, opting instead to plant a diverse selection of plants and vegetables to attract wildlife that naturally help keep the vines disease and pest-free. At Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte in Bordeaux, they lace the soil with butterfly-attracting pheromones. (Saturday July 7th, 2018 — City A.M. - London, UK)

Maori star lore, the winter solstice and water and earth energy were popular topics for the nearly 100 people who attended the 2018 New Zealand Biodynamic Association's conference, in Clyde and Wanaka from June 22 to 24. ... She was particularly pleased to see about half those attending were young people, who were interested in biodynamic principles. (Wednesday July 4th, 2018 — New Zealand Herald )

... demand is also up for no-tech education at the Waldorf School of Philadelphia, a small private school in Germantown that teaches children from 24 months until eighth grade - without iPads, Chromebooks, or any screens whatsoever. There is a waiting list for first grade and other programs, according to Alexandra Borders, the school's director of advancement and enrollment. (Wednesday June 27th, 2018 — Philly.com - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA)

I wasn't aware that Roussillon is France's most committed biodynamic and organic region until I visited, with a growing number of the 2,200 wine growers converting to organic or biodynamic practices. (Friday June 22nd, 2018 — The Irish Sun - UK)

The farm practices both organic and biodynamic agriculture. Biodynamic ag is based on the teachings of Rudolph Steiner, founder of Waldorf education. According to The Biodynamic Association, biodynamics is a way "to integrate scientific understanding with a recognition of spirit in nature," and basically views the farm itself as a living organism, an interconnected web of plants, soil and animals. (Friday June 22nd, 2018 — San Francisco Chronicle - San Francisco, California USA)

According to a Bayer June 4 statement,11 Monsanto's product line will keep their original brand names in the Bayer portfolio, but the Monsanto name is being retired. The merged entity will retain the Bayer name. Cultural integration is predicted to be a challenge for the new, now much larger Bayer. Bayer also has a shadowy past of its own that is in need of rehabilitation. (Tuesday June 19th, 2018 — Organic Consumers - Finland, Minnesota USA)

A 24-year-old experimental school in Taipei exemplifies Taiwan's role as a leading advocate of alternative education. (Tuesday June 19th, 2018 — The News Lens International - )

Regeneration Guatemala's mission is to rebuild the deteriorated social, ecological and economic systems in Guatemala by transforming the agricultural landscape through regenerative agriculture and land-use practices, with a focus on Poultry-Centered Regenerative system design. (Monday June 18th, 2018 — RegenerationInternation online - )

More than a year after the Trump administration controversially overturned a decision to ban pesticides containing chlorpyrifos, the state of Hawaii has taken the matter into its own hands. The Aloha State has passed a law barring the use of such chemicals, which have been linked to adverse side effects in humans, including debiltating neurological and developmental maladies. (Saturday June 16th, 2018 — ThinkProgress online -- USA)

They initially came up with the extraordinary idea to create a 10-mile-wide (or 16-kilometer-wide) barrier of vegetation stretching from coast to coast. ... The impact should ultimately transcend just those measured in acres (or hectares). As the Great Green Wall of the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative has evolved into a mosaic of land initiatives under the larger vision, the hope is to provide the next generation with fertile land and access to a flourishing economy in the region. (Tuesday June 5th, 2018 — Good Brand Studio for Good News)

In recent years, integrative medical-research clinics have been springing up all around the country, 42 of them at major academic medical institutions including Harvard, Yale, Duke, the University of California at San Francisco, and the Mayo Clinic. (Tuesday June 5th, 2018 — UTNE - Ogden Publications Topeka, Kansas USA)

"What personalization means to the Gates Foundation is a specific - it's software," said Audrey Watters, author of a forthcoming book on the history of educational technology. She pointed out that Montessori schools and Waldorf schools have been doing their own version of personalized learning for 100 years, one that emphasizes free play and imagination. But "the Gates Foundation hasn't spent $10 billion funding Waldorf schools," Watters said. "They've been funding a particular vision of what personalization means. And it's one that is very wrapped up in the idea that the way that one personalizes education is through software that both mines student data and algorithmically presents students with the concept they need to learn." (Tuesday June 5th, 2018 — The Hechinger Report - New York, New York USA)

Vinifying wine in clay is far from a new practice. With a history that dates back more than 6,000 years and origins in the Caucasus region, its lineage is longer and deeper than that of steel and barrique. While the last century saw the use of clay diminish drastically, a return to wine's roots is afoot. ... "Rudolf Steiner [an Austrian philosopher and founder of biodynamics] often speaks on clay as an element between two polarities, one that harmonizes extremes, gives and takes, returns purity and [delivers] a clear message," she says. (Wednesday May 30th, 2018 — Wine Enthusiast Magazine )

Buying and eating apples seems a pretty healthy thing to do. But a new study has found that every 1 kilo (2.2 pounds) of conventionally grown apples creates health effects costing 21 cents due to the effects of pesticides and fungicides, resulting in sick leave and eventually shorter life expectancies. (Sunday May 27th, 2018 — HuffPost - USA)