Abstract
Anthroposophy provides profound insights into the challenges of sustain-
able development. In Steiner’s vision of human nature, sustainability requires
maintaining a delicate balance in the human value orientation between the
fundamentally opposing forces that determine the human condition: the mate-
rialistic versus the spiritual and the particular (individual) versus the universal
(collective). When this holistic awareness of the human condition is lost, one-
sided value orientations dominate, leading to the erosion of both human dignity
and sustainability. By organising society in a threefold social order, according to
the three constituent (cultural, political, and economic) parts of the human con-
dition, Steiner aimed to support a balanced, “sustainable” value orientation with
organisational means. This balanced and thus humane view of human nature
holds the promise of a meaningful life in a healthy society.
able development. In Steiner’s vision of human nature, sustainability requires
maintaining a delicate balance in the human value orientation between the
fundamentally opposing forces that determine the human condition: the mate-
rialistic versus the spiritual and the particular (individual) versus the universal
(collective). When this holistic awareness of the human condition is lost, one-
sided value orientations dominate, leading to the erosion of both human dignity
and sustainability. By organising society in a threefold social order, according to
the three constituent (cultural, political, and economic) parts of the human con-
dition, Steiner aimed to support a balanced, “sustainable” value orientation with
organisational means. This balanced and thus humane view of human nature
holds the promise of a meaningful life in a healthy society.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | On the Earth We Want to Live |
| Subtitle of host publication | Anthroposophy's Contributions to Sustainable Development |
| Editors | Johannes Kronenberg, Edith Lammerts van Bueren |
| Place of Publication | Cham |
| Publisher | Springer |
| Pages | 109-126 |
| Number of pages | 18 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 978-3-031-98758-8 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-3-031-98757-1, 978-3-031-98760-1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 20 Nov 2025 |
Publication series
| Name | World Sustainability Series |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Springer |
| ISSN (Print) | 2199-7373 |
| ISSN (Electronic) | 2199-7381 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© The Author(s) 2025.
Keywords
- Anthroposophy
- Biodynamic agriculture
- Cultural life
- Cultural-spiritual dimension
- Economic life
- Ethical framework
- Financialisation
- Freedom-equality-solidarity
- Human condition
- Human dignity
- Macro-history
- Political economy
- Steward ownership
- Sustainable development
- Systems thinking
- Threefold social order
- Value orientation
- Virtue Ethics
- Worldviews
