New Leadership and Renewed Vision for the Indus Project
Archeus Social Ltd announces appointment of Doris Antivilo as CEO and invites the anthroposophical community to join in building a truly meaningful chapter in the future of education
The Education for Social Renewal Foundation, through its corporate trustee Archeus Social Ltd, is embarking on an exciting new chapter. With the recent appointment of Doris Antivilo as CEO, the Foundation renews its commitment to establishing a tertiary institution in Australia based on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner—the transformative Indus Project.
Doris brings deep commitment to transforming education through the lens of Anthroposophy and Waldorf education, along with experience in organisational development and complex project management. Her appointment marks a pivotal moment as the project moves from vision into the detailed design phase—developing the concrete forms that will bring this phenomenological university to life.
‘I’m truly honoured to be leading the Indus Project, ‘says Doris. ‘This is a groundbreaking step towards the future of higher education in Australia, and it’s a call to the anthroposophical community across our continent. Together, we have the chance to build something truly meaningful—a university in the truest sense, where phenomenological thinking nurtures the capacity to see, to unite, and to serve the human being in freedom. I’m excited to take this journey with you, and I can’t wait to see what we’ll create as a community.’
The enfolding: building something truly meaningful
What would it mean to create a university in the truest sense of the word? ‘To become one’ (from Latin: unus ‘one’ + vertere ‘turn into, convert, transform’)?
This vision calls for more than gathering existing initiatives under one roof. We are imagining an enfolding—a living organism that protects and preserves the true, beautiful, and good while nurturing the growth of anthroposophical tertiary education across our continent. Together, we have the chance to create something groundbreaking for the future of education.
How can such a transformation come about? Through the kind of phenomenological thinking that will be cultivated across all faculties of this university. This is thinking from the heart—thinking that unifies rather than fragmenting the world into disconnected facts, concepts, and theories. It means teaching anthroposophy not merely as concepts, but by helping students learn how to see.
Rudolf Steiner pointed the way for this renewal of university education:
…reading is the goal of looking at phenomena. In other words, what I see as the essence of natural laws is already in the phenomena, in the same way that the meaning I discover when I read a word is already in the letters. If I remain within the phenomena, lovingly, and I do not attempt to impose some kind of hypothetical thought system on reality, then my sense of science will be free to develop new concepts … We simply submerge ourselves in the phenomena and then, in the essence of natural laws, the essence of thoughts is given to us, coming directly from the phenomena.¹
Archeus Social and the Foundation
Archeus Social Ltd serves as the corporate trustee of the Education for Social Renewal Foundation. At the heart of our charitable mission lies the purpose of ‘establishing a tertiary institution or institutions in Australia based on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner’.
As we move forward with renewed purpose, Archeus Social will:
- Build and engage our community across Australia, bringing together those who share this vision and inviting new voices to join
- Advance the Indus Project into its detailed design phase, giving concrete form to the vision of a phenomenological university
- Develop fundraising strategies to support operations and the acquisition of land and buildings
- Facilitate the formation of faculties, creating spaces where free human beings can form healthy teaching communities
It’s important to understand what this university will be and what it will not be. Archeus Social will not be the proprietor; rather, the teaching and researching sphere will be a college of free human beings, those willing and able to form healthy teaching faculties. We envision one or more campuses emerging organically from this work, rooted in the principles of social threefolding.
Join the conversation
This vision is just beginning to unfold, and we recognise that it can only come to life through the participation of a living community—people from across the anthroposophical movement in Australia who feel called to be part of this groundbreaking work.
Together, we can make this vision happen.
Here’s how you can connect:
- Stay Informed. Join our community by subscribing to receive updates, inspiration, and invitations as this work develops. We’ll be sharing reflections on phenomenological education, updates on the university’s emergence, and opportunities to participate in upcoming conversations and gatherings. I’ll be in touch!
- Share Your Voice. We want to hear from you. What are your hopes for anthroposophical tertiary education in Australia? What gifts might you bring to this work? Whether you’re an educator, researcher, student, parent, or friend of anthroposophy, your perspective matters and you’re invited to be part of this journey.
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Explore Membership. For those feeling a deeper call, we welcome inquiries about becoming an official member of the Education for Social Renewal Foundation or Archeus Social, or simply joining our online community to stay more closely connected to the work as it unfolds.
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Support the Foundation. As we develop our approach to building the material foundation for this work, we welcome conversations about donations, bequests, and how you might support scholarships, land acquisition, or building funds.
This is the beginning of a conversation, not a campaign. We’re listening, learning, and allowing the path forward to reveal itself through genuine dialogue with the community. Let’s create this together.
Contact us
Connect with Doris and join our community.
Learn more about the Education for Social Renewal Foundation
I truly believe we can create a university that becomes a living example of phenomenological thinking—where people learn to see, to think from the heart, and to serve the human being in freedom. But I can’t do this alone, and neither can any of us. This needs all of us, working together. I’m excited for what we’ll build as a community. Let’s make this happen!
Doris Antivilo
CEO, Education for Social Renewal Foundation
Corporate Trustee: Archeus Social Ltd
¹R. Steiner, Reimagining Academic Studies, SteinerBooks, 2015, p.12.
Feature image: courtesy of Archeus Social Ltd.