Prof. Johanna Sophia is a professor of Film and Waldorf Educator. She is the author and Filmmaker of screenplays and films for public TV in the US and in Europe, the book “Once Around The USA” and innumerable articles for various publications.  She is a Life Coach and teaches Writing, Fine Arts (water colors), Piano, Voice (Werbeck method), Relaxation, Acting and Directing, Raw Food Cuisine, Self-Healing, Solar Design, Green Indoor Environment, Global Awareness, Next Era Economics, and HOW TO LOVE YOURSELF, YOUR FAMILY, YOUR PLANET, AND ALL OF LIFE; she also teaches German, French, and English, and reads and speaks Spanish and Italian.  Johanna’s philosophy is one of sustainable living, lifelong learning, free thought, and a deep enjoyment of life.   She holds several degrees, including: MfA Columbia University NY; Cert. Waldorf Teacher, MA Witten-Annen, Germany; Music Conservatory, Dortmund; Modern Dance, Paris; Acting & Mime, Paris & Actor’s Studio, New York; Solar Sales & Design, Silicon Solar NY;

 

    Soraya Sophia is a young, wonderfully soulful musician, Cellist, Singer, and skillful Writer. She will be a Waldorf graduate and a Bennington student in the fall of 2012.  Presently, she teaches Cello to beginners and intermediate players, shows other youth how to prepare delicious vegan and vegetarian meals, and is praised by parents as the best Babysitter they have had: she brings lots of hugs, singing, dancing, arts and crafts to children. She will help with Homework, English Composition and Spelling.

 
   Takura Sophia is an enthusiastic violinist and student, he is a forthright mathematician. He loves Vivaldi and Beethoven just as much as putting together a good Magic deck or going on a Monster Hunt. He is silly, funny, and very supportive supportive.  He can tutor in all subjects including Math, Shakespeare, History, Basketball, and How to Build Your Best Deck of MAGIC cards!

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SOPHIA'S CENTER  VISION

SILC always offers a learning environment for all things sustainable.  Our vision includes a Waldorf school initiative, a green Bed & Breakfast facility, informal tutoring on lifestyle changes, green building, consciousness, seminars on all things ECO and university level research projects exploring Earth-friendly high tech options, a media/film school, nature walks and much, much more…  You too can achieve longevity, less expenses, more fun and fulfillment by rendering your personal life and that of our planet more sustainable.  We all need better health and lower energy bills. At Sophia’s International Learning Center, we incubate, implement and teach exciting ideas and scientific findings to create a better world. We discuss theories and we practice what we teach. Understanding the ongoing destruction of pollution, wars, global warming and the greed for the last oil, SILC focuses on Education toward Responsibility, Renewable Energy, Living Foods, Organic Gardening, Off-the grid Building, Non-toxic Technology, New Teamwork, Natural Fashions, Self-healing, and Higher Consciousness. In addition, we want to network with others around the globe through The International Media Center. Sophia’s International Learning Center is a conference center for seminars, practical training and a growing intentional community.  It is also a place of media production.  We invite you, the individual, your youth group, school class, corporate group, family, and all interested parties to come and learn, to join us as members, and/or to support us financially. We want you to share in the development of the visions and practical applications needed to change the course of our consumer culture – so that we can live in more harmonious ways with each other and the ecology on planet Earth. Contact: (518) 795-5030 or silc@sophiascenter.com -- for Europe: +49-234-28 82 85

FOUNDER AND FUTURE FACULTY 
The Founder is Prof. Johanna Sophia, professor of Film (directing, writing, production), independent thinker, educator and real life business woman with a wide range of qualifications and experience – see Resume.  She will be joined by other seekers, philosophers, leaders in the Green movements, politicians, scientists, practitioners and healers such as, for example, Paul von Ward, Dr. Maritta Koch-Weser, Joschka Fischer, David Wolfe, Jeremy Leggett, Janine Selendy, Thilo Bode, Prof. Fritjof Bergman, Dr. Gay Conough and many others.

The following sectors have been and/or will be developed by Sophia’s International Learning Center:
 
1)  As of Fall, 2006, we have been offering Practical Training for Eco-Construction where individual young people or small groups are learning by working on the existing old farmhouse, its attachments and a barn, ecologizing them with natural materials, water-proofing, building bathrooms and conference rooms and a solar roof and generally rendering the buildings inhabitable together with professional builders such as German builder Klaus Roeske, solar specialist Dr. Gay Conough and others.  Later, the Eco-construction group will focus on building Enertia self-sustaining houses and the larger conference center as well as a pond for water conservation and swimming. 

2)  A Live Food Kitchen and Raw Food Production center catering fresh meals and dried, packaged Raw Foods, such as raw breads, crackers, snacks and sweets to a growing health food community in the broader region.   

3)  An agricultural/Organic Gardening center where people of all ages can learn by hands-on training, at weekend seminars, during planting or harvesting seasons, or to study the theory and latest advances in bio-dynamic and permaculture gardening at special seminars with invited speakers and experienced organic growers and farmers.

4)  A Health and Recreation Spa using integrated Cleansing and Healing Foods programs to demonstrate and teach sustainable health and longevity – offering rejuvenation programs to spa guests seeking “pampering” or initiation into a new lifestyle over hours, days, weekends, weeks or longer periods of time for those needing to heal themselves of more severe health conditions.

5)  A new type of Waldorf oriented school, The International Waldorf School arising out of a multi-lingual, multi-cultural homeschool group that is both age-integrative and real-life project oriented, and that incorporates both local and international exchange students and teachers.

6)  A media production and learning center The International Media Center focusing on low budget production of digital media where future-oriented groups from the US and abroad can learn the basics of media production and share their materials to build on the global exchange of knowledge and art, particularly among groups working for a more peaceful, sustainable world.  Here Prof. Sophia and filmmakers such as Michael More, Davis Guggenheim, and similar, lesser known media experts will teach and produce work with the students.

7)  An independent University affiliated with other independent, recognized institutions of higher learning around the globe, such as the Universitaet Witten/Herdecke in Germany, or the Sekem University for Science and Agriculture in Egypt, and others.

8)  A small Intentional Community living on the land and off the land as much as possible, inhabiting the self-sustaining houses built using “Enertia” construction and using solar energy.  This community will explore and gather experience on new “village organization,” a new “work and fun” definition and will collaborate with New Work-New Culture concepts and the groups around Prof. Fritjof Bergman and others.  

THE LOCATION: Sophia’s International Learning Center is presently headquartered wherever the Sophias are located. Our current location is in Saratoga Springs, NY, where Soraya Sophia and Takura Sophia are completing their high school experience at the Waldorf School of Saratoga Springs, NY.  Our land in New Berlin consists of 9 acres in the gentle Western hills of the Catskill Mountains in the State of New York, about 4 hours to the North-West of New York City.  This land is fertile and suitable for growing berries and nuts as well as regular vegetable garden crops.  Placed just outside a small village called New Berlin, it is also central to five university cities with a rich cultural and progressive life: Oneonta, Binghamton, Ithaca (Cornell), Syracuse, and Utica. We will return to this land when the time is right. 


For more information please contact Prof. Sophia at 518-795-5030 or by email at SILC@SophiasCenter.com