Manfred Schmidt-Brabant was born in Berlin in 1926. In 1975 he became a member of the Executive Council of the General Anthroposophical Society at the Goetheanum in Dornach, Switzerland, and served as Chair of the Council from 1984 until his death in 2001. His service during those years included leadership of the Social Science Section of the School of Spiritual Science, and he lectured around the world on many subjects. He was the author of several books that have been published in English.