Climate Change: The Defining Future Issue for the Wellness Industry

MONTHLY BAROMETER – WELLNESS EDITION Monthly Barometer No more beating about the bush: Climate change is a risk like no other, and it’s accelerating. (1) A spate of recent research concludes that greater severity and intensity of extreme weather with its second-round effects (such as rising waters) is not only happening but on the increase. (2) Two central bank governors just called on financial regulators,…

Must-Reads from the Wellness World (Week of May 20, 2019)

The Big Business of Loneliness – Vox, May 6, 2019 Loneliness is pervasive and increasing, particularly in Anglo-Saxon countries—a tragedy and a trap for many people. Not surprisingly, companies and entrepreneurs now make it a business to sell an end to social isolation. From co-living apartments to co-working spaces to apps that help facilitate human connection, there is a lot of investment and infrastructure being…

The Future of Work: Businesses Must Focus on Purpose and Flexibility

For most metrics measuring human progress (ranging from GDP-per-capita to life expectancy), we’ve never had a better life; yet a surprising number of individuals in high-income countries (most notably in the Anglo-Saxon world) feel miserable at work (where we spend a third of our adult life). The reasons are manifold and hard to address for traditional companies: purposeless jobs, punitive hours, dreadful commutes, “always-on” culture,…

The Dramatic Effects of “Brexeternity” on Brits’ Wellbeing

MONTHLY BAROMETER – WELLNESS EDITION “Brexeternity”—At the eleventh hour, all options are back on the table, from May’s deal to a no-deal, from a softer Brexit to a second referendum. But irrespective of the actual outcome, Brexit won’t be over any time soon. For years to come, the British economy, society and politics will be consumed by wrangling and negotiations with the EU (and the…

Middle East-North African Wellness Tourism Market Ranks #1 for Pure Percentage Growth

Last week, at the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai, GWI’s CEO Susie Ellis presented the latest research and trends for MENA wellness tourism markets at the GWI’s annual Wellness Symposium, this year focused on the opportunities in both medical tourism and wellness tourism. Key findings: In terms of recent growth percentages, no world wellness tourism market is growing faster than MENA’s: 13.4 percent annually and…