INITIATIVE
Belgin Aksoy is the driving force behind the campaign GLOBAL WELLNESS DAY T
hree years ago, Belgin Aksoy, creative director of hotel management company Richmond International in Turkey, came up with an idea to combat depression and
unhappiness by promoting the importance of living well. “According to many studies, depression is the most common health problem around the world,” she says. “It often manifests itself in sleep deprivation, stress, poor nutrition, inactivity, obesity, heart disease and more. To overcome this problem and lead a healthy, happier life we need an inspiring beginning. The name of that beginning is Global Wellness Day.” Aksoy reasons: “We’ve honoured almost
everything which is valuable to us with a special day, so why not have one that’s dedicated to the universally accepted importance of wellness?”
As the third Global Wellness Day approaches, founder Belgin Aksoy tells Spa Business about the movement that’s been embraced by the spa sector the world over
Make a change Held on the second Saturday of June each year, Global Wellness Day (GWD) is based on a simple premise – to increase our consciousness of living a better life, even if it’s just for one day, to draw our attention to healthier lifestyles. It’s campaigning for people to change
one aspect of their lives for that day and outlines seven possible manifests: ■ Drink more water ■ Walk for an hour ■ Shop locally & eat organically ■ Stop using plastic bottles ■ Do a good deed ■ Eat a family dinner ■ Go to bed at 10pm
Aksoy hopes that it will motivate people to keep up the good habits to “impact their wellbeing on the other 364 days of the year”.
Striking a chord What started as a vision is quickly becoming a reality with both celebrities and a growing number of spa professionals showing their support for the not-for-profit campaign. Last year, Aksoy went back stage at the
Emmy Awards where stars from TV shows such as Mad Men and Scandal visited the GWD stand and praised the venture. The initiative is also striking a
chord in the spa arena. There are now 39 spa industry leaders, from 30 countries, who’ve been appointed GWD
Industry support: Global Wellness Day ambassadors include Marianne Brepohl, Nicolas Ronco, Noel Asmar and Sammy Gharieni 30
spabusiness.com issue 2 2015 ©CYBERTREK 2015
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