Celebrating Global Wellness Day 2024 with Founder Bergin Aksoy

Global Wellness Day (GWD) was launched in 2012 at Richmond Nua Wellness Spa in Supanaka, Turkey by Bergin Aksoy, wellness activist and creative director of Richmond Hotels.

I was a speaker at that first event and can attest that even though it was small back then, the passion for wellness and the ideas of Global Wellness Day led to a joyous and upbeat celebration. Twelve years later, Global Wellness Day has expanded to tens of thousands of locations in 170 countries around the world, impacting the lives of millions of people.

GWD will organize a one-day event celebrating wellness on the second Saturday of June (June 8 this year), all free and non-profit. Every year, GWD sets a theme, and this year’s focus, #MagentaNature, revolves around the importance of connecting with nature, at a time when nature tourism has become one of the biggest drivers of the travel industry. This is the theme of the joint report “Nature Positive Travel & Tourism in Action” released by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism) and the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance (The Alliance) on Earth Day 2024.

GWD participants range from large luxury hotel groups such as AccorHotels, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts and IHG Hotels & Resorts to independent destinations, cities and towns around the world run by Global Wellness Day ambassadors, supporters and volunteers.

Highlights include a transformational gong bath (soul massage) using soundwave gongs from June 2-8; Palazzo Fiuggi, An award-winning medical wellness retreat just outside Rome. Newell Festival Yin yoga sessions were held in Paris and therapists from the Resalib network celebrated the day across the country. Chapitre 6 Hotels We are going to have a transformative event. Kimpton Grand Roatan Resort and Spa In Honduras, you can enjoy wake-up yoga, Beachbody Pump classes, guided snorkeling, “heart-opening” meditation, full moon yoga with medicinal sound therapy, and contribute to the preservation of coastal ecosystems through beach cleanups. Hotel OceanCoral Cultivation Walking Tour 35 CoffeeBeach Yoga Okinawa Tourism Co., Ltd.Food Recycling Program Workshop NPO Food BankFarm to Table Discussion Farm NakamuraThere will be a variety of #MagentaNature themed events, including nature walks with dogs and tree-growing workshops for primary school children. In Whitefish, Montana, trend and Collier Concept The organizer is Blackfoot They share Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), preserving ancient wisdom for the future.

I spoke to Global Wellness Day founder Bergin Aksoy about what this year’s Global Wellness Day means around the world.

How did you get involved in wellness and what inspired you to found GWD?

Up until 2004, I thought I was living a pretty healthy lifestyle. I ate well, I exercised regularly. I was happy and thought I had it all. But in 2004, I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer and had to change a lot of things in my life immediately. I was locked in an isolated room for nine days during radioactive iodine treatments. My son was only 17 months old at the time, and as a new mother, I had to stop breastfeeding. My hormones were going haywire, but most of all, I had a lot of time to think while I was alone in my hospital room.

At the time, wellness was new to me. While I was trying to learn about a better lifestyle, I was also looking for answers to questions like how to get rid of radiation and why I was getting sick. As my life and career transitions coincided with the opening of Turkey’s first award-winning destination spa, Richmond Nua Wellness Spa, wellness became my focus.

From 2004 to 2012, I committed myself to self-transformation and became healthier than I had ever been. In 2012, a nagging voice began to whisper in my mind: “Okay, Bergin, now you see life differently. What can you do for the world?”

I decided to research the existence of a Global Wellness Day. To my surprise, I found that no such day existed. Inspired by this, I organized a celebration at my hotel and initially named it Wellness Day and scheduled the event on the second Saturday of June. In 2012, we hosted a small gathering of 150-200 people at Richmond Nua Wellness Spa.

The day was full of physical activities, nutrition workshops, Reiki and skin care. At the end of the day, a middle-aged woman said to me, “Today was my first time doing yoga. I always thought yoga was something for healthy, young people, but I tried it and it was so much fun. I’m going to start doing yoga today.” I was so happy and thought, “Can someone’s life really change so much in just one day?”

Currently, Global Wellness Day is held every year on the second Saturday of June under the slogan “Change your life in one day!” This is a non-profit social project dedicated to living well, asking the question “How can we live a healthier and better life?”, even if only for one day, with the aim of directing both individuals and society’s thoughts towards “living well” and raising awareness.

Can you tell us more about this year’s theme, “#MagentaNature”?

Nature has a profound impact on our mental, physical and emotional health. During the pandemic, many people have reconnected with nature as a source of solace and healing. Scientific studies consistently show that spending time in nature reduces stress, improves mood and enhances overall wellness. For me, this theme is a call to incorporate nature into our daily wellness routines while appreciating and protecting our natural environment. It highlights the importance of getting outside, breathing in the fresh air and finding peace and balance in the simplicity of nature.

You’ve said that GWD isn’t just a celebration, it’s a call to action. Can you explain?

Global Wellness Day aims to raise awareness about the importance of wellness in our lives. We encourage people to make simple, practical changes that can have a lasting impact on their health and wellbeing.

Whether it’s regular exercise, healthy eating or time for mental relaxation, GWD aims to encourage practical steps towards a better life. I wanted to create simple steps that anyone could achieve, regardless of their social or economic background, to make wellness a lifestyle. The key is that you don’t have to take all the steps at once, just incorporate at least some of them regularly into your daily routine.

GWD 7-Step Manifesto

1. Walk for an hour.

2. Drink more water.

3. Do not use plastic bottles.

4. Eat healthy foods.

5. Do good deeds.

6. Have a family dinner with your loved ones.

7. Go to bed at 10pm.

Since you launched GWD, how do you think wellness has grown around the world?

As people become more aware of the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, they are actively seeking ways to improve their health. From yoga and meditation to holistic therapies and organic nutrition, we are seeing a surge in health-related activities. This global movement towards wellness is no longer just a trend, it is becoming an integral part of how people live and prioritize their health.

Meanwhile, the growth of Global Wellness Day has been incredibly encouraging. What started as a humble event in Turkey has now reached millions of people around the world. This expansion means that the importance of wellness is being recognized globally; people are increasingly prioritizing their health and happiness. This growth is a testament to the joint efforts of our dedicated volunteers and ambassadors, and it fills me with hope and gratitude.

What do you want to see happen in the future of wellness?

My ultimate goal for Global Wellness Day is to promote better lifestyles for both individuals and societies. Importantly, although the day lasts for just 24 hours, its message is timeless. The day Global Wellness Day is recognized on the official UN calendar will be a personal victory for me. It will mark a milestone in our collective commitment to well-being becoming a legacy for future generations.