children, women and low-income families are at the centre of three new Initiatives launched by the Global Wellness Institute (GWI).

Wellness For Children – chaired by Christine Clinton, president of International Spa & Salon Services – aims to create awareness of the need for children and young people to be actively involved in their own wellness.

“Through holistic practices of mindfulness, meditation, energy medicine, movement and nutrition, one project we want to move forward is creating a series of lesson plans that can be easily adapted to kindergarten and school programmes and youth services,” said Clinton. “We passionately believe that education is key to long-term health and wellness. By reaching our children in the formative years and teaching them the benefits of being healthy, we begin to reduce the risk of childhood obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer.”

The team plans to put together an age-appropriate, region-specific and culturally sensitive approach to the lesson plans.

The Wellness in low-income communities Initiative will focus on how low-income communities can enhance their strengths and address their challenges through evidence-based best practices in health.

Chaired by Jennifer Cabe, a US-based wellness communications leader, the initiative also aims to help evaluate how to understand, communicate about, measure and advance wellness in low-income communities globally.

Women in Leadership aims to encourage and promote ‘Lean In Circles’ throughout the wellness industry, helping to ensure that future female leaders have a framework of support and motivation.

Chaired by Sara Jones, managing director of Spa & Wellness Mexico magazine, the initiative is part of the wider Lean In non-profit organisation, which provides meeting plans, discussion points and content for motivation, innovation leadership and goal-setting. The initiative joins more than 900 Lean In partners across more than 20 industries in supporting women’s leadership.

The GWI had previously launched 16 initiatives, covering topics from career development to hot springs to wellness communities.