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It's all about connection.
ASWELL BOARD MEMBERS
Marc Cohen
AsWell Chair
MBBS(Hons), PhD, BMedSc(Hons), FAMAC, FICAE
Professor Marc Cohen is one of Australia’s pioneers of integrative and holistic medicine. He is a medical doctor and Professor of Health Sciences at RMIT University where he leads postgraduate Wellness Programs and conducts research into wellness and holistic health including research on yoga, meditation, lifestyle and the health impact of pesticides, organic food and detoxification. Prof Cohen has published numerous academic articles and landmark textbooks in the field of holistic health and wellness and he sits on the Board of a number of national and international associations including the Global Wellness Summit (www.gsws.org) and the Australasian Integrative Medicine Association (AIMA) (www.aima.net.au). He is a frequent speaker at many national and international conferences where he delivers inspiring, informative and uplifting presentations. His impact on the field has been recognised by the inaugural Award for Leadership and Collaboration from the National Institute of Complementary Medicine.
rmit.edu.au
Charles Davidson
AsWell Vice Chair
Charles Davidson is the CEO and Co-Founder of Peninsula Hot Springs, Australia’s first commercial, natural hot mineral spring bathing facility that attracts more than 430,000 visitors each year and employs 240 staff. From 1992 Charles spent 11 years in international trade including four years at the Australian Embassy in Japan where he became enchanted with open air onsen and had a dream to connect people with each other and their environment through hot spring bathing. Since then Charles has been on a health and wellbeing learning journey that has taken him to more than 1000 bathing facilities in over 30 countries and led him to develop Peninsula Hot Springs, which recently won the 2014 World Luxury Spa Award for the World’s Best Luxury Mineral Spring Spa as well as being twice included in the Victorian Tourism Awards Hall of Fame as Victoria’s Best Tourist Attraction and Best Health and Wellbeing Tourism Facility.
peninsulahotsprings.com
Marcus Bird
AsWell Treasurer
Marcus is an author, coach and speaker and co-director of the Wellness Leadership Academy, a global training organisation dedicated to “moving the world to wellness” via providing cutting edge training to health care providers, wellness product developers and wellness centered organisations. He has a background in business development focused on innovation and expansion and was BDM for the corporate retail space expanding retailers globally. He earned his Masters in Entrepreneurship and Innovation in 2000 and then trained as an applied kinesiologist and counsellor. Working with thousands of clients over the next 15 year period, Marcus has built a global thought leadership coaching business, coaching academy, authored a book “The 3 Minute Wellness Coach” and is an expert in live training, speaking and communication for individuals and organisations within the wellness industry.
wellnessleadershipacademy.com
Karen Golden
AsWell Board Member
Karen is the Spa and Wellness Manager of Belgravia Leisure, where she has grown and developed Australia’s iconic Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa and now leads the growth of spa and wellness businesses and assets within the Belgravia Group, which boasts the recent addition of The Spa at Marysville, the Onsen Retreat & Spa at Dinner Plain and the White Spa at Mt Hotham. With a well-developed sense and ability for maximizing the potential of a business, integrating wellness, spa and developing profitable revenue streams, her success is supported by her experience in multinational companies offering destination spa, wellness and body sustainability. A personal commitment to Wellness has seen Karen accept the role of Australian Ambassador - Global Wellness Day (www.globalwellnessday.org), with the intention of bringing a the world together on one day each year with a focus on Wellness, creating a time be aware of the value of wellness and balance in our lives.
www.hepburnbathhouse.com
James White
AsWell Board Member
James provides feasibility studies, strategy development, business development and marketing advice on leisure and tourism facilities to government tourism authorities and private businesses throughout Australia and New Zealand. He is the lead consultant in a recent and ongoing project on global best practice in the hot springs industry, which is analysing how the global hot springs industry creates, delivers and captures value. This work has taken him to 20 countries and 121 hot springs. His previous experience includes agri-business economic development, project management, logistics and planning for companies like Kathmandu and managing directorships in clothing and outdoor equipment retail. James is a Board Member of the Australasian Spa and Wellness Association and a member of the Global Wellness Summit Hot Springs Initiative Advisory Group. He holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree where his thesis topic was commercial bathing and spa development concepts.
Heddy Macaulay
AsWell Board Member
Heddy is Director of Aesthetics Education at the College of Natural Beauty and has had a 30 year career involving all areas of the aesthetic industry. Her experience ranges from working as a make-up artist in London to working with Anita Roddicks’ Body Shop and Barbara Daly’s Colourings natural make-up range and being as an instructor and facilitator for the Look Good Feel Better Charity. With a personal interest in holistic therapies and wellness, Heddy has undergone extensive training and has been identified as an exceptional mentor in supporting therapists in the development of their professional practice. With a firm believe that beauty goes far more than skin deep and a keen desire to empower women’s natural beauty, Heddy also works as an instructor and facilitator for the Look Good Feel Better Charity where she runs workshops to boost the confidence of patients undergoing treatment for any sort of cancer. Heddy has recently joined a select group of acclaimed industry leading educators, being announced a 2015 Edupreneur Award winner for her achievements in using education as a tool to serve the beauty industry.
www.cnb.edu.au/heddy-macaulay-honoured
rmit.edu.au
Andy Ramsay
AsWell Board Member
Andy Ramsay is the founder and co-director of the Wellness Leadership Academy, a global training organisation dedicated to “moving the world to wellness” via providing cutting edge training to health care providers, wellness product developers and wellness centered organisations. Over the past 7 years Andy has worked with over 10,000 clients in over 6 countries where he’s worked with individuals and organisations, across all levels of personal, organisational and collective global wellness principles and practices. Andy has a background in health science, Chinese medicine, and wellness business consulting and is a global expert on building, nurturing and developing “thought leadership” for the wellness space. He currently travels the globe training individuals and organisations about the principles of Wellness Leadership via live events, coaching programs and online services to all sectors of the Wellness Industry
wellnessleadershipacademy.com
John D Weller
AsWell Board Member
Irchal Director & CEO
As a result of his successful career as a barrister and solicitor in many leading cases in all of the major courts of Australia, John has been able to develop, and philanthropically fund, the establishment of the International Conferences on Healthy Ageing and Longevity, and the International Research Centre for Healthy Ageing and Longevity (IRCHAL). John has acted in the role of Conference Convenor and IRCHAL CEO, and coordinated all aspects of both organisations from conception to now a thriving multi-disciplinary international network of leading scientists, academics, practitioners and policy makers from around the globe. IRCHAL is also currently working with the government and private investors in designing a Wellness Precinct in the Northern Rivers Region of NSW.
Praveena Dewan
AsWell Board Member
Praveena is the Spa Manager at the multi-award winning Bebe spa in Fiji. After working in different parts of the spa industry and undertaking many spa management and leadership training courses, Praveena developed extensive expertise and experience that led her to lead the team at Bebe Spa and achieve international recognition through awards that include “Team of the Year”, “Therapist of the Year”, “The Best Destination Resort Spa”, “The International Spa of The Year - Award for Excellence in Leadership, Exceptional Achievement by a Team”. As a past Board Member of the Australasian Spa Association, Praveena is committed to growth and development of spa and wellness throughout Australasia and establishing Fiji as a key wellness destination.
www.outrigger.com
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