Now in its 25th edition, the Wellness Congress aims to discuss the impact of wellness and to identify pathways towards a healthier and more sustainable world, through healthy lifestyles. The 2023 edition is conceived to be a high profile educational event for general practitioners and healthcare professionals on the value of exercise for a healthy longevity.

A unique opportunity to attend scientific panels and precision training workshops with world leading experts and keep up-to-date on the cutting-edge research and practical applications in the science of exercise and longevity.

Registration is required. Please contact info@wellnessfoundation.it.

The vision of Wellness was launched by the President of the Wellness Foundation in 1993, at the trade fair in Rimini.

Since then it has become a global trend, deeply rooted in the Wellness Valley. And its benefits, in terms of healthy longevity and the sustainability of healthcare systems, are clearer and clearer.

Where do we stand today? 

The time for further evolution has come. We must move from a healthcare system focused on treatment to one focused on prevention and healthy lifestyles. How to establish an innovative model based on an alliance between the fitness world and the medical world, with benefits for all?

At the States General of Rimini Wellness, this topic will be discussed by:

Giuseppe Attisani – Collective Prevention and Public Health Sector, Emilia-Romagna Region; Andrea Ermolao – Secretary General, Exercise is Medicine Italy; Pasqualino Maietta Latessa – Coordinator of the Degree Course in Science and Techniques of Preventive and Adapted Motor Activity, Department of Sciences for Quality of Life, University of Bologna; Franco Mandolesi – Vice President of the Rimini Medical Association; Ermanno Pasini – President of the Polisportiva Garden Sporting Club. Round table coordinated by Federica Alberti, Wellness Foundation Director.

The Wellness Valley Workshop took place at Technogym Village – The Wellness Campus (Cesena) on Wednesday, February 1, 2023 from 11 am to 1 pm.

The event brought together over 250 public and private stakeholders of the Wellness Valley and it included the presentation of the fourth edition of the Wellness Valley Report.

Produced by the Wellness Valley Study Observatory, an independent organism composed of a Working Group of experts and professionals from various authorities and disciplines as a result of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Emilia-Romagna Region, Wellness Foundation and the University of Bologna, the report measures and narrates the project’s progress, highlighting the positive impact in terms of Health and Prevention, Economic Development and Tourism.

Twenty years after the project’s inception, the numbers speak for themselves: in the Wellness Valley more than half of the population is active (55% vs 46% nationally) and the percentage of sedentary adults is significantly lower than the national average (16% vs 30%); the Wellness sector in Romagna has recorded an economic growth of 31% in the period from 2011 to 2021; from a tourism perspective, the region has been able to create and attract many successful events that constantly increase the attractiveness of the area. 

It was an important meeting to take stock of the various projects launched over the years and to spread more and more the culture of Wellness, which is necessary to ensure lasting sustainable development.

 

Download the Report04

In 2015 the World Expo takes place in Milan, Italy with a focus on nutrition, energy and sustainability. On June 25th, the Wellness Foundation brings its 22nd Wellness Congress at the Universal Exposition to debate education, active lifestyle and prevention as the roadmap to economic, social and environmental sustainability. ”Feeding the Planet, Moving the Planet” is the title of the event that highlights the need to get people moving in order to build a healthy and sustainable future. 

Together with the President of the Wellness Foundation, Nerio Alessandri, a number of distinguished speakers take the floor, including: Giovanni Malagò, Chairman of the Italian National Olympic Committee, Ambassador Giovanni Castellaneta, President of the World Food Programme, Chef Davide Oldani, Marco Belinelli, NBA champion, and Maurizio Martina, Italian Minister for Expo.

During the 22nd Wellness Congress, Technogym’s social campaign “Let’s Move and Donate Food” was launched, inviting all visitors at Expo to join the campaign for a Better World and to fight malnutrition by donating their movement.

Thanks to a special agreement between Technogym and the World Food Programme, the MOVEs collected by the exhibition visitors were converted into meals to be donated to children in the poorest countries.

In 2012, chronic diseases are widely recognised as the largest cause of death in the world and a global threat to the sustainability of the Planet. Educating people to prevention through healthy lifestyles is the new challenge for world leaders. Obesity, especially childhood obesity, has become an epidemic that threatens the health of future generations.

Facing this scenario, the 42nd US President Bill Clinton chooses the stage of the 20th Wellness Congress to share the “Let’s Move for a Better World” project, Technogym’s international campaign to spread the culture of movement for prevention and the treatment of obesity and chronic diseases.

Representatives of different disciplines and countries join the Wellness Congress assembly in Cesena, Italy to share the commitment for a more equitable and sustainable development starting from Wellness, including Ertharin Cousin, Executive Director of the World Food Programme, Giorgio Napolitano, President of the Italian Republic, Renato Balduzzi, Italian Minister of Health, Corrado Passera, Italian Minister of Economic Development, Enrico Giovannini, economist and statistician, David Rowan, founding editor-in-chief of Wired, and many others.

The 20th Wellness Congress coincides with the inauguration of the Technogym Village, the first Wellness Campus in the world and a global point of reference for the culture of health. 

Wellness, the inspiring philosophy of Technogym, becomes a precise thought that applies not only to business but to a new social vision with a view to achieving a better and more sustainable future for all: a Healthy Planet starting from Healthy People.

The Technogym Village in Cesena is also the entrance gate of the Wellness Valley, the first district of wellness and the good quality of life promoted by the Wellness Foundation.

Health is Wealth. This simple, yet challenging principle is at the heart of the “Wellness Economy”, the vision that Nerio Alessandri promotes since 2003 through his commitment as President of the Wellness Foundation.

On October 18, 2003, the Wellness Foundation celebrated in Cesena, Italy the 11th edition of the Wellness Congress, significantly entitled: “Good Health pays off. Quality of life for everyone’s benefit: the community, the Government and companies”. 

The event was attended by 3,500 participants, including the President of the Italian Chamber of Deputies, three Ministers of the Italian Government, entrepreneurs, academics, public administrators, health experts, and exercise professionals.

 

The Congress had two main objectives: 

• to share evidence-based knowledge about the benefits of wellness for health, the economy and society; 


• to officially present the “Wellness Valley” project, the first International District for Wellness and the good Quality of Life.

The Wellness Valley is the first example of a Wellness Community. A project born from the vision of Nerio Alessandri and promoted by the Wellness Foundation, in collaboration with 250 public and private stakeholders of the Romagna region in Italy.

Since 2003, the Wellness Valley has been an important Living Lab for the promotion of healthy lifestyles, and today it is regarded as a case study and an international benchmark for the creation of effective Ecosystems of Health and Well-being.