Credit: Paul Smith Photography

How do you extend your healthspan so that at 100 you’ve got the vitality, the energetics, the aesthetics and mobility that you had when you were 40 or 50? That’s the goal
– Peter Diamandis, co-founder, Fountain Life

The Global Wellness Summit and Institute have announced speakers for their fourth Wellness Real Estate and Communities Symposium and released the first of ten podcast episodes about longevity.

The Symposium will take place at West End Labs in New York City on 17 June and will see specialists in real estate, investment, design, architecture, public policy, technology, medicine and sustainability gather to examine how health and wellness are shaping the built environment.

Headline speakers already announced include Manvendra Singh Shekhawat (MD of luxury hotel group Suryagarh Collection) and Horst Schulze (founding member of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company) and now new speakers have been added to the line-up.

Topics under discussion will include the intersection of neuroscience, cognitive psychology and place-making – as well as investments in wellness real estate.

Speakers joining the summit include:

Robert Hammond and Kellan Florio of Therme Group, who will discuss investing in democratised wellness, public and private partnerships and the importance of government involvement.

Kenneth Ryan, recently appointed chief longevity officer of The Estate – a luxury hospitality and residential concept owned by Sam Nazarian’s operating firm, SBE and backed by life coach Tony Robbins, musician Marc Anthony and investor Richard Attius – who will speak about the evolution of wellness as a foundational element in building residences.

Neil Jacobs, CEO of Six Senses, who will talk about branded residences, wellness and hospitality.

Yuki Kiyono, global head of health and wellness development for Aman Resorts, will discuss the ultra-luxury segment of wellness residences and the impact on the bottom line.

Kane Sarhan, co-founder and CCO of The Well will speak with David Martin, CEO of Miami-based Terra, who leads a US$8 billion+ (€7.7 billion+, £6 billion+) portfolio of South Florida developments focused on smart growth and sustainability. Their discussion will focus on creating residences with holistic health in mind.

Nerio Alessandri, president and founder of Technogym, will speak about the company’s new “Healthness” concept, which uses wellness data and AI to create hyper-personalised programmes.

Nathan Palin, founder and managing principal of SKOA Capital – the first real estate investment bank exclusively focused on wellness real estate – will discuss what works and what doesn’t in wellness real estate investment with wellness strategist and brand architect Mia Kyricos.

Joanna Frank, president and CEO of the Center for Active Design and Fitwel and Jonathan Emery, CEO of Aldar Development (one of the Middle East’s largest real estate developers), will explore how wellness is driving development in the UAE.

Danny Seo, eco-living icon and Simply Green founder, will be joined by Lynette Harrison Brubaker, the face behind brands such as Bobbi Brown and Jones Road, Mickey Drexler’s ventures and Michelin-starred chef Missy Robbins. Their conversation will be about design and sustainability for the future.

Tye Farrow, senior partner at Farrow Partners Architects and author of Constructing Health: How the Built Environment Enhances Your Mind's Health will talk about how wellness-focused architecture can support our physical and neurological wellbeing.

Emmanuelle Slossberg, creator and chief strategy officer of Connect 10 Strategy, will be in conversation with Sharon Prince, founder and CEO of Grace Farms (a cultural and humanitarian center in Connecticut). The two will discuss the Design for Freedom movement, which aims to raise global awareness about humane design and construction practices.

Amaya Genaro, VP of community service for Rancho Mission Viejo, will discuss the well-established California wellness community with GWI’s Katherine Johnston and Ophelia Yeung. This is one of several case studies being released as a companion report to the new Build Well to Live Well: The Future report, which will also be presented at the event.

Veronica Schreibeis Smith, CEO and founding principal of architecture firm Vera Iconica, will offer a look back at the last ten years in the wellness real estate sector.

Vlada Tusco and Elan Shuker from BBC Storyworks will reveal the third season of their series produced for the Global Wellness Institute, In Pursuit of Wellness, which focuses on wellness real estate and communities.

Teri Slavik-Tsuyuki will reveal the findings of the America at Home consumer study, which looks at the design changes people are looking for in homes and communities.

The Podcast – The Wellness Roundtable: Longevity

The Global Wellness Institute has also published the first of a new series of 10 podcast episodes about longevity.

Designed to 'unpack complex research and move theory into practice', the podcast is hosted by Alexia Brue – journalist, co-founder of Well+Good, who is currently working on The Practice: Habits for Healthspan.

Brue interviews scientists, doctors, CEOs and investors to find out the evolving meaning of ‘longevity’ and what it means for guest experiences around the world.

The first episode features a conversation between Brue and Dr Peter Diamandis, called The Healthspan Revolution is Here.

As a futurist, physician and entrepreneur, Diamandis is well known as the founder of longevity clinics Fountain Life (which sponsors the podcast) and for founding the XPrize Foundation – a non-profit organisation that hosts public competitions intended to encourage technological breakthroughs for the benefit of humanity.

The foundation currently has a US$101 million (€90 million, £76 million) global competition to identify revolutionary ideas in longevity.

Among the topics discussed, Diamandis identifies the difference between seeking a longer life span (how long you live), compared to a longer healthspan (how long you feel vital).

“Today in the US, lifespan typically runs between 78–79 years,” said Diamandis. “Healthspan runs for 63 years, so we’ve got the last 16 years of life where we’re in pain, in bed and operating at less than full capacity. The question becomes how do you extend your healthspan so that at 100 you’ve got the vitality, the energetics [sic], the aesthetics and mobility you had when you were 40 or 50? That’s the goal.”

Diamandis also outlines his own pursuits for an extended healthspan – a Technogym exercise bike and a sauna in his office, 40-minute workouts five days a week, a 9.30pm bed time, “about 90 supplement pills a day” and wearable technology products that integrate with AI to reveal his health data.

He’s also an investor and advisor for a private biotech company called Immunis, which has created a stem cell therapy that has had an impact during trials on people with severe osteoarthritis in their knees. Delivered over three months by injection, these previously bedridden individuals are now walking.

“Their inflammatory levels got 50 per cent lower, their pain reduced by 70 per cent and they increased their muscle mass by six per cent even without exercise,” he said. “These are the kinds of things I expect will be coming down the road from many directions.”

The podcast is available on Apple, Spotify, iHeart radio and full episodes are also available on GWI’s YouTube channel in some locations.