San Diego– April 14, 2023 – The first ever global federation for the health, fitness, and physical activity sector, World Active, has entered its second phase. Almost 50 national federation representatives from five continents gathered at the first World Active General Assembly on April 13, 2023, during FIBO Global Fitness in Cologne, Germany. They agreed on a charter and elected the World Active Council, which will lead this global platform into the third and final phase – the launch of the World Active Federation.
North America is currently represented by four leading bodies: the American Council on Exercise, Fitness Business Association, IDEA® Health & Fitness Association, and Medical Fitness Association. “The North American sector is proud to partner with World Active, whereby all groups involved share a common goal to empower professionals and businesses and enhance well-being worldwide while providing further support for the global impact that health, fitness, and physical activity play in improving individual and population health,” said Amy Boone Thompson, CEO and owner, IDEA Health & Fitness Association.
The World Active General Assembly and Council elections follow the provisions of the World Active Charter, which is transparently approved by the founding members. The guiding principle is to have an independent platform where each stakeholder has equal weight and rights, leading to equal representation of all continents. Other health and fitness associations and professional registers are welcome to join World Active.
The main event of the platform, the World Active Summit, will commence in Europe and rotate annually through the continents. It will bring together stakeholders from around the globe to discuss common opportunities and challenges facing the industry, speak with one voice, and promote health and well-being worldwide through collaboration and innovation. “We fully support development of World Active and look forward to working collaboratively to get more people, more active, more often by implementing strategies that underline the Global action plan on physical activity,” said Fiona Bull, the WHO Europe representative, during the summit opening.
Barrie Elvish, the elected World Active Chair, spoke on behalf of everyone involved, describing this first physical meeting of the founding members as a historic event for the fitness industry. They are now ready to become a partner of the WHO and other world organizations, with a mission to improve the health of the entire population. To achieve these goals, Elvish will work closely with Amy Boone Thompson, World Active’s Vice-Chair, and Sean Tan, the platform’s Treasurer.
The World Active Council elections are based on the provisions of the World Active Charter, the main constitutive document transparently approved by the founding members. The Council is composed of Wilson Onyango (African Register of Exercise Professionals) representing Africa; Samir Kapoor (India Active) and Sean Tan (Singapore Fitness Alliance), representing Asia; Monica Marques (ACAD Brazil), representing Central and Latin America; Andreas Paulsen (EuropeActive), representing Europe; Amy Boone Thompson (IDEA Health & Fitness Association), representing North America; and Barrie Elvish (AUSactive), representing Oceania. In line with the guiding principle of having an independent platform where each stakeholder has equal weight and rights, this leads to equal representation of all continents and opens the door for organizations from the sector to join World Active.
For more information, please visit www.world-active.com or contact thesecretariat@world-active.com.
For more information about IDEA Health & Fitness Association, contact Joy Keller, jkeller@ideafit.com.
About IDEA Health & Fitness Association
IDEA® Health & Fitness Association has served as the world’s leading organization of fitness and wellness professionals for 40 years. We deliver world-class content and continuing education to fitness professionals, business owners and allied health professionals via our five publications, including the award-winning IDEA Fitness Journal. We also power fit pros through our fitness, business and nutrition conferences, and with hundreds of streaming videos and digital courses available on ideafit.com. Additionally, with IDEA FitnessConnect, we have the largest national industry-wide directory linking over 275,000 fitness professionals to more than 40 million consumers. We Inspire the World to Fitness® with the passion and dedication of IDEA Members in more than 80 countries.
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