By Chuck Gillespie, CWP; CEO National Wellness Institute

In 2020, a study was conducted that provided evidence to support the validity of the National Wellness Institute (NWI) Competency Model, which serves as the foundation for wellness promotion practice.

This study, conducted in collaboration with Butler University, continues to support the standards NWI has set for high-level wellness practitioners and leaders, especially its Certified Wellness Practitioners (CWP) from all over the world. Drawing from this research (which is currently being submitted for publication), NWI will be releasing a revised Wellness Promotion Competency Model in 2021. These competencies provide a framework for developing talent and driving success, offering guidance for both current roles and future directions. Wellness practitioners, as well as those who hire and train them, must understand the COMPETENCIES needed.

Throughout 2020 and 2021, NWI established a community initiative called WellFinder, with the goal of helping communities all around the world connect local, regional, national, and international resources, tools, and training to the people who need them. In January, NWI teamed up with Project for Public Spaces to add their research on Healthy Places to WellFinder. COMMUNITIES prosper when they have healthy people. Healthy people only thrive in healthy places.

NWI is also launching an updated online platform to better CONNECT our members to each other and to NWI’s projects. This upgrade to our platform gives all of us the ability to learn and grow together within the NWI Community. We continue to see growth in our worldwide community thanks to the efforts of our members, Board of Directors, and staff.

In January 2021, the NWI Board of Directors approved the acquisition of the Wellness COMPLIANCE Institute. This will ensure that under one roof, wellness leaders, their organization, and the communities they work in can have a one-stop-shop for all things compliance and CODE OF CONDUCT. We will be announcing our first training very soon. Watch for this amazing new offering.

As we look at the acceleration of wellness needs during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is critical for organizations like NWI to step up and help you lead the shift at work, at home, and in your community. All the work we have done this last 12 months reflects our expectations to practice what we preach. As we reimagine wellness, it is critical to be curious and intentional in our effort to drive high-level wellness through the 5 C’s of a wellness strategy: Competence, Community, Connections, Compliance, and Code of conduct.

Watch for more exciting news as NWI continues to increase our worldwide voice of the wellness community!