International Women's Day 2023
To celebrate International Women's Day 2023 (March 8th), we’re honouring a cohort of trail-blazing, incredible women who are among today’s powerhouses in the fields of wellbeing, fitness and conservation. Enjoy their stories and be inspired.
Transforming lives ‘off the grid’
Sue Glasscock, Co-Founder & Chief Creative Director at The Ranch
“I don’t believe in mistakes. Everything in our lives happens for a reason and teaches us a valuable lesson. We must see everything as a learning experience and grow and expand from it.” Sue Glasscock
With roots in landscape and interior design, Sue Glasscock co-launched multi award-winning fitness and lifestyle brand The Ranch, with husband Alex, in 2010. Her passion for healthy and balanced living through outdoor activities and appreciation for nature were the guiding principles in creating their first fitness and wellness retreat located in Malibu, California.
Guests come to check in, ‘off the grid’ and immerse themselves in healthy, restorative living. The Ranch is results-oriented and guests come away not only with happier, leaner, fitter bodies but more importantly have had time out of their busy lives to reflect, learn and grow.
As well as the original Ranch in Malibu, they now operate an Italy programme and will launch Hudson Valley in March 2024.
Sue is a leading example to guests, thanks to her active and athletic lifestyle. She loves nothing more than engaging with guests on a morning hike or joining a yoga or weight training session.
Find out more about The Ranch here.
Guiding women on journeys of deep and lasting healing
Fiona Arrigo, Founder of The Arrigo Programme
“We are the custodians of the earth, we need to reclaim our worthiness and walk each other home.” Fiona Arrigo
Fiona is an internationally acclaimed Biodynamic psychologist, who helps women to find inner reset, a place to regain trust, self -acceptance and an invigorated sense of self-empowerment, community and purpose.
Fiona’s hugely popular programmes are not for the faint hearted. Her powerful intuition blazes trails of truth for her clients to engage with, tap into their inner wisdom and ultimately to heal. As healed individuals we are then able to help heal our communities and the world.
Find out more about The Arrigo Programme here.
Providing a conscience for the hospitality industry
Alexa Poortier, Founder of It Must Be Now
“Believe that the future is worth fighting for … this is where our power to change a situation starts.” Alex Poortier
Alex Poortier is on a mission; to get the hospitality industry to dramatically increase its sustainability efforts and accelerate to Climate Positive. We may not be able to reverse the course of climate change within our lifetime, but we can make a responsible choice to boldly drive change and build resilience now.
It Must Be Now is leadership platform and facilitator that helps hospitality companies, tourism facilities and educational establishments to advance sustainability and achieve Climate Positive with accountability and transparency.
They recently launched the NOW Climate Positive Program & Award, which offers hotels and resorts access to a fully funded, integrated sustainability program for up to 10 years.
Find out more about It Must Be Now here.
South African conservation advocates; custodians of our natural world
Sarah & Isabelle Tompkins, Samara Karoo Reserve
“Until we face the inescapable reality that without a healthy Earth, there can be no healthy human beings, we will have a hard time solving the problems of climate change.”
Isabelle Tompkins
This mother-daughter team has spent the past 25 years restoring and rewilding 67,000 acres of land in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, the “Great Karoo”. They’ve introduced cheetah, lion and elephants after more than a century’s absence, and leopards and several bird species have returned of their own accord.
Over 50 cheetahs have been born at the reserve, and Samara's population has become substantial enough that many are translocated to other reserves and national parks and other African countries.
Their eco-tourist lodges an intimate and meaningful wildlife experience, as well as providing a model for a rewilding project which has flourished despite immeasurable challenges.This project, Samara Karoo Reserve, is now the catalyst for a vision to create the third-largest contiguous conservation area in South Africa across 3 million acres.
These inspirational women work tirelessly with tenacity and drive making strides towards upholding their vision to create a blueprint for responsible tourism.
Find out more about Samara Karoo Reserve here.
Holistic healing through ancient wisdom
Marina Efraimoglou, Founder of Euphoria Retreat
"Inspired by my own recovery I wanted to create a place where people could be gently guided and motivated to live a more fulfilling and spiritually satisfying way of life", Marina Efraimoglou.
Marina Efraimoglou's award winning wellness spa Euphoria Retreat evolved from a passion born out of her personal path. After overcoming cancer twice and then suffering exhaustion in the world of investment banking, she began to integrate holistic therapies and ancient wisdom into her life, studying Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Five Elements and other alternative health methods.
Euphoria has won multiple awards since opening and offers carefully curated wellness retreats that draw inspiration from a number of sources: Ancient Greek philosophers, Hippocratic medicine, Taoist philosophy and Chinese medicine.
Programmes cleverly blend the best of these philosophies and complementary medicines to promote deep emotional and physical transformation.
Euphoria’s Odysseus Journey is the latest retreat programme created by Marina, designed for those having an 'is this it?' moment, or wondering what’s next for the year ahead.
Find out more about Euphoria Retreat here.
Feeding future generations (good food)
Nicole Pisani and Naomi Duncan, Co-Founders, Chefs in Schools
“We want to change the whole food culture in school, to give children – for life – an understanding of food and the ability to enjoy and cook food. It is one of the great pleasures in life.” Nicole Pisani
These two trailblazers have a clear and simple mission; to revolutionise school food and be the lead on food education.
As founders of the charity Chefs in Schools, they believe strongly that ‘better is possible’. 5 years on since launching, they’re now working with over 60 UK schools to deliver nutritious, delicious, inexpensive, generation-powering, mind-opening, society-changing food – and inspiring and enabling schools across the country to follow their lead.
Chefs in Schools has just launched a brand new free toolkit, to spark the creation of a network of food education hubs. An ever-increasing community is getting behind the belief that kids are our future and we must feed them like it.
Find out more about Chefs in Schools here.
