Thomas Heatherwick to Keynote 20th Anniversary Global Wellness Summit

Visionary British designer and Heatherwick Studio founder will explore how the spaces we create can shape human experience, wellbeing and a more joyful future

MIAMI, Sept. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Global Wellness Summit™ (GWS), the foremost gathering of leaders in the global wellness economy, will celebrate its 20th anniversary with its 2026 Summit, taking place November 10–13 at Angsana Laguna Phuket in Thailand.

Marking two decades at the forefront of the global wellness movement, this year's Summit will bring together an exceptional cross-section of leaders—from wellness CEOs and entrepreneurs to doctors, academics, investors, technology innovators, policymakers and creative thinkers. The milestone event will be the most ambitious Summit to date, celebrating the extraordinary evolution of wellness over the past 20 years while looking ahead to the ideas, innovations and opportunities that will shape its next chapter.

Among the Summit's headline speakers will be Thomas Heatherwick, the visionary British designer and founder of Heatherwick Studio, whose work is challenging conventional ideas about what buildings and public spaces can—and should—be.

Working across architecture, design, sculpture, engineering and landscape, Heatherwick has built a reputation for creating places that are deeply rooted in human experience. From Little Island in New York and Coal Drops Yard in London to 1,000 Trees in Shanghai, his projects transform the way people experience cities.

Heatherwick's selection as a keynote speaker is particularly resonant for this year's Summit, which explores the theme of "The Science, Art and Soul of Wellness." His work reflects a growing recognition that the places we inhabit can have a profound influence on how we feel, connect, move and live—and that design should aspire to do more than simply solve functional problems. He asserts that the design of cities should be recognized as a public health issue.

"We have long understood that wellness is about much more than what happens inside a spa, a gym or a doctor's office," said Nancy Davis, executive director and chief creative officer of the Global Wellness Summit. "The environments we create around ourselves can profoundly shape our physical and emotional wellbeing. Thomas Heatherwick has an incredible ability to make the built world feel more human, more surprising and more joyful. His work invites people to engage with places rather than simply pass through them, and that is a powerful idea for the future of wellness."

Heatherwick is not an architect by training, instead beginning his career in furniture, product design, sculpture and installations. His background in materials and making continues to underpin the philosophy of Heatherwick Studio, which today brings together architects, designers, landscape architects and makers in a highly collaborative process designed to challenge conventional thinking.

The studio's stated ambition is "to see a world where the buildings and places around us are radically more joyful, engaging and human" and to create projects that "make life better for everyone."

That philosophy can be seen across Heatherwick's international portfolio. His projects include Azabudai Hills in Tokyo; London Olympia and Coal Drops Yard in London; 1,000 Trees in Shanghai; Little Island and Vessel in New York; Universidad Ean, a new school for sustainable design in Bogotá; AlUla Manara, an astrotourism and science center in Saudi Arabia; Hatai in Bangkok, a new mixed-use development opening in 2027 which will include a Six Senses; as well as the upcoming Changi Terminal 5 in Singapore and the soon-to-open Google headquarters in London.

Heatherwick Studio, which has workshops and design studios in London and Shanghai, has received more than 100 international awards for design excellence, including the Prix Versailles and RIBA National Awards. Heatherwick's individual honors include the Prince Philip Designers Prize, the RIBA Lubetkin Prize for the UK Pavilion at the Shanghai Expo 2010, the London Design Medal and the Eugene McDermott Award in the Arts at MIT. He was appointed a CBE in 2013 for services to the design industry. His bestselling book, "Humanise: A Maker's Guide to Building Our World," is published worldwide in multiple languages and editions. Six million people have listened to his BBC Radio 4 Series "Building Soul," and there have been over 2 million views of his most recent TED talk.

Heatherwick's keynote will be part of a program exploring the evolving relationship between wellness, creativity, science, technology, design and the human experience. Previously announced keynote speakers include Dan Buettner, William E. Heineke, Andrea B. Maier, Ronald Akili, Huy Hoang, George Gaitanos, Susan Magsamen and Tal Danai. The 20th anniversary Summit will bring together an unprecedented range of voices from across the global wellness economy to examine not only where the industry is going, but how wellness can contribute to a healthier, more human future.

Registration for the Summit is now open.

Accredited media can apply to attend here.

About the Global Wellness Summit: The Global Wellness Summit brings together leaders and visionaries to positively shape the future of the $6.8 trillion global wellness economy. In addition to an annual conference held at a different location around the globe, GWS also hosts annual in-person events such as the Wellness Real Estate & Communities Symposium, along with virtual gatherings, including Wellness Master Classes and Wellness Sector Spotlights. The organization's Future of Wellness report forecasts the top wellness trends for the year ahead and is oft-quoted in the media. The 20th annual Global Wellness Summit will be held in Phuket, Thailand, November 10-13, 2026.

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SOURCE Global Wellness Summit