Company: International WELL Building Institute, New York, NY
Company Description: We are transforming health and well-being with our people-first approach to buildings, organizations and communities.
Nomination Category: Achievement Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Achievement in International Expansion
 Nomination Title: IWBI, Expanding by the Billions
- Which will you submit for your nomination in this category, a video of up to five (5) minutes, explaining the nominated achievements since July 1 of 2020, OR written answers to the questions? (Choose one):
Written answers to the questions
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video. If you are submitting written answers to the questions, provide them in the appropriate spaces below:
Written answers
- Briefly describe the nominated organization: history and past performance (up to 200 words):
Total 194 words used.
The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) is a majority woman-led, mission-driven organization and the leading global authority for transforming health and well-being with our people-first approach to buildings, organizations and communities. Our organizational culture focuses on physical & mental health and well-being in places where we spend most of our time.
In 2020, under president and CEO Rachel Hodgdon’s leadership, we introduced to the global real estate market with the WELL Health-Safety Rating, a roadmap to guide organizations with health and safety strategies to weather through the pandemic and welcome people back. In 2021, the rating was adopted in 104 countries. In parallel, IWBI has been hard at work to also launch the WELL Performance and WELL Equity Ratings into the WELL ecosystem.
In 2021, we reached a critical mass that pushed WELL adoption to 3.5 billion sq ft in the world, a 5-fold growth since July 2020. This people-first approach impacted 17 million people globally through a healthier, happier and more productive environment.
The people-first approach is built into our mission, business model and growth trajectory. Our mission is to transform the way organizations build, operate and manage their places, and everything that happens inside.
- Outline the organization's achievements since the beginning of last year that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):
Total 249 words used.
IWBI is a roadmap for making our physical and social environments agents for health. Adoption of WELL has skyrocketed to more than 4 billion square feet in 111 countries, an 8-fold jump since 2020. The WELL Health-Safety Rating, one application of the WELL Standard, experienced such powerful reception around the world that it was awarded Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas award.
Our achievements are powered by a community of global experts and professionals. As one example, the WELL Accredited Professionals are a part of a coalition of individuals guiding other organizations to apply WELL strategies. At the end of 2021, we had nearly 20,500 credential holders and exam registrants from 117 countries. We enrolled individuals from 29 new countries, including Kazakhstan, Croatia, Iceland and Sudan—marking a 25 percent increase in global representation.
We’ve doubled our staff since the beginning of 2021, with about 15% of that growth occurring outside the US.
News coverage was all-encompassing as journalists looked for guidance, expertise and solutions.
Our media coverage has included articles in top consumer and financial platforms like the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fast Company, Wired, CNN, BBC World News, Fifth Estate and CBS Sports, with additional placements in trade and industry-specific publications such as BISNOW, Buildings, Metropolis, Crain's and Property Week.
Our media impressions topped 23 billion globally in 2021, informing critical audiences to our work and our progress. The United States led on global media coverage, followed by the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Japan, China, India and Thailand.
- Explain why the achievements you have highlighted are unique or significant. If possible compare the achievements to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the organization's past performance (up to 250 words):
Total 237 words used.
Key to the exploding growth of WELL adoption is its people-first approach to our buildings, organizations and communities. This approach cuts across building science, health science and behavioral science, and holistically brings all stakeholders to the table for impactful change. It unapologetically represents a paradigm shift of the role real estate plays in our lives.
WELL not only activated this new movement, but also gained the global users’ trust by providing evidence-backed strategies and third-party verified methodology,which has underpinned exponential market adoption.
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More than 25% of all commercial office space in Australia is now engaged with WELL, due largely to an increase in the number of organizations pursuing the WELL Health-Safety Rating and WELL Building Standard to support the return of people back to their workplaces.
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Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) now account for 3,000 WELL projects across 42 countries. Middle East engagement in WELL led by governmental entities such as the UAE Prime Minister’s Office and the Dubai Land Department’s Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA) has helped drive an 18% increase in WELL adoption over the course of 2021.
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Within Asia, India has experienced rapid growth of the WELL Health-Safety Rating in 2021. Thailand and Hong Kong are two fast-growing markets for pursuit of WELL Certification in Southeast Asia, both among the top 10 performing global markets.
- Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 36 words used.
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