Weekly health and fitness agenda: Health at SXSW, BaliSpirit Festival

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Beginning on Sunday, South by Southwest in Austin, Texas will host a two-day health track as part of its Interactive conference. From March 23-27, thousands of devoted yogis will converge in Bali for the 4th BaliSpirit Festival. And coming up later this month: the International Fitness Showcase in Blackpool, UK.

25th South by Southwest - health track
March 13-14
Austin, Texas, USA

The 25th annual South by Southwest Music and Media Conference & Festival gathers an estimated 100,000 members of the international music, film, and interactive media industries in Austin, Texas, for a week-long convergence of ideas and talent. This year the event will debut its two-day health track, where a variety of health organizations and experts will come together to discuss online health communication via a series of panel discussions. Topics on the table will include health apps and new technologies, social media and health care, video games and mental health, and privacy issues regarding health records. Also a small handful of fitness companies - such as Bikehugger, Endurance, and MapMyFitness - are set to display their wares during the festival.
http://www.sxsw.com


4th BaliSpirit Festival
March 23-27
The Purnati Center for the Arts, Batuan, Bali, Indonesia

BaliSpirit Festival is an annual four-day event that celebrates global yoga, dance, and music with more than 95 workshops (including yoga trance dance, African drumming, traditional Balinese dance, and hip-hop), nightly world music concerts, and the Dharma Fair, an eco-bazaar including massage, healing, health food, and much more for the entire family. While deep-pocketed yogis have a variety of far-flung locales and events to choose from, BaliSpirit attracts a devoted crowd of more than 4,500 to one of the trendiest yoga spots on the planet. Early tickets are now available via the event website. Gold passes, which allows entrance into all workshops, classes, and concerts, are $450/€336. VIP passes, which include transportation shuttles to and from festival venues and a goody bag, are $680/€508.
http://balispiritfestival.com/
Watch a video on BaliSpirit outreach programs, also integral to the event: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei93jnZZNjQ


7th International Fitness Showcase (IFS)
March 25-27
Winter Gardens
Blackpool, UK

The 7th annual program will pack more than 235 different fitness sessions designed for fitness instructors, trainers, and the public into three days. Comparable to Inner IDEA in the US, IFS is one of Europe's biggest fitness conventions and expects around 6,000 participants from Asia and Europe with fitness and health champions leading classes on The Fit Zone, Gravity, Modern Pilates, and much more. Tickets available now: a three-day is priced at £139/€162.
http://www.chrysalispromotions.com/

14th Natural & Organic Products Europe
April 3-4
London, UK

The only trade show for natural and organic products in the UK, the Natural & Organic Products Europe showcases natural, organic, biodynamic, fair trade, artisan and sustainable products - from beauty and vitamins to sports nutrition to pure ingredients. While not nearly as large as Natural Products Expo West or Vivaness, the show annually attracts trade buyers from across the world, expands every year, and expects a crowd of more than 8,000 this year.
http://www.naturalproducts.co.uk


9th Med-e-Tel
April 6-8
Luxexpo Exhibition and Conference Center, Luxembourg

Med-e-Tel is hosted by the International Society for Telemedicine & eHealth (ISfTeH) and this year's program will highlight innovation and efficient use of global eHealth, telemedicine, and health ICT (information and communication technologies) by focusing on future trends and solutions in mHealth and new models of care. Scheduled are 150 expert presentations representing over 50 nations to share insights into how to effectively and efficiently use technologies to improve quality of health and medical care with a diverse group of industry participants ranging from health professionals, IT architects, venture capitalists, and government. A three-day pass purchased by March 11 is €330; a one-day pass is €235. Various discounts apply for members of ISfTeH, EHTEL (European Health Telematics Association), and iACToR (International Association of CyberPsychology, Training and Rehabilitation).
http://www.medetel.eu/


World Health Day
April 7
Worldwide

This year's World Health Day theme is "antimicrobial resistance: no action today, no cure tomorrow." For World Health Day 2011, WHO plans to launch a worldwide campaign to highlight the importance of safeguarding medicines used to treat diseases from antimicrobial resistance and its rising global threat. http://www.who.int/world-health-day/2010/en/index.html


26th FIBO
April 14-17
Essen, Germany

FIBO celebrates its 26th anniversary as Europe's key health, fitness, and wellness trade event. Essen will welcome over 30,000 health industry professionals and an additional 20,000 individuals interested in overall health from 60 countries including health specialists (physiotherapists, orthopedists, cardiologists, internists) for the FIBOmed section. This expo brings together the latest in training equipment, intelligent health promotion concepts, nutrition, fashion, cutting-edge sessions, and events focused around a variety of fitness and health trends, including pole fitness, Zumba, cycling, powerlifting, plus a wellness marketplace with innovative new products. Advance online day tickets are €14; to purchase tickets and learn more about FIBO and the FIBOmed section visit:
http://www.fibo.de/?sprache=englisch


7th GH/Innovate 2010
April 16-17
Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA

The 7th annual Global Health & Innovation Conference hosted by Unite for Sight, a nonprofit organization devoted to ending preventable blindness, will bring together 2,200 social innovators and leading global public health promoters and professionals including bloggers, policymakers, educators, CEOs, philanthropists and scientists from over 55 nations, including a keynote from Jeffrey D. Sachs, renowned development economist. This year's agenda includes five-minute social enterprise sessions with CEOs and leaders from Ashoka, Acumen Fund, City Light Campital, IDEO, Water.org, and Save the Children. Attendee rate before March 10 is $175 (€127) and $130 (€95) for students.
http://www.uniteforsight.org/conference