2025 Spring President's Letter

“Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul” – Henry Ward Beecher

Greetings,

AIA continues to bloom! As I reflect on the last several months, I am well aware that AIA has much to be grateful for. Let me share our recent accomplishments and how you can benefit from those.

You will see that we have changed our homepage to highlight the Alliance of International Aromatherapists Research Academy. We launched the academy at our 2024 AIA Conference. This academy is provided free to the public for those who utilize research, conduct research, and wish to publish case studies or present their work at conferences. We created the AIA Research Academy with the generous support of the Gattefossé Foundation. Our vision is to support a culture of aromatherapy research and evidence-based practice by educating, motivating, and empowering our global community. If you haven’t signed up for the Research Academy, it’s as simple as creating the AIA Research Academy membership here. Current AIA members already have access in our AIA classroom. The Research Academy will add new presentations throughout the next two years and we hope you find them interesting and educational. Reach out to the AIA Research Academy Steering Committee to apply to be a mentor or speaker for the academy (research.academy@alliance-aromatherapists.org). Watch our emails and social media if you wish to apply to be a mentee. It was truly an honor to be asked by the Gattefossé Foundation to provide this Research Academy, and we are working hard to make this an excellent resource for members and the public. If you haven’t already, check it out!

Memories of the AIA 2024 Conference continue to warm my heart. People still comment on how amazing the presentations were. If you wish to see all of the conference presentations, it's not too late. Purchase them now and you will enjoy listening to 39 experts in the global community discuss the diversity of the topics including sustainability, essential oils in healthcare settings, clinical evidence, safety, deep dives into essential oil plants, medical cannabis, business, and utilizing holistic, integrative aromatherapy to best care for ourselves, our friends & family, and patients & clients.

Another substantial accomplishment is our Essential Oil Booklet Update. This was a collaborative effort led by the AIA Clinical Committee. This booklet is in the Members Access part of the website and is also available for the public under the aromatherapy menu tab.

We are excited to announce two new committees this year:

• Ethics & Professionalism, Carol Scheidel, Chair
• Business & Fundraising, Cary Castor, Chair

The Clinical Committee chairs, Donna Audia & Michelle Cohen, resigned due to increased work commitments. We thank them for their years of service and excellent stewardship of our Clinical Committee projects. Carol Scheidel and Cynthia Tamlyn are members of the committee and are the new co-chairs of the Clinical Committee. We will miss Donna & Michelle, but we know the committee is in good hands.

All of our committees and representatives continue to work on important initiatives intended to better serve our members and the public. Although some committees are full, we welcome new volunteers. We would especially appreciate it if a few more people become an AIA Representative or join our Membership and Nominations, Media, or Business Committees. Please consider joining our amazing volunteer community.

While AIA’s membership benefits are excellent and our accomplishments are exciting, I am most grateful to have met and reconnected with so many of you at the conference. I enjoy spending time with AIA members at our webinars, representative events, and meetings. While gratitude is indeed a fair blossom that springs from the soul, friendship feeds my soul. AIA relationships are like a bouquet of beautiful flowers. We have a wonderful AIA community, and I am grateful!

With Love & Gratitude,

Denise