round blue zones community badge

Contact project lead:

Cathy Malakowsky
[email protected]
City Hall
221 E. Clark St.
Albert Lea, MN 56007
507-377-4316

Blue Zones Albert Lea

Researcher and author Dan Buettner, a St. Paul native and graduate of St. Thomas College, identified places around the world where people live the longest. He called them “Blue Zones” and identified nine powers or traits that these communities share:

  1. Move naturally
  2. Know your purpose
  3. Downshift
  4. 80% rule: Eat until only 80% full or no longer hungry
  5. Plant slant: Eat a diet based on plants
  6. Friends at 5
  7. Put loved ones first
  8. Belong
  9. Develop an inner circle

Albert Lea was his pilot project in 2009 to see if a community could become a blue zone by implementing those nine powers. More than 1,000 residents attended the kickoff event and more than 4,000 took part in at least 1 Blue Zones activity over the next 10 months. About 800 residents joined neighborhood walking moais (Japanese word for a small club).

The project was a stunning success with participants taking surveys before and after the experiment that showed:

  • Participants added an average of 3.1 years to life expectancy
  • Participants lost an average of 2.8 pounds
  • Tobacco-free worksites increased from 4% to 24%
  • Businesses reported a 20% drop in absenteeism
  • 95% of participants reported making a new friend

In 2016 Albert Lea became the first certified Blue Zones community in the United States. The community has continued to maintain that certification. A Leadership Team continues to meet on a regular basis, partnering to keep and expand programs that benefit individual and community well-being.

For example, the City of Albert continues to follow a policy of filling in sidewalk gaps or adding sidewalks and trails to make it easier for residents to walk in bike. The City has added nearly 13 miles of sidewalks and trails since 2009.

The community has rallied around Blue Zones with volunteer groups raising money for Community Education’s boathouse, the disc golf course at Bancroft Bay Park, pickleball courts near Frank Hall Park, the Splash Pad downtown and an inclusive playground at Edgewater Park.

How to ‘blue zone’ in Albert Lea?

  • Take the 3-minute True Vitality Test for personalized recommendations to live longer and better
  • Browse the Blue Zones books at the Albert Lea Public Library, 211 E. Clark St.
  • Walk, run or roll the Blue Zones Walkway
  • Downshift at an Albert Lea park (link to Parks Directory)
  • Hike or bike the Blazing Star State Trail
  • Enjoy a local restaurant meal, eating only half and taking the other half home for later
  • Pick up fresh produce at the Albert Lea Farmers Market, open May – October, Wednesdays from 3:30 – 5:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. – noon
  • Find a community event to attend on our calendar: cityofalbertlea.org/calendar/
  • Volunteer with the Freeborn County United Way or Explore Albert Lea
  • Mentor a student through the STARS Mentoring Program
  • Challenge yourself at the Community Education Rock Wall year-round or padding adventures during warmer months
  • Join a spiritual community (search for “Albert Lea churches online”)

For more information

Cathy Malakowsky
507-377-4316
[email protected]

Resources
Blue Zones Walkway
Blue Zones Albert Lea Leadership Team
Safe Routes to School

FAQs

What are Blue Zones?
Blue Zones are places where people live the longest and healthiest. The term was coined by researcher and author Dan Buettner, a St. Paul native and graduate of St. Thomas College.

Where are the Blue Zones?
Dan Buettner identified 5 places where people live the longest and healthiest:

  1. Sardinia, an island part of Italy
  2. Okinawa, an island part of Japan
  3. Loma Linda, California
  4. Hojancha, Costa Rica
  5. Ikaria, an island of Greece

Today there are about 100 certified Blue Zones communities, including Albert Lea.

What are the results from Albert Lea being a Blue Zones community?
Survey results in 2014 and again in 2021 show:

  • 3% of Albert Lea residents say they are “thriving”
    • 6% of residents in 2014
  • 2% worry about money
    • 5% in 2014
  • 0% use tobacco
    • 2% in 2014
    • State rate: 16.7%
    • National rate: 17.4%
  • Albert Lea residents living longer with 68.5% of residents “younger” than their chronological age
    • State rate: 53.9%
    • National rate: 50.6%
  • 6% report high blood pressure
    • 7% in 2014
    • State rate: 21.6%
    • National rate: 24.9%
  • 9% report high cholesterol
    • 0% in 2014
    • State rate: 4.5%
    • National rate: 4.4%