Tag Archives: Blue Zones

Blue Zones Project Lunch and Learn set for June 16 at UNI

The University of Northern Iowa’s College of Business Administration and Human Resource Services will host the Blue Zones Project Lunch and Learn on Thursday, June 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Curris Business Building, Room 3. This event is free to Cedar Valley business leaders, HR professionals and wellness champions who are, or who are working to become, Blue Zones Designated Worksites. A light lunch will be served as UNI representatives discuss best practices for promoting the benefits of healthy living.

A healthier workforce is more productive and helps control corporate health care costs. This lunch and learn will discuss the economical benefits of employee well-being and share tips on how organizations can promote a more healthy lifestyle in the workplace. Learn how the College of Business Administration is exposing business students to stress management and personal well-being techniques through their Professional Readiness Program (PRP), and hear from a panel of UNI representatives on how the Blue Zones’ “Power 9” principles continue to help people live longer, healthier and happier lives.

“Adopting a healthy lifestyle starts early. It’s our obligation as educators to teach future business leaders how to manage stress and implement healthy habits so they can go on to promote healthy best practices in their own organizations,” said Katie Hillyer, director of professional readiness at UNI’s College of Business Administration.

Therese Callaghan will give a short introduction on how Human Resource Services was instrumental in acquiring Designated Worksite status for UNI in 2012. Strength and conditioning coach Jed Smith will focus on “UNI Strength in Community,” including details on the construction of state-of-the-art exercise stations along local bike trails. Ronelle Langley from the College of Business Administration will share how the 2016 Gallup-Healthways well-being study underscores the importance of purpose for people in the Cedar Valley, and Lisa Krausman from UNI Food Services will discuss how the work environment can affect healthy eating habits.

To RSVP and arrange for a parking pass, contact jon.crews3@gmail.com

Blue Zones Project

620 Mulberry Street

Waterloo, IA 50703

Tel: (319) 287-8177

www.bluezonesproject.com

WATERLOO, IOWA, NAMED A CERTIFIED BLUE ZONE COMMUNITY

Local Organizations and Community Leaders Implement a Wide Range of Environmental Improvements to Enhance the Well-Being of Residents and Achieve Community Transformation

Waterloo, Iowa (Sept. 10, 2014) — Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Healthways (NASDAQ: HWAY) and Blue Zones, LLC, today announced that Waterloo, Iowa, has been named a certified Blue Zones Community^®. Certification recognizes Waterloo’s community transformation through successful implementation of the Blue Zones Project^®, a first-of-its-kind population health program that brings the world’s best practices in food policy, built environment, purpose and social networking to participating cities.

The community is invited to share in this success at a certification celebration on Thursday, September 25, 2014. The celebration will take place at the Cedar Valley SportsPlex, with an announcement taking place at 4:30 p.m.

Brought to Iowa through an innovative sponsorship by Wellmark in collaboration with Healthways and Blue Zones, the Blue Zones Project encourages all communities in the state to change their built environments to make the healthy choice the easy choice. The Blue Zones Project is the centerpiece of the Healthiest State Initiative, designed to make Iowa the healthiest state by 2016.

Community leaders, volunteers and organizations throughout Waterloo have been working to reach this milestone since May 2012, when the community was named one of the first Blue Zones Project demonstration sites in Iowa. As a result of its efforts, Waterloo can celebrate the following outcomes:

The Complete Streets policy passed by city council in 2013 was named one of the top policies in the country by Smart Growth America.

The city adopted policies to support healthy food, beverages and vending at city-sponsored youth sporting events. Sales have remained consistent since the policies were adopted.
Lou Henry, Orange, Kittrell, and Irving Elementary Schools made healthy choices easier for students through Blue Zones challenge curriculum and a new lunchroom design.
- At one school fourth and fifth grade students used the Blue Zones challenge to chart fruit and vegetable consumption as a mathematics assignment. Students reported a 33 percent increase in consumption of fruits and vegetables and a 50 percent increase in physical activity when comparing week one to week four.
- Lou Henry experienced a 15 percent increase in the consumption of fruits and vegetables after making simple changes to its lunchroom design, such as positioning fruits and vegetables more prominently.
Healthier dining options are now offered in 12 Blue Zones Restaurants^®, including smaller portions and lower-calorie desserts. Cu Restaurant has seen a 60 percent increase in customers splitting plates and a 50 percent increase in lunchtime salad sales since servers have begun promoting those options, both suggestions from the Blue Zones Restaurant pledge.

From 2012 to 2013, 88 percent of employees at Bertch Cabinet Manufacturing improved their health risk factors substantially, and employees collectively lost more than 1,660 pounds.

New walking paths at local worksites, including Allen Memorial Hospital, John Deere Engine Works, Tyson, Veridian Credit Union and Hawkeye Community College, are encouraging employees to move naturally throughout the day.

More than 450 residents participated in Walking Moai groups to expand their social networks in small-group settings while getting exercise.

“The Blue Zones Project has opened many doors of opportunity for Waterloo’s citizenry to live healthier, happier, longer lives,” said Waterloo Mayor Buck Clark.

“In supporting a commitment to healthy environmental changes, Waterloo has made a wise investment in its future, and I am thrilled to recognize the community’s achievements,” said Blue Zones founder Dan Buettner.

Waterloo achieved Blue Zones Community status after reaching the following key milestones designed to improve the community’s well-being, all of which are required improvement goals for Blue Zones Project demonstration communities seeking certification:

50 percent of the top 20 identified worksites became designated Blue Zones Worksites^®.
25 percent of schools became designated Blue Zones Schools^®.
25 percent of restaurants became designated Blue Zones Restaurants.
25 percent of grocery stores became designated Blue Zones Grocery Stores^®.
20 percent of citizens committed to Blue Zones Project and completed at least one well-being improvement action.
Waterloo successfully completed the Blue Zones Community Policy^® pledge, which requires the passing of local policies to promote Blue Zones Project initiatives. Examples in Waterloo include the newly passed Complete Streets policy and healthy vending policy.

“Waterloo has embraced the philosophy of creating well-being for its citizens,” said Laura Jackson, Wellmark executive vice president. “Becoming a certified Blue Zones Community required a tremendous commitment and effort from the entire community, and we are proud of the example Waterloo has set for other Iowa communities.”

“As one of the largest and most diverse Blue Zones Project communities in Iowa, the progress made by Waterloo has been particularly exciting,” said Ben R. Leedle, Jr., Healthways president and chief executive officer. “Waterloo has clearly demonstrated its dedication to improved well-being and is highly deserving of Blue Zones Community certification. The successful promotion of healthier food options at schools and youth sporting events is particularly encouraging, as the adoption of healthy habits at a young age greatly improves the odds of higher well-being in the future.”

Fifteen Iowa communities are part of Blue Zones Project and are receiving assistance from experts to develop and implement a Blueprint for making permanent environmental, social and policy changes that transition people into healthier behaviors that can lead to longer, happier lives. Five of the communities have achieved Blue Zones Project Community certification to date. For more information, please visit www.bluezonesproject.com.

About Wellmark

Wellmark, Inc. (www.wellmark.com) does business as Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa. Wellmark and its subsidiaries and affiliated companies, including Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of South Dakota and Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa, Inc., insure or pay health benefit claims for more than 2 million members in Iowa and South Dakota. Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa, Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of South Dakota, and Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa, Inc. are independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

About Blue Zones

Blue Zones employs evidence-based ways to help people live longer, better. The Company’s work is rooted in the New York Times best-selling books The Blue Zones and Thrive – both published by National Geographic books. In 2009, Blue Zones applied the tenets of the books to Albert Lea, MN and successfully raised life expectancy and lowered health care costs for city workers by 40%. Blue Zones takes a systematic, environmental approach to well-being, which focuses on optimizing policy, building design, social networks, and the built environment. The Blue Zones Project is based on this innovative approach. For more information, visit www.bluezones.com.

About Healthways

Healthways (NASDAQ: HWAY) is the largest independent global provider of well-being improvement solutions. Dedicated to creating a healthier world one person at a time, the Company uses the science of behavior change to produce and measure positive change in well-being for our customers, which include employers, integrated health systems, hospitals, physicians, health plans, communities and government entities. We provide highly specific and personalized support for each individual and their team of experts to optimize each participant’s health and productivity and to reduce health-related costs. Results are achieved by addressing longitudinal health risks and care needs of everyone in a given population. The Company has scaled its proprietary technology infrastructure and delivery capabilities developed over 30 years and now serves approximately 68 million people on four continents. Learn more at www.healthways.com.

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Blue Zones Project

620 Mulberry Street

Waterloo, IA 50703

Tel: (319) 287-8177

www.bluezonesproject.com

CEDAR FALLS ACHIEVES CERTIFIED BLUE ZONES COMMUNITY STATUS

City Successfully Implements Wide Range of Improvements to Achieve Higher Well-Being

Cedar Falls, Iowa – January 22, 2014 – Wellmark^® Blue Cross^®and Blue Shield^®, Healthways (NASDAQ: HWAY) and Blue Zones, LLC, today announced that Cedar Falls, Iowa, has been named a certified Blue Zones Community^®. Certification recognizes Cedar Falls’ successful implementation of the Blue Zones Project^®, a first-of-its-kind population health program that focuses on making long-lasting upgrades to the living environment. It brings the world’s best practices in food policy, built environment, purpose and social networking to participating cities.

Community leaders, volunteers and organizations throughout Cedar Falls have been working to reach this milestone since May 2012, when the community was named one of the first Blue Zones Project demonstration sites in Iowa. As a result of their efforts, Cedar Falls can celebrate the following outcomes:

Completion of a new pedestrian and bicycle bridge, Mayor’s Bridge, across Highway 58, connecting the industrial park, where approximately 7,000 people work, with the approximately 5,000 residents who live on the other side of the bridge.
Approximately $500,000 spent to expand sidewalks and trails, connecting more of the community than ever before. New sidewalks were completed along Angie Drive from 3rd Street to Crescent Drive, making it safer for students to walk to and from school.
Cedar Falls Community Schools earned a second Physical Education Program Grant valued at $1.3 million in part through its implementation of Blue Zones Project principles and other initiatives.
Local businesses increased their revenue by adopting Blue Zones Project principles. For example, the Hy-Vee College Square location noted an increase in sales of healthy items:

Healthy beverage sales associated with Blue Zones Project checkout lanes increased by 4,840 units, or 122%, in a three-month period.
Produce sales increased by 15.8%, with weekly sales of fruits and vegetables sold at the salad bar increasing up to 25%.

The University of Northern Iowa increased the number of water stations on campus from two to 45, with more than 350,000 water servings dispensed during the 2013 fall semester. Local employer John Deere PEC installed three new stations and has dispensed 86,000 servings.
Cedar Falls in collaboration with Waterloo saw more than 9,500 residents volunteer in 2013, an increase of 700 volunteers from 2012. The volunteers contributed more than 49,000 volunteer hours.

“Cedar Falls has enjoyed excellent economic performance in the last year, including a reduction in unemployment to less than 3 percent, the creation of more than 200 new jobs – many of them high tech, nearly $80 million in building permits and the sale price of single family housing up 8.6 percent. We feel strongly that this performance trend will only be enhanced by the continued Blue Zones Project work in Cedar Falls. A healthier community makes us a more attractive place to live and work,” said Cedar Falls Mayor Jon Crews.

“Cedar Falls is the consummate example that an American city, given the right tools, can dramatically increase its own quality of life by taking an environmental approach to well-being improvement,” said Blue Zones founder Dan Buettner.

All community members are invited to celebrate the success, hear from leaders in the community, and recognize the hard work completed towards improved well-being in a Certification Celebration:

Thursday, January 30

4:30 p.m. – 6:00p.m. (Program at 5 p.m.)

Cedar Falls Community Center

528 Main St.

RSVP: BlueZonesProject.com/events

All day Thursday, Jan. 30: “Better with Blue Zones Project Day” – wear your Blue Zones Project t-shirt or anything blue to celebrate!

Cedar Falls achieved Blue Zones Community status after the city made well-being improvements across the community, reaching the following key milestones:

50% of the top 20 identified worksites became designated Blue Zones Worksites^®.
25% of schools became designated Blue Zones Schools^®.
25% of restaurants became designated Blue Zones Restaurants^®.
25% of grocery stores became designated Blue Zones Grocery Stores^®.
20% of citizens committed to the Blue Zones Project and completed at least one well-being improvement action.
The community successfully completed the Blue Zones Community Policy^® bundle.

“Cedar Falls has done a tremendous amount of work to transform their community and make living healthy a way of life,” said Laura Jackson, Wellmark executive vice president. “This achievement is no small task. Cedar Falls should be commended for leading and inspiring other Iowa communities to take care of their citizens now and into the future.”

The Blue Zones Project is the centerpiece of the Healthiest State Initiative, designed to make Iowa the healthiest state by 2016. This status is measured by the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index^® (WBI), the first-ever daily assessment of U.S. residents’ health and well-being. Brought to Iowa through an innovative sponsorship by Wellmark in collaboration with Healthways and Blue Zones, the Blue Zones Project initiative encourages all Iowa communities to change their built environments to make the healthy choice the easy choice.

While Cedar Falls has one of the highest WBI scores in the country, the community showed an increase in well-being from 2012 to 2013 of nearly one point. Each point in well-being improvement equates to a statistically significant decrease in the likelihood of hospital admission and emergency room visits.

For a community, the achievement of higher well-being for its citizens yields competitive advantage for economic development and job creation. For employers, it means greater productivity and better health in the workforce and dependent families, resulting in better business performance. For individuals, it simply means living well, longer.

“Clearly, Cedar Falls has demonstrated its dedication to improved well-being and is well deserving of Blue Zones Community certification,” said Ben R. Leedle, Jr., Healthways president and chief executive officer. “The policies and programs implemented in the community have already resulted in immediate, tangible benefits, and the Blue Zones Project will also lead to sustained, long-term well-being transformation for individuals as well as the broader Cedar Falls community.”

Fifteen Iowa communities are currently part of the Blue Zones Project and are positively influencing statewide WBI measurement outcomes to date. For more information please visit www.bluezonesproject.com.

About Wellmark

About Blue Zones

About Healthways

Healthways (NASDAQ: HWAY) is the largest independent global provider of well-being improvement solutions. Dedicated to creating a healthier world one person at a time, the Company uses the science of behavior change to produce and measure positive change in well-being for our customers, which include employers, integrated health systems, hospitals, physicians, health plans, communities and government entities. We provide highly specific and personalized support for each individual and their team of experts to optimize each participant’s health and productivity and to reduce health-related costs. Results are achieved by addressing longitudinal health risks and care needs of everyone in a given population. The Company has scaled its proprietary technology infrastructure and delivery capabilities developed over 30 years and now serves approximately 45 million people on four continents. Learn more at www.healthways.com.

Learn more about us here:

www.bluezonesproject.com

www.healthways.com

Take the Pledge today at www.bluezonesproject.com

Investor Kaplan University’s Cedar Falls Campus Receives Blue Zones Designation

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa, June 10, 2013—The Kaplan University-Cedar Falls campus has been designated a Blue Zones worksite by the Cedar Falls Blue Zones Project, a community wellness initiative that recognizes the steps taken by local employers to create healthier and happier work environments for employees. In a ceremony held Monday at the school’s campus, Kaplan University-Cedar Falls Campus President Gwen Bramlet-Hecker was presented with an official certificate of the designation.

“Kaplan University-Cedar Falls is honored to be a Blue Zones worksite,” said Bramlet-Hecker. “Because the Blue Zones principles are in alignment with our own values, we feel that the designation is a great opportunity for us to expand on existing efforts to help our employees have a more fulfilling work experience.”

The Blue Zones designation requires both employer and employee participation in activities that promote overall physical, emotional and social health. Employers implement a series of “well-being actions” that enhance work environments, while employees make personal pledges to commit to at least one of them.

In keeping with the Blue Zones commitment, the staff at Kaplan University-Cedar Falls has formed an internal wellness committee that schedules monthly wellness activities for employees. The committee also promotes events such as nutritional potlucks and community walk/run marathons.

Sponsored by Healthways, the Blue Zones Project was developed based on principles devised by Dan Buettner, National Geographic explorer and author of the book, “The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who’ve Lived the Longest.”

WESTERN HOME COMMUNITIES RECEIVE BLUE ZONES WORKSITE DESIGNATION

Cedar Falls – Instituting workplace exercise classes, stocking vending machines with healthier options and starting lunchtime walking groups helped Western Home Communities become a designated Blue Zones Worksite™ in May.

“We’re in the business of taking care of people, and we’ve always maintained that we must take care of ourselves so we can do that job well,” explains CEO Kris Hansen, who leads the non-profit organization of 500 employees. “The Blue Zones Project™ provided a terrific way to engage our employees toward that goal.”

More than 25% of employees completed a pledge action of their own choosing, designed to nudge them toward improved well-being. Those actions ranged from getting a bicycle or a dog, to attending a purpose workshop or regular church services.

The work toward becoming a certified Blue Zones worksite at Western Home Communities coincided with the hiring of a wellness coordinator, Amanda Lynch, who implemented a regular schedule of yoga and circuit exercise classes for employees, along with lunchtime walking groups and personal coaching.

Lynch and members of the dining services team also offer regular healthy cooking classes for employees of the continuing care retirement community that serves more than 800 residents.

Among the special events planned by the wellness team during the worksite certification process included an intuitive eating workshop and a meal featuring Blue Zones-approved foods. Efforts like that will continue.

“What I love about the Blue Zones Project is its focus on overall well-being, not just physical health,” Lynch explains. “It’s a perfect fit at Western Home Communities because we encourage our employees and our residents to strive for emotional, spiritual, social and intellectual wellness, too.”

Western Home Communities is the tenth of the designated Top 20 employers in Cedar Falls to become a designated Blue Zones Worksite. That fulfills the worksite requirement and puts the Blue Zones Project in Cedar Falls one step closer to its designation as a Blue Zones Community.

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