Discovering the blue zones

Blue Zones was founded by Dan Buettner, a National Geographic Explorer and Fellow and Emmy-Award winning journalist. After an expedition to Okinawa, Japan, in 2000 to investigate reports of extraordinary longevity there, Buettner put together an exploration team of scientists and demographers with the support of National Geographic to investigate other regions of the world with stories of age-defying elders. Buettner and his Blue Zones team traveled the world to validate and research these claims, and to identify communities where people not only lived longer but also enjoyed a high quality of life in their old age. After analyzing demographic data, birth records, and interviewing centenarians, they identified five regions that stood out for their extraordinary longevity and vitality.

Buettner coined the term “blue zones” to describe these rare hotspots of exceptional, healthy longevity.

The name was inspired by the pioneering demographic work of Gianni Pes and Michel Poulain, who marked Sardinia’s long-lived mountainous villages with blue circles on a map. Dan partnered with Pes, Poulain, and other scientists to pinpoint other longevity hotspots around the globe. After validating the regions to be true blue zones areas, they focused on uncovering the shared lifestyle secrets that allow these communities to thrive.

Dan and the Blue Zones research team found that all blue zones cultures share nine specific lifestyle habits we call the Power 9®.

Dan’s National Geographic cover stories and books chronicling his expeditions have drawn worldwide media attention. Blue Zones research reshaped the global thinking on longevity science from the focus on genetic predisposition to lifestyle factors like plant‑slant eating, social connection, stress reduction, and community design long before they became mainstream public-health priorities.

Blue Zones now applies its original research and proven community transformation model to cities, counties, and campuses across the country to improve well-being at scale. Participating communities have seen double‑digit drops in obesity and smoking, and significant reductions in healthcare costs.

Blue Zones® is now a trademark of Blue Zones, LLC, and reflects the lifestyle and the environment of the world’s longest-lived people.