BUCKS COUNTY − July 30, 2024 − State Senator Steve Santarsiero (D-10) and Bucks County Health Improvement Partnership (BCHIP) brought together hundreds of Bucks Area residents for three days of in-community events with the national Blue Zones organization, engaging community members in focus groups, keynote events and presentations as part of the assessment phase of the transformative project to improve wellness in the 10th Senate District.
“Blue Zones Ignite Bucks Area has the potential to bring our communities together and truly make a difference in people’s lives,” Sen. Santarsiero said during the keynote event Tuesday evening. “Forget the “good old days”– the good new days in the future can be great days. We haven’t come close to reaching our potential in this area, and this is one of those ways we can do that.”
Joined by the national team of experts from the Blue Zones organization, Senator Santarsiero and BCHIP Executive Director Kimberly Everett led windshield tours of the project area, highlighting opportunities to build on existing infrastructure and policies to improve the overall health of the community.
Hundreds gathered for keynote events at the Bristol Wharf and Bucks County Community College’s Newtown campus to learn more about Blue Zones Ignite Bucks Area and ask questions of the organizations experts on built environment, food systems, tobacco and alcohol, and people and places.
Senator Santarsiero continued, “The response has been overwhelming. Earlier this month we hosted a telephone town hall with thousands of people eager to listen in, learn more and ask questions. This week, with the Blue Zones team in-community, we were able to dive deeper, engaging people in immersive conversations about what is happening here on a daily basis and how we can work together to improve health outcomes, overall wellbeing and happiness for residents.”
Reflecting on his time in Bucks County, Blue Zones EVP Dan Buettner, Jr. said, “There’s best practice here, that was here long before we got there, to suggest we can build on our model and what Bucks is already doing, to create the next demonstration of a wellbeing transformation in America.”
The assessment phase will continue into the fall, at which time the Blue Zones organization will present recommendations for the potential to transform the 10th Senate District and the next phase of the project.
Blue Zones is based on 20 years of research and scientifically proven lessons of longevity, health and happiness, from the longest-living communities in the world. During the Ignite phase of the partnership, Blue Zones will assess the current state of our Bucks area community’s well-being through analysis of existing health and well-being data as well as engagement and education with local leaders and community members, culminating in recommendations for a full-scale transformation of our area to a Blue Zone.
Blue Zones Ignite Bucks Area includes: Bristol Township, Bristol Borough, Falls Township, Tullytown Borough, Morrisville Borough, Lower Makefield Township, Yardley Borough, Newtown Township, Newtown Borough, Upper Makefield Township, Solebury Township, New Hope Borough, Buckingham Township, Doylestown Township, Doylestown Borough, Plumstead Township, New Britain Township, New Britain Borough and Chalfont Borough.
