The first edition of the Blue Zone Festival took place in Zwolle. The festival had a packed programme but Shifting Paradigms invited participants to slow down and embark on a journey to a community of their own imagination which is integrated into its natural surroundings in every aspect. A second session explored our role now, in relation to our own future and that of generations to come.
In June 2024 Zwolle (Netherlands) hosted the first edition of the Blue Zone Festival. Blue zones are places where people live healthier and longer than anywhere else. Examples are Okinawa (Japan), Sardinia (Italy), Nicoya (Costa Rica), Ikaria (Greece) and Loma Linda (California). Elements which global Blue Zones have in common relate to:
- A sense of purpose: why do you get out of bed in the morning?
- Belonging, the notion of being part of something larger and dedicating time to explore and develop that notion,
- Putting loved ones first and taking care of the elderly while investing in those younger than you are (Jelmer: this is my own interpretation of a text which was originally centred around the traditional family),
- Right tribe: you’re part of a community which supports healthy behaviours,
- Alcohol: it seems that moderate, social drinkers outlive non-drinkers,
- Plant-based diets: beans are the cornerstone of a healthy diet but you can eat meat once a week,
- 80% rule: stop eating when your stomach is 80% full,
- Load shedding: cherish your routines to reduce stress. Stress causes chronic inflammation and is associated with every major age-related disease.
- Move naturally: stop pumping iron in the gym but make sure your environment encourages natural movement without thinking, let alone paying, for it.
At the festival Shifting Paradigms hosted two sessions:
- True values: In this session you will re-imagine your own surroundings, environment, society and underlying systems for shelter and nutrition, based on our own true values and, perhaps, desires.
- The long view: While walking from the path of our ancestors into the future you will ask yourselves: which elements from the past do I want to preserve and pass on to future generations, and what role can I assume now and here?
The next edition of the Blue Zone Festival will take place on 15 May 2024, somewhere in Utrecht province.
