On April 9, UND’s COMM 430 class partnered with Blue Zones Project to host a wellness event on UND’s campus. The event’s goal was to bring awareness to the ways to honor your health as a UND student. The event, “Live by 9,” beckoned many participants from across campus to visit organizations such as Crisp & Green, the UND Wellness Center, Archives Coffee House, and Zen River Yoga, to name a few. Participants were encouraged to walk around and engage with each booth to ask questions and to enjoy the contributions from each company including snacks, stickers, bags, paper handouts, and more. A variety of individuals made the event possible. The students of the COMM 430 class, the Blue Zones Project members and the attendees were among a few of those who made the event thrive, giving a sense of community, health, and wellness to campus.
Alexandra Skime, Kathryn Wise, and Amanda Grochowski represented the Wellness Center with various backgrounds and expertise. Wise, the Work Well Coordinator at the Wellness Center, spoke of her excitement surrounding the event. “It’s exciting to provide all of the information to people that might not know as much about the Wellness Center,” she said. By having their booth, the Wellness Center was able to represent the university at the Live by 9 event, allowing participants to see all the services the Wellness Center has to offer and to also ask questions regarding their missions of health and wellness.
Jonna Gunnarson, a Communication major, Professional Sales and Leadership minor, and COMM 430 student, spoke of her appreciation for Blue Zone Project’s mission. “Their mission is very holistic and for the general good of everyone,” she said. “I think it’s good to bring onto campus at such a developmental time in our lives; it’s good to learn healthy habits.”
Kyra Younce, a Communication and Information Systems major, spoke of her ties to the UND Communication Club as one of the sponsors of the Live by 9 event. Younce explained, “one of the things they [Blue Zone Project] speak about is connecting, and that is really the main mission of our club as well,” she said. “We try to connect people with professionals and teach them communication skills.” One of the Blue Zone Project’s “Power 9 Principles” is “Connection.” By coming together for a shared mission, both organizations were able to share their messages of connection and outreach. Also representing the Communication Club, Halle Carpenter spoke of the energy that the event brought to campus. “The energy is great,” she said. “A lot of people are happy to be here, and you can they are passionate about the same mission.” The common mission amongst all attendees was wellness practices that can last a lifetime. All these missions fell under the Blue Zone Project’s “Power 9 Principles,” hence the event’s name.
A representative from the Blue Zone Project’s local chapter and the Engagement and Marketing Lead on Blue Zone Project, Whitney Miller, is one of three members that make up the local team. Miller speaks about the most prominent “Power 9 Principle” during the Live By 9 event being “Connection.” Miller stated, “I think you can feel it in the room and see that all the different organizations are here to support Blue Zones Project and really represent what that Power 9 means.” The event was a huge success and brought together both students and organizations, focused on wellness and connection.
Sadie Blace is a Dakota Student Section Editor. She can be reached at [email protected].
