The Blue Zones Project, in partnership with Washington’s Most Steer Clear campaign, and the PLU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, is launching a community-wide initiative to promote responsible decision-making among Pacific Lutheran University students and community members. The campaign encourages student athletes as leaders to ‘steer clear’ of impaired driving, reinforcing their commitment to protecting their peers and upholding the values they represent.
Ultimately the Steer Clear campaign’s goal is to empower PLU students to champion a culture of safety, responsibility, and respect across campus. We hope this helps to influence the broader Parkland-Spanaway community to also make these positive changes. According to Queena Tupou, the Executive Director of Blues Zones Project Parkland-Spanaway, “PLU athletes are leading by example, reminding us that protecting life begins with everyday choices. By steering clear of drinking and driving, we’re not just preventing tragedy, we’re choosing a future where every young person has the chance to grow older, to thrive, and to come home.”
Blue Zones Project Parkland-Spanaway was founded in partnership with Virginia Mason Franciscan Health, MultiCare and Pierce County in 2023. It is one of 70 communities across North America that are shadowing the results from the 2002 Blue Zones research which discovered people lived measurably better, longer in five areas around the world. In these five areas—dubbed “blue zones”—researchers found residents reached the age of 100 at a rate 10 times higher than in the United States.
“Parkland and Spanaway have some of the lowest life expectancies in Pierce County, and that’s exactly why Blue Zones Project is here to help our community live longer, healthier, and safer lives,” said Tupou.
With engaging social media content that celebrates the student leaders and their voices, the PLU Steer Clear campaign will discourage any form of impaired driving and strengthen the overall sense of pride in Parkland and Spanaway.
With their three pillars, policy, people and place, Blue Zones Project Parkland-Spanaway is working to make the healthy choice the easy choice. Currently under a four-year project plan, BZP Parkland-Spanaway will be completed in May of 2027.
For more information – Blue Zones Project
By Lynn Castle