The character arc of Dan Buettner
A life drawn by Character Arc from the public record
Born on 18 June 1960 in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Between then and now sit a degree in 1983, Americastrek in 1986, Sovietrek in 1990, Africatrek in 1992, the first longevity expeditions in 2003, a National Geographic cover in 2005, The Blue Zones in 2008, a Netflix series in 2023 and three Daytime Emmy Awards in 2024. The line below draws the story so far, in order.
Tap the line to pluck it. Hover or tap any mark for its card. Drawn from the public record of his life; the sources are at the foot of the page.
Who is Dan Buettner?
Three continents by bicycle, then a longer question.
He took a degree in Spanish and literature at the University of St Thomas in Minnesota in 1983 and then did something very few graduates do: he got on a bicycle. Americastrek, in 1986, covered fifteen thousand five hundred and thirty six miles from Prudhoe Bay in Alaska to Tierra del Fuego in Argentina. Sovietrek, in 1990, covered twelve thousand eight hundred and eighty eight miles following the forty fifth parallel around the world. Africatrek, in 1992, covered eleven thousand eight hundred and eighty five miles from Tunisia to South Africa over eight months. All three are Guinness World Records.
In 2003 he started leading a different kind of expedition, to places where an unusual number of people reach very great age: Sardinia, Okinawa, a region of Costa Rica, and Loma Linda in California. He reported the findings in a National Geographic cover story in 2005 and published The Blue Zones in 2008.
The work since has been about moving from description to practice. He launched the Blue Zones Vitality Project in Albert Lea, Minnesota in 2008 with AARP, partnered with Healthways on the Blue Zones Project in 2010, and published The Blue Zones Solution in 2015 and The Blue Zones Kitchen in 2019. He co-produced and hosted the Netflix series Live to 100 in 2023, which won three Daytime Emmy Awards in 2024. The longevity claims have been questioned by other researchers, particularly over how reliable very old birth records are in some of the regions, which is worth knowing alongside the rest.
The moments
Dan Buettner's timeline.
The 1980s
A degree in Minnesota
Milestone. Spanish and literature, which turned out to be the right languages for the bicycle years.
Alaska to Argentina
Milestone, and it changed everything. Fifteen thousand miles, top of the world to the bottom, on a bicycle.
The 1990s
Around the world
Milestone, and it changed his direction. A line of latitude, followed all the way round.
Tunisia to South Africa
Milestone, and it changed his direction. Eight months, a continent, and a third world record.
The 2000s
More records, or a new question
Crossroads, decided.
The paths laid out: go looking for answers, taken, or keep riding. The blue zones work reached a National Geographic cover, four books, dozens of towns and three Emmy Awards.
The first expeditions
Milestone, and it changed everything. A different kind of expedition, to places where people reach very great age.
A National Geographic cover
Milestone, and it changed everything. The cover of National Geographic, and a phrase that entered the language.
The Blue Zones
Milestone, and it changed everything. A book and a town, in the same year. The second one is the interesting half.
The 2010s
The Blue Zones Project
Milestone, and it changed his direction. From describing places to redesigning them.
The Blue Zones Solution
Milestone, and it changed his direction. Two more books, moving from what he saw to what to do about it.
The 2020s
Live to 100
Milestone, and it changed everything. Three Emmy Awards, thirty seven years after the first bicycle record.
The line reaches today still adding to itself, which is why it is drawn now rather than at the end. What it has set moving is a set of towns that redesigned themselves around how people actually live, which is a stranger and more useful legacy than a diet book would have been.
What he wrote
Books by Dan Buettner
- 2008
The Blue Zones
Lessons for living longer from the people who have lived the longest. The book that named the idea.
- 2015
The Blue Zones Solution
Moving from describing the places to changing the one you already live in.
- 2019
The Blue Zones Kitchen
A hundred recipes drawn from the regions the earlier books describe.
Your turn
Every line draws a unique story.
His cycled three continents before the work he is now known for. Yours is already further along than you think, and drawing it takes about five minutes.
Dan Buettner: frequently asked questions
What people ask about his line.
What is Dan Buettner's character arc?
What are Dan Buettner's blue zones?
Has Dan Buettner's research been questioned?
What cycling records does Dan Buettner hold?
What is Live to 100 by Dan Buettner?
What is Dan Buettner's Blue Zones Project?
What books has Dan Buettner written?
Where does this timeline of Dan Buettner's life come from?
More character arcs
Lives that rhyme with his.
Sources
- Dan Buettner, English Wikipedia biography, filed under living people.
- Guinness World Records, Americastrek 1986, Sovietrek 1990 and Africatrek 1992.
- National Geographic, 2005 cover story, and the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, 2024 Daytime Emmy Awards.