In the Toronto Star
Lynda Hurst had a thoughtful piece on happiness in Sunday’s Toronto Star. My favorite bit:
Since 1972, the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan has been trying to replace the GDP with the GNH, Gross National Happiness. Material well-being is only one component of well-being, it explained. “That doesn’t ensure that you’re at peace with your environment and in harmony with each other.”
Sounds good. But as public policy, has it created peace and harmony?
In 1990, Bhutan expelled 100,000 people because they weren’t ethnically indigenous, a move that would have cut deeply into the traditional GDP. But Bhutan insists the happiness levels of its people haven’t been affected. The remaining people, that is.
Should other governments be emulating Bhutan (minus the mass expulsions)?
Sweet.
Read the whole thing, all the way to the end, or you’ll miss the part where I’m quoted.
[Update: Now with link to article!]
3 Comments so far
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Can you include a link to the article?
That is an excellent idea…
Super posting, many thanks!
What does counting or measuring relative indexes of happiness achieve? So what?
No doubt they neglected to survey the expelled indigenous people. The people left probably benefited from the expelled people’s losses.
Isn’t the real question and concern, what can we all do to be happier? That’s lost in these studies.
Thanks again for great commentary.
Michele Moore
HappinessBlog.com