Posted on 07/13/2006 9:08:13 AM PDT by BenLurkin
LONDON (AFP) - The tiny South Pacific Ocean archipelago of Vanuatu is the happiest country on Earth, according to a study published measuring people's wellbeing and their impact on the environment.
Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica and Panama complete the top five in the Happy Planet Index, compiled by the British think-tank New Economics Foundation (NEF).
The index combines life satisfaction, life expectancy and environmental footprint -- the amount of land required to sustain the population and absorb its energy consumption.
Zimbabwe came bottom of the 178 countries ranked, below second-worst performer Swaziland, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ukraine.
The Group of Eight industrial powers meet in Saint Petersburg this weekend but have not much to smile about, according to the index.
Italy came out best in 66th place, ahead of Germany (81), Japan (95), Britain (108), Canada (111), France (129), the United States (150) and Russia, in lowly 172nd place.
Andrew Simms, NEF's policy director, said the index "addresses the relative success or failure of countries in giving their citizens a good life while respecting the environmental resource limits on which all our lives depend."
Nic Marks, the head of NEF's centre for wellbeing, added: "It is clear that no single nation listed in the Happy Planet Index has got everything right.
"But the index does reveal patterns that show how we might better achieve long and happy lives for all, whilst living within our environmental means," he said, according to British daily The Guardian.
"The challenge is: can we learn the lessons and apply them?"
Island nations performed particularly well in the rankings. But Vanuatu, with a population of around 200,000, topped them all.
"Don't tell too many people, please," said Marke Lowen of Vanuatu Online, the republic's online newspaper.
"People are generally happy here because they are very satisfied with very little," he told The Guardian.
"This is not a consumer-driven society. Life here is about community and family and goodwill to other people. It's a place where you don't worry too much."
"The only things we fear are cyclones or earthquakes."
Pretty remarkable seeing how this place was supposed to have been sunk a decade ago by the melting polar caps.
Or maybe I've got the wrong island.
Colombia???? Now I know this survey is flawed. There is absolutely no way Colombia is one of the happiest places to live. Don't get me wrong, it is improving but many, many people do not even have running water or electricity in their homes.
I'd think the likelihood of either of these things happening would put a big damper on the whole Happiness Index thing.
It's all in how you define "happiness"... and "well-being"... and "impact"... Another meaningless list.
So happiness is based upon how small your "environmental footprint" is? That would have made Tom Hanks in Castaway the happiest man on the planet.
If only we could all be like Columbia and Panama, we'd all be better off!!!
" Happy Planet Index, compiled by the British think-tank New Economics Foundation (NEF). "
That's all I needed to know.
The study is worthless.
How many of the happy Vanuatuans spend their time generating meaningless studies, funded by their fellow Vanuatuans, purporting to reveal that others in far off lands are happier than they are?
...and still, everybody is trying to come here, legally or not.
Ya just can't figure people out, huh? /sarcasm
Got my eye on this one:
http://www.property.vu/residential_sale/Residential-Waterfront-Sales/06-alliance-realty-vanuatu-real-estate-and-property-sales-and-investment-unique-oceanside-opportunity.shtml
Thank you for the joke.
Clearly, the 'New Economics Foundation' is just the Old Communist Party.
Get them some MacDonalds and Old Navy stores. Raise their expectations.
((snear))
We're ranked 150? And those happy-go-lucky Saudis and Pakistanis rank higher? Apparently they didn't poll women in burqas. Or anyone trying to support a family, as the prosperous countries (Scandinavia- LOL) clump together at the bottom of the list.
From the article: Selected others: 17. Philippines; 23. Indonesia; 31. China; 32. Thailand; 44. Malaysia; 62. India; 64. Iceland; 70. Netherlands; 87. Spain; 88. Hong Kong; 89. Saudi Arabia; 99. Denmark; 112. Pakistan; 115. Norway; 119. Sweden; 123. Finland; 139. Australia; 154. UAE; 156. South Africa; 159. Kuwait; 166. Qatar.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.