Transcript THE SEATTLE AREA HAPPINESS INITIATIVE

The
Happiness
Initiative
A project of
Sustainable Seattle
www.sustainableseattle.org
Growth Mania
“In the near term, every
policy must be viewed
through a single
prism: Does it help
the economy
grow?”
--Indiana Senator Evan Bayh,
2010 election post-mortem in
The New York Times
What’s the Economy for, Anyway?
More stuff ?
or
A healthy,
happy, fair and
sustainable society?
THE PROBLEM WITH GDP
Gross Domestic Product is a
poor guide to well-being
It counts (as positive): Oil spills, cancer, divorce…etc.
It does not count: volunteering, taking care of friends and family,
unpaid work, exercise…etc.
We need new indicators of progress to replace
the
GDP
Bobby Kennedy on GDP
“It measures everything, in short, except
that which makes life worthwhile…”
Measuring happiness
instead of growth
“Gross National Happiness
is more important than
Gross National Product.”
Jigme Singye Wangchuk,
Fourth King of Bhutan,
1972
Bhutan’s nine domains
of happiness
Talking about happiness
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We can change the
conversation from
GDP to well-being or
happiness…as have
France
Canada
Brazil
United Kingdom…
Happiness is as American
as
Apple Pie
“The only orthodox object of the
institution of government is to
secure the greatest degree of
happiness possible to the general
mass of those associated under it.”
-- Thomas Jefferson
Lyndon Johnson’s “Great
Society” speech, 1964
“The purpose of protecting the life of our
nation and preserving the liberty of our
citizens is to pursue the happiness of our
people. Our success in that pursuit is the test
of our success as a nation…
Your imagination, your initiative, and your
indignation will determine whether we build
a society where progress is the servant of
our needs, or a society where old values
and new visions are buried under unbridled
growth.”
Gallup-Healthways rankings of
happiest countries--2010
1. Denmark
2. Finland
3. Norway
4. Sweden
5. The Netherlands
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11. United States
Unhappy America?
According to the Gallup-Healthways
World Poll, the United States Ranks:
(1 is best; 150 is worst)
69th in SADNESS
75th in ANGER
89th in ANXIETY
145th in STRESS
Lonely and Depressed
According to a 2010 TIME/AARP
study, the percentage of Americans
over 45 who are chronically lonely
rose from 20% to 35% during the past
ten years.
Americans consume 60 percent of
the world’s anti- depressants.
Why don’t we talk about this?
Unhealthy at any cost
The United States
spends nearly twice
as much as other
rich countries for
health care, yet we
rank:
49th in the world in life expectancy
45th in the world in infant mortality
2nd in the world in obesity
Our Economy is
Unsustainable
If everyone on Earth were to consume at
the level of Americans, we would need
FIVE PLANETS.
We can’t grow on like this.
Measuring Happiness:
The Greater Victoria WellBeing Survey
Take the Survey!
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Go to:
www.sustainableseattle.org
• It includes 150 questions and
takes about 25-30 minutes
• You get your results
immediately along with
national median results
Some Key Results
Material Well-Being
Satisfaction With Life
Overall Well-Being
Health
Positive Affect
Governance
Education
Environment
Time Balance
Community Participation
73
70
67
67
62
57
53
46
43
41
The Happiness Initiative
Goals:
• Gather well-being data
– Survey & Objective indicators
• Action for positive change.
– Individual
– Organization
– Policy
Happiness Initiative
key activities
• Partnerships
• Town Meetings
• Analysis and
Recommendations
• Actions
• Happiness Circles
• Duplication in other cities
College Partnerships
The Happiness Initiative can provide:
• On-line survey and analysis for students
• Referral code so colleges can see
aggregate scores
• Resources for classroom discussions
• Tool kit for conducting campus initiatives
Email us: [email protected]
Colleges Currently Using Survey
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Allegheny College
Amherst College
Antioch University, Seattle
Ball State University
Mount Holyoke
Spalding University
University of Washington
Western Kentucky University
Western Washington University
Pursuit of Happiness Day
Friday, April 13 is Pursuit of Happiness Day!
• Thomas Jefferson’s birthday
• First celebration will be in 2012
Will include:
• Campus teach-ins and celebrations
• Community events
• Large nationwide media outreach
For more information
contact:
John de Graaf, HI co-director,
Executive Director, Take Back Your
Time —
[email protected]
Laura Musikanski, HI co-director,
Executive Director, Sustainable
Seattle – [email protected]