Editorials

Bhutan was the first country in the world to pursue happiness as a state policy. The Bhutanese concept of happiness is deeper than the common meaning of happiness in industrialized countries. The philosophy of gross national happi-ness has several dimensions: it is holistic, recognizing people’s spiritual, material, physical or social needs; it emphasizes balanced progress; it views happiness as a collective phenomenon; it is both ecologically sustainable, pursuing well-being for both current and future gen-erations, and equitable, achieving a fair and reasonable distribution of well-being among people.1 Since the early 1970s, Bhutan has promoted population well-being over material development. Hap-piness, health and well-being are closely related.2,3 Good health is often considered the single most important determinant of well-being;1,2 conversely, adverse health changes have lasting and negative effects on well-being.4 In industrialized countries, happi-ness is often linked with material con-sumption. A basic level of material wealth is necessary, but citizens of richer and more technologically advanced countries are not necessarily the happiest.5 Along with economic growth, there is a need to measure well-being and ecological sus-tainability to reflect the overall progress of nations and of humankind.6 Given increasing evidence that the current trajectory of human development is not sustainable, there is an urgent need for more inclusive measures of progress than traditional economic indicators such as gross domestic product.7 Since the global recession of 2008– 2009, the importance of well-being has gained political momentum – driven, in part, by a perception that the poorest and most vulnerable members of society are paying the price for excessive greed and risk-taking in the financial sector. In Europe, a shift in emphasis from measuring economic production to measuring people’s well-being has been recommended.7,8 Following a resolution proposed by Bhutan, the United Nations convened a high level meeting at whic