Posts Tagged ‘Economics of Happiness’
From ‘Progress’ to an Economics of Happiness
If there’s one thing I’d love world leaders to think about in connection with the UN’s International Day of Happiness, it’s that their measure of progress actually goes up with unhappiness and unrest. GDP, or Gross Domestic Product, which is still used as the principal indicator for development and progress, simply measures the exchange of…
Read MoreCommunity-oriented life at human scale
The documentary Ancient Futures: Learning from Ladakh (John Page, Chris Breemen, Helena Norberg-Hodge & Eric Walton, 1993) provides an excellent introduction to the local, human scale traditions in Ladakh, and how local communities have been affected by the industrialised notion of “progress”. The observation that consumer culture as portrayed in advertisements and Western media appeals…
Read MoreConnecting over Soil
It’s no secret that there’s a divide between the global North and South. Most people know about the huge wealth gap between the industrialized and so-called “developing” worlds, and that rates of pollution, resource use, greenhouse gas emissions – and much more – vary widely between them. But there’s another gap, one that’s rarely discussed…
Read MoreDemocrats & Republicans Uniting to Oppose Corporate Rule?!
There is a huge political divide between the Democrat Party’s leadership and its local voters. There is an equally huge political divide between the Republican Party’s leadership and its local voters. In a nutshell, the divide can be summed up like this. Voters from across the political spectrum oppose global corporate trade treaties like NAFTA…
Read MoreMental Health and Globalization: An Alternative Theory on the Mental Health Crisis
“It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a sick society.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti I have a secret that I usually keep locked up inside of myself, hidden from even those who know me well: I suffer from depression. At times it is a deep, bottomless depression, an intense loneliness, serious end-of-the-world-thoughts…
Read MoreBig Picture Activism
This piece is excerpted from Localization: Essential Steps to an Economics of Happiness, a new publication from Local Futures. Despite the countless grassroots projects already under way, the global economic juggernaut can seem too powerful to stop. But because more and more of us are becoming aware of how disastrous the global economy is…
Read MoreFrom Global to Local in India
“The Future is Fast. We are Faster.” This ubiquitous billboard for a tech company neatly captures the zeitgeist in modern-day Bangalore, and rapidly-urbanizing India generally. Today, Bangalore’s erstwhile appellation as India‘s ‘garden city’ seems sadly anachronistic. To arrive at the Visthar Academy of Justice and Peace Studies on the outskirts of Bangalore – where we…
Read MoreThe Easiest Way to Tackle Climate Change
Hopes were high as our leaders gathered in Durban late last year. But another round of prevarication, indecision, postponement and finally outright refusal to meet carbon targets has certainly left those of us concerned about climate change feeling very discouraged. Yet not surprised. Since the very first attempts at addressing carbon emissions, our governments have…
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