Slogan about Gross National Happiness in Thimphu's School of Traditional Arts.
Gross National Happiness (also known by the acronym: GNH) is a philosophy that guides the government of Bhutan.
It includes an index which is used to measure the collective happiness
and well-being of a population. Gross National Happiness is instituted
as the goal of the government of Bhutan in the Constitution of Bhutan, enacted on 18 July 2008.
The term Gross National Happiness was coined in 1972 during an interview by a British journalist for the Financial Times at Bombay airport when the then king of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, said "Gross National Happiness is more important than Gross National Product."
In 2011, The UN General Assembly passed Resolution "Happiness:
towards a holistic approach to development" urging member nations to
follow the example of Bhutan and measure happiness and well-being and
calling happiness a "fundamental human goal."
In 2012, Bhutan's Prime Minister Jigme Thinley and the Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon of the United Nations convened the High Level Meeting: Well-being and Happiness: Defining a New Economic Paradigm to encourage the spread of Bhutan's GNH philosophy. At the High Level meeting, the first World Happiness Report
was issued. Shortly after the High Level meeting, 20 March was
declared to be International Day of Happiness by the UN in 2012 with
resolution 66/28.
Bhutan's Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay proclaimed a preference for focus on more concrete goals instead of promoting GNH when he took office, but subsequently has protected the GNH of his country and promoted the concept internationally. Other Bhutanese officials also promote the spread of GNH at the UN and internationally.
GNH Defined
GNH is distinguishable from Gross Domestic Product
by valuing collective happiness as the goal of governance, by
emphasizing harmony with nature and traditional values as expressed in
the 9 domains of happiness and 4 pillars of GNH. The four pillars of GNH's are 1) sustainable and equitable socio-economic development; 2) environmental conservation; 3) preservation and promotion of culture; and 4) good governance.
The nine domains of GNH are psychological well-being, health, time
use, education, cultural diversity and resilience, good governance,
community vitality, ecological diversity and resilience, and living
standards. Each domain is composed of subjective (survey-based) and objective indicators. The domains weigh equally but the indicators within each domain differ by weight.
Implementation of GNH in Bhutan
The Gross National Happiness Commission is charged with implementing GNH in Bhutan.
The GNH Commission is composed of the Secretaries each of the
ministries of the government, the Prime Minister, and the Secretary of
the GNH Commission.
The GNH Commission's tasks include conceiving and implementing the
nation's 5-year plan and promulgating policies. The GNH Index is used to
measure the happiness and well-being of Bhutan's population. A GNH
Policy Screening Tool and a GNH Project Screening Tool is used by the GNH commission to determine whether to pass policies or implement projects.
The GNH Screening tools used by the Bhutanese GNH Commission for
anticipating the impact of policy initiatives upon the levels of GNH in
Bhutan.
In 2008, the first GNH survey was conducted. It was followed by a second one in 2010. The third nationwide survey was conducted in 2015. The GNH survey covers all twenty districts (Dzonkhag) and results are reported for varying demographic factors such as gender, age, abode, and occupation.
The first GNH surveys consisted of long questionnaires that polled the
citizens about living conditions and religious behavior, including
questions about the times a person prayed in a day and other Karma
indicators. It took several hours to complete one questionnaire. Later
rounds of the GNH Index were shortened, but the survey retained the
religious behavioral indicators.
The Bhutan GNH Index was developed by the Centre for Bhutan Studies
with the help of the researchers from Oxford University researchers to
help measure the progress of Bhutanese society. The Index function was
based on Alkire & Foster method of 2011. After the creation of the national GNH Index, the government used the metric to measure national progress and inform policy.
The Bhutan GNH Index is considered to measure societal progress similarly to other models such as the Gross National Well-being of 2005, the OECD Better Life Index of 2011, and SPI Social Progress Index
of 2013. One distinguishing feature of Bhutan GNH Index from the other
models is that the other models are designed for secular governments and
do not include religious behavior measurement components.
The data is used to compare the happiness between different groups of citizens, and changes over time.
According to the World Happiness Report 2018, Bhutan is 97th out of 156 countries.
Spread of GNH Outside of Bhutan
In Victoria, British Columbia, Canada,
a shortened version of Bhutan's GNH survey was used by the local
government, local foundations and governmental agencies under the
leadership of Martha and Michael Pennock to assess the population of
Victoria.
In the state of São Paulo, Brazil, Susan Andrews, through her organization Future Vision Ecological Park, used a version of Bhutan's GNH at a community level in some cities.
In Seattle, Washington, United States,
a version of the GNH Index was used by the Seattle City Council and
Sustainable Seattle to assess the happiness and well-being of the
Seattle Area population. Other cities and areas in North America, including Eau Claire, Wisconsin, Creston, British Columbia and the U.S. state of Vermont, also used a version of the GNH Index.
At the University of Oregon, United States, a behavioral model of GNH based on the use of positive and negative words in social network status updates was developed by Adam Kramer.
In 2016, Thailand launched its own GNH center.
The former king of Thailand, Bhumibol Adulyadej, was a close friend of
King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, and conceived the similar philosophy of Sufficiency Economy.
In the Philippines, the concept of GNH has been lauded by various personalities, notably Philippine senator and UN Global Champion for Resilience Loren Legarda, and former environment minister Gina Lopez.
Bills have been filed in the Philippine Senate and House of
Representatives in support of Gross National Happiness in the
Philippines. Additionally, Executive Director of Bhutan’s GNH Center,
Dr. Saamdu Chetri, has been invited by high-level officials in the
Philippines for a GNH Forum.
Many other cities and governments have undertaken efforts to measure happiness and well-being (also termed "Beyond GDP")
since the High Level Meeting in 2012, but have not used versions of
Bhutan's GNH index. Among these include the national governments of the United Kingdom's Office of National Statistics and the United Arab Emirates, and cities including Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, and Bristol, United Kingdom. Also a number of companies which are implementing sustainability practices in business have been inspired by GNH.
Gross National Happiness is also promoted in the United States by a nonprofit organization, Gross National Happiness USA.
Headquartered in Vermont, GNHUSA is a 501c(3) tax-exempt non-profit
organization with a mission to increase personal happiness and the
collective wellbeing by changing how the United States measure their
progress and success. GNHUSA was founded after Linda Wheatley of
Montpelier, Vermont, attended the 2008 Annual Gross National Happiness
Research Conference in Thimphu, Bhutan. Wheatley returned to Vermont
determined to introduce the little-known GNH concepts to the general
public in the U.S. After establishing the nonprofit in the spring of
2009, representatives of the group attended the fifth international GNH
research conference in Brazil in November 2009 and, in June 2010, hosted
the first US-based conference on Gross National Happiness and other
alternative indicators, at Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont. In
May 2012, GNHUSA with co-sponsors organized Measure What Matters, a
conference building a collaborative of data experts in Vermont. The
state of Vermont's Governor declared April 13 (President Jefferson’s
birthday) “Pursuit of Happiness Day,” and became the first state to pass
legislation enabling development of alternative indicators and to
assist in making policy. GNHUSA collaborates with the Vermont Data
Center to perform a periodic study of well-being in the state,
as a pilot for other states and municipalities. The organization also
collaborates closely with the Happiness Alliance in collecting online
GNH data, based on the domain of happiness developed by Bhutan. In
2017, GNHUSA initiated the process of establishing chapters in all 50
states to work with local governments and institutions on well-being
initiatives, beginning with Wisconsin and North Carolina.
The organization also promotes the U.N.-designated International
Happiness Day (March 20) as an opportunity to discuss the concepts of
well-being with others at Happiness Dinners across the country.
From August 25, 2012 to the present, GNHUSA has been carrying out a nationwide action research project, The Happiness Walk,
carried out by GNHUSA board members and supporters. On the first leg,
two GNHUSA board members walked 594 miles, from Vermont to Washington
DC; the Walk most recently completed a leg from Santa Monica, CA to the
Bay Area, with a side trip to Hawaii, and resumed March 1, 2018, walking
from Petaluma CA to Seattle, Washington, on the 13th leg of the
journey. Along the way, Walkers perform audio and video interviews and
collect survey responses, introducing the concept of GNH and amassing
data that will assist them in tailoring the GNH domains and indicators
to American culture.
GNHUSA also posts and promotes a Charter for Happiness which, as of May 7, 2018, has 469 signatories.
Criticism
GNH has been described by critics as a propaganda tool used by the Bhutanese government to distract from ethnic cleansing and human rights abuses it has committed.
Bhutanese democratic government began in 2008. Before that time the government practiced massive ethnic cleansing of non-Buddhist population of ethnic Nepalese of Hindu faith in the name of GNH cultural preservation. The NGO Human Rights Watch documented the events. According to Human Rights Watch, "Over 100,000 or 1/6 of the population of Bhutan of Nepalese origin and Hindu faith were expelled from the country because they would not integrate with Bhutan’s Buddhist culture."
The Refugee Council of Australia stated that "it is extraordinary and
shocking that a nation can get away with expelling one sixth of its
people and somehow keep its international reputation largely intact. The
Government of Bhutan should be known not for Gross National Happiness
but for Gross National Hypocrisy."
Some researchers state that Bhutan's GNH philosophy “has evolved
over the last decade through the contribution of western and local
scholars to a version that is more democratic
and open. Therefore, probably, the more accurate historical reference
is to mention the coining of the GNH phrase as a key event, but not the
Bhutan GNH philosophy, because the philosophy as understood by western
scholars is different from the philosophy used by the King at the time.”
Other viewpoints are that GNH is a process of development and learning,
rather than an objective norm or absolute end point. Bhutan aspires to
enhance the happiness of its people and GNH serves as a measurement tool
for realizing that aspiration.
Other criticism focuses on the standard of living in Bhutan. In an article written in 2004 in the Economist magazine,
“The Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan is not in fact an idyll in a fairy
tale. It is home to perhaps 900,000 people most of whom live in grinding
poverty." Other criticism of GNH cites "increasing levels of political corruption, the rapid spread of diseases such as AIDS and tuberculosis, gang violence, abuses against women and ethnic minorities, shortages in food/medicine, and economic woes."
