Getting data and making calculations can be the easy part. Understanding the real issues and asking the right questions can be more difficult. Reporting average travel time or the variability in competitors' price can be a computational exercise. But how can you assess how customers will respond to a change in product packaging or employees to changes in working practices? Even if measurement is difficult, it can be important if you want to understand the issues facing the world and you want to monitor change over time. If you visit the website of the New Economics Foundation (NEF) (see www.neweconomics.org/publications/well-being) you will find details of a report,'The Happy Planet Index 2.0'. The 2009 report is based on the analysis of the well-being of 143 countries of the world. Rather than using Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to measure the economic growth, it uses a Happy Planet Index (HPI). The HPI is based on life expectancy, life satisfaction and ecological footprint derived from the 143 countries data bases.

Consider an extract from the report given below:

'In an age of uncertainty, society globally needs a new compass to set it on a path of real progress. The Happy Planet Index (HPI) provides that compass by measuring what truly matters to us - our well-being in terms of long, happy and meaningful lives - and what matters to the planet - our rate of resource consumption.' - Executive Summary

HPI Goal

The goal of the HPI is to question what is valuable in life. It is based on two axioms: happy and healthy lives are sought-after around the world; this is not a privilege of the current generation but also future generations. The HPI combines progress towards these two goals in a single figure.

In discussing the above figure the report indicates:

'... the two top sub-regions are those of Latin America. Here, levels of life satisfaction and life expectancy are high (perhaps surprisingly high to people from rich nations accustomed to regarding the global South as a den of misery and disease). The two sub-regions boast ten countries with levels of life expectancy higher than certain EU members (Hungary and Estonia), many of them much poorer and with significantly smaller ecological footprints. As we have noted, some of the highest figures for life satisfaction are also found in this region - Costa Rica's figure of 8.5 standing out particularly. Other sub-regions that do reasonably well are South East Asia and North Africa.'

The HPI is still only as good as the raw data it is based on, and so it is worth being careful in interpreting the small differences between individual countries. More can be learnt from looking at the generally larger differences between groups of countries. Having said that, a glance at the top of the table offers some clues as to what sustainable well-being might involve. (pp 27-28)

Source: The Happy Planet Index 2.0 (2009) www.neweconomics.org/publications/well-being © June 2009 NEF (The New Economics Foundation) Reproduced by permission.