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The RepoRT of The high-LeveL MeeTing
on WellBeing andHappiness
Defining a
neW economic paradigm
2 apRiL 2012 UniTeD naTions heaDqUaRTeRs new YoRk
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The RepoRT of The high-LeveL MeeTing
on weLLBeing andhappiness
Defining a
new econoMic paRaDigM
2 apRiL 2012 UniTeD naTions heaDqUaRTeRs new YoRk
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4 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
The mge s styzed shot o ush ed nd gret bue skes, representton o the greater universe
sgnyng pece, hppness nd we-beng.
Ths report s vbe eectroncy t tt://.2r..bt/or by contctng the Permnent Msson o
the Kngdom o Bhutn to the Unted Ntons t: 343 Est, 43rd Street, New York 10017; Te: 212-682-2268;
isBn 978-99936-892-0-1
Reproducton s uthorzed provded the source s cknowedged.
sutd tt:
Roy Government o Bhutn (2012). The Report of the High-Level Meeting on Wellbeing and Happiness:
Defining a New Economic Paradigm. New York: The Permnent Msson o the Kngdom o Bhutn to the
Unted Ntons. Thmphu: Oce o the Prme Mnster.
Copyrght 2012 Roy Government o Bhutn
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6 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
TaBLe of conTenTs
foRewoRD BY h.e. MR. JigMi Y. ThinLeY, pRiMe MinisTeR of BhUTan .........................................8
eXecUTive sUMMaRY ......................................................................................................................................11
inTRoDUcTion: The neeD foR a new econoMic paRaDigM .......................................................16
inaUgURaL session: pReface To The DeLiBeRaTions .................................................................. 22
paneL DiscUssions: eXpLoRing The DiMensions of The new econoMic paRaDigM .... 35
summry t Du wllb d h....................................................................... 35
summry t Du et allt Rur ..........................................................41
summry t Du ell sutblty ........................................................................43
summry t Du fr Dtrbut........................................................................................ 47
sUMMaRY of LUnchTiMe woRking gRoUp sessions ..................................................................... 53
oveRview of The afTeRnoon inTeRacTive session ...................................................................55
concLUDing session: RefLecTions on The high-LeveL MeeTing ..........................................66
3RD & 4Th apRiL MeeTings: Looking aheaD To concReTe neXT sTeps ....................................68
summry rm t exrt d slr wr gru ......................................................................68
summry rm t pl wr gru ...............................................................................................71
summry rm t cmmut wr gru .............................................................................. 73
summry rm t cl sty wr gru d subru srtul Ldr ..................... 75
concLUDing sTaTeMenT BY pRiMe MinisTeR of BhUTan on 4Th apRiL ...................................80
LisT of Main RecoMMenDaTions ............................................................................................................83
anneXes To The RepoRT of The high-LeveL MeeTing on weLLBeing anD happiness.. 87
ax i: exlr t vtl L bt sutblty d h ......................................87
ax ii: a prm Mtr Urt cll t D n em prdm
bd wllb d h ........................................................................................90
ax iii: Brud ct nt r t h-Ll Mt ..................................................... 92
ax iv: a gud sttmt Rl wrld sutbl wllb d h ..94
ax v: T prrmm t h-Ll Mt ..........................................................................99
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ax vi: o sttmt rm t iuurl s ..............................................................104
opeig Remrks by H.E. Ms. Hele Clrk, amiistrtr, Uite ntis develpmet Prgrmme ......... 104
aress by H.E. Mr. Jigmi Y. Thiley, Prime Miister f Bhut ............. .............. .............. .............. ............. .............. ........ 105
Iugurl aress by H.E. Mr. B Ki-M, Secretry-Geerl f the Uite ntis ...........................................107
aress by H.E. Mr. nssir abulziz al-nsser, Presiet f the 66 TH Sessi f the
Un Geerl assembly ............................................................................................................................................................................ 109
aress by H.E. Mr. Mil Kterec, Presiet f the Ecmic Scil Cucil..................................................... 111
Keyte aress by H.E. Lur Chichill Mir, Presiet f Cst Ric ................................................................ 113
Sttemet by the Hurble Tim Fischer, Specil Evy f the Prime Miister f austrli
t Bhut the frmer deputy Prime Miister f austrli ............................................................................................. 117
Sttemet by H.E. Mr. Eer Heilum, Speker f the Prlimet f Fil ...........................................................118
Sttemet by H.E. Ms. Jythi ntrj, Miister f Stte fr Evirmet frests,
Gvermet f Ii ............. .............. .............. .............. ............. .............. .............. .............. .............. ............. .............. .............. ........... 120
Sttemet by H.E. Mr. Gil Meshe Er, Miister f Evirmetl Prtecti, Gvermet f Isrel ...123
Sttemet by H.E. Mr. Je nk Prlimetry Vice-Miister fr Freig affirs f Jp ..............................125
Sttemet by H.E. Mr. ahme Lhlimi almi, High Cmmissier fr Plig, Kigm f Mrcc ...........127
Sttemet by H.E. Mr. Jullpg nsrichi, Vice Miister fr freig affirs f Thil .....................................129
Sttemet by Ms. Mrtie dur, Chief Sttistici, orgisti f Ecmic Cperti
develpmet (oECd) ......................................................................................................................................................................131
ax vii: sttmt rm t M Du....................................................................................133
Sttemet f dsh Krm Ur, Presiet f the Cetre fr Bhut Stuies ..............................................................133
Trscript f Vie Messge frm His Ryl Highess, the Price f Wles .................................................................135
Sttemet by Ms. dg Zhihu, Cusellr, Permet Missi f the Peples Republic f Chi .................137
Sttemet frm the delegte f Frce (Iterveti de L Frce) ............. .............. .............. .............. ............. .......... 138
Sttemet by Thms Myr-Hrtig, He f the delegti f the Eurpe Ui ...........................................140
Sttemet frm the delegti f Luxemburg .........................................................................................................................143
Sttemet by Mr. alexer Likhtl, Gree Crss Itertil Presiet, Club f Rme Member ................145
ax viii: summry M pt rm t wr Lu Du ......................................147
ax iX: cl Rmr rm h.e. Mr. Jm Y. Tly, prm Mtr But ...................151
ax X: Rd sttmt - Rl a wrld sutbl wllb ad h ....153
ax Xi: ply Rmmdt emr rm t h-Ll Mt r
cdrt by grmt ...............................................................................................155
anneX Xii: nxt st - prl fr M frrd frm T h-Ll Mt ..............158
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Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life,
the whole aim and end of human existence.
arttl
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9D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
The Ryl Gvermet f Bhut wishes t exte its eepest grtitue t ll f the preseters
prticipts wh prvie their vluble perspectives ies urig the High-Level Meetig
Wellbeig Hppiess: defiig new Ecmic Prigm.
all ctributis re grtefully ckwlege wrmly pprecite.
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Harris
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10 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
ForeWord BY
H.E. MR. JiGMi Y. THiNlEY, PRiME MiNiSTER Of BHUTaN
On 2nd apr 2012, t the Unted Ntons hedqurters n New York, n hstorc event took pce.
The hgh-eve meetng hosted by the Roy Government o Bhutn, brought together more thn
800 dstngushed prtcpnts ncudng the Presdent o Cost Rc, government mnsters nd dp-
omts rom round the word, the Unted Ntons Secretry-Gener, the Presdents o the Gener
assemby nd Economc nd Soc Counc, the UNDP admnstrtor, edng economsts nd scho-rs ncudng Nobe luretes, med, nd cv socety, busness, nd sprtu eders.
On tht dy t the UN, gob movement ws unched to crete new economc prdgm one
tht hs s ts go humn hppness nd the webeng o e on erth; tht recognses s key
condtons or the new economy ecoogc sustnbty, r dstrbuton, nd the ecent use o
resources; nd tht requres hethy bnce mong thrvng ntur, humn, soc, cutur, nd
but ssets.
Ths summry report o the ndmrk gtherng s beng dstrbuted to UN member sttes n the
hope tht governments w tke pocy ctons to begn movng towrds the new economc system.
Exmpes o such specc pocy recommendtons re contned n the report ppendces.
in ddton, steps re beng tken to convene hgh eve expert commsson to eborte the dets
o the new economy over the comng yer or consderton by the 68 th sesson o the UN Gener
assemby n September 2013. These experts w prepre deted documentton, ncudng thorough
terture revews nd exmntons o best prctces, on the ctu workngs o the new economc
prdgm, nd ts potent ccountng nd mesurement systems, regutory mechnsms, nd
nnc, trde, governnce, nd other nsttutons.
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11D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
On 2nd apr, presenters nd prtcpnts recognsed the urgent need or new gob economc
system. The present GDP-bsed system, they recognsed, ws devsed pror to ny knowedge o
cmte chnge or the nte mts o the erths resources, nd t prortses mter growth nd
consumpton t the expense o nture nd peope. Ths system hs depeted resources, degrded
ecosystem servces, cceerted greenhouse gs emssons, dmnshed bodversty, nd now thret-
ens the survv o humns nd other speces. it hs creted ywnng nequtes, nd s genertng
gob economc nsecurty, ndebtedness, nstbty, nd conct.
at the sme tme, prtcpnts recognsed tht we hve never hd greter knowedge, technc
cpcty, mter bundnce, nd productve potent to crete sne economc order nd to
cheve ts necessry condtons. We hve the bty, or exmpe, to eed everyone on erth
hethy nd sustnby. No one need go hungry!
i ws wed, humbed nd ndeed nspred by the extrordnry response to our c or the hgh-evemeetng, nd by the brnt consteton o gret mnds nd eders present. it gve me tremendous
hope. it reknded my th n humnknd; n ts goodness nd nnte wsdom; nd n the enormous
potent to bud sne, secure, nd hppy word. and together tht dy, we shred vst knowedge,
wsdom, nd the w to brek wy rom the tencous grp o mndess consumersm.
i m condent tht reders o ths report w shre tht nsprton nd work cosey nd determnedy
wth us to crete, bud, nd brng nto beng new hostc, sustnbe, nd ncusve economc pr-
dgm tht truy serves humn hppness nd the webeng o e.
Tashi DeLek!
Jm Y. Tly
Prme Mnster o Bhutn
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12 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
eXecUTive sUMMaRY
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13D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
eXecUTive sUMMaRY
The word s despertey seekng chnge. Peope sense tht mportnt soc, economc nd envron-
ment shts re oot. There re now over seven bon peope on the pnet. Technoogy s hepng
us to communcte, orgnse nd ern on gob sce. Emergng economes re rsng n cont-
nents nd the gob mdde css s rger thn ever beore.
Yet nequty between the words rch nd poor contnues to grow, both between nd wthn coun-
tres. Extreme wether events re more requent nd severe, nd dptng to chnges n cmte s
now rety. Demnd or ntur resources s ncresng nd contrbutng to the degrdton o the
envronment. food nd o prces set new records nd cute debt crses cscde through the gob
economy.
Resouton 65/309 wecomed the oer o Bhutn to convene pne dscusson on hppness nd
webeng nd nvted member sttes to pursue the eborton o ddton mesures tht better
cpture the mportnce o the pursut o hppness nd webeng n deveopment wth vew to
gudng ther pubc poces.
On 2nd apr, 2012, the Roy Government o Bhutn convened the Hgh-leve Meetng on Webeng
nd Hppness: Denng New Economc Prdgm. More thn 800 prtcpnts ncudng potc
nd government eders, representtves o governments, nternton orgnztons, cv socety
orgnztons, med, nd busness, s we s edng economsts, schors, cdemcs, nd sprtu
eders rom the words mjor ths prtcpted n the proceedngs. The u progrmme s ttched
s annex Vi.
The Hgh-leve Meetng ncuded n nugur sesson tht ws chred by H.E. Ms. Heen Crk,
admnstrtor, Unted Ntons Deveopment Progrmme nd former Prme Mnster o New Zend.
The Prme Mnster o Bhutn, H.E. Mr. Jgm Y. Thney, devered the openng ddress on the msson
nd purpose o the meetng. UN Secretry-Gener, H.E. Mr. Bn K-moon devered the nugur
ddress, nd supportve sttements were devered by the Presdent o the 66th Sesson o the UN
Gener assemby, H.E. Mr. Nssr abduzz a-Nsser, nd the Presdent o the Economc nd Soc
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14 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
Counc, H.E. Mr. Mo Koterec. H.E. Ms. lur Chnch, Presdent o the Repubc o Cost Rc,
devered the keynote ddress. Trnscrpts o the remrks devered durng the nugur sesson re
vbe n annex V.
foowng the nugur sesson, the meetng proceeded wth pne dscussons on our themes: we-
beng nd hppness, ecoogc sustnbty, ecent octon o resources, nd r dstrbuton. a
tot o 20 pnests devered remrks cross these our dmensons the new economc prdgm,
ncudng Ms. Mchee Bcheet, Under Secretry-Gener nd Drector o UN Women nd ormer
Presdent o Che, Proessor Joseph Stgtz, Proessor Jerey Schs, Venerbe Mttheu Rcrd, lord
Rchrd lyrd, Proessor Robert Costnz, nd Dr. Vndn Shv.
foowng workng unch, Dr. Jcquene McGde, Executve Drector o the Europen Envronment
agency, moderted the ternoon sesson. it begn wth vdeo messge rom Hs Roy Hghness
the Prnce o Wes, prepred specy or the Hgh-leve Meetng. Ths ws oowed by nterctve
dscusson wth prtcpnts. The rst prt o the sesson ws orented towrd gtherng vews rom
the prtcpnts on the our dmensons. The second prt o the sesson concentrted on nterven-
tons ntended to bud nks cross the themes nd to move towrds cton to bud the new economy.
The meetng cosed wth concudng sttement on the next steps by H.E. Mr. Jgm Y. Thney, Prme
Mnster o Bhutn, oowed by concudng pryers by sprtu eders o the Hndu, Chrstn, Jewsh,
Musm nd Buddhst ths.
More thn two hundred o the 2nd apr prtcpnts contnued dscussons on 3rd nd 4th apr n order
to dvnce the outcomes o the Hgh-leve Meetng nd to begn cretng concrete mpementton
pns. These oow-up meetngs were structured round our workng groups: Experts nd Schors;
Communctons; Pnnng, nd Cv Socety nd Sprtu leders.
On 4 th apr, our workng groups convened n penry sessons tht were chred by the Prme
Mnster o Bhutn. These penry sessons provded n opportunty or ech o the workng groups
to report on key outcomes, strteges, nd recommendtons, nd to coordnte wth ech other.
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Over, the meetng produced sever mmedte outcomes tht re cptured n ths report. The rst
s st o 15 mn recommendtons tht emnte rom the rch presenttons nd dscussons tht
took pce over the course o the three dys. These re cptured n the n secton o the report.
Secondy, the debertons o the Experts nd Schors Workng Group resuted n concse stte-
ment, entted Rezng Word o Sustnbe Webeng nd Hppness. The sttement cts s
gudng sprton to dvncng the vson o new economc prdgm. The compete sttement s
presented n annex X.
furthermore, the Cv Socety nd Sprtu leders Workng Group dopted two concse nd pow-
eru vue-bsed Msson Sttements tht represents the strong sprt nd commtment tht exsts
n dvncng the outcomes o the Hgh-leve Meetng. These sttements re presented n the sum-
mres o the workng group dscussons on apr 3rd nd 4th.
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16 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
addtony, there ws brod greement t the Hgh-leve Meetng on Webeng nd Hppness tht
governments wordwde cn tke prctc nd mmedte steps towrds dopton o the new we-
beng nd hppness-bsed economc prdgm. To tht end, exmpes o the knds o poces tht
re n ne wth the prncpes o the new economy, nd whch governments mght consder or voun-
try dopton, re provded n annex Xi. The st annex to the report, annex Xii, contns proposs
or next steps oowng the Hgh-leve Meetng, ncudng suggested tmene.
in cosng, the Prme Mnster o Bhutn expressed hs deep sense o hppness nd stscton t the
vst knowedge nd numerous expert perspectves brought to the Hgh-leve Meetng. He sd the
Roy Government o Bhutn humby ccepts the responsbty o undertkng key ctons desgned
to ctte uture pns nd eorts towrds new economc prdgm bsed on hppness nd
webeng. Subsequent steps n tht drecton ncude:
n Preprton o the present Report o the Hgh leve Meetng or submsson to the UN Secretry-
Gener or onwrd dstrbuton to member sttes;
n Requestng Hed o Governments to consder doptng recommendtons or pocy cton or-
muted by the Hgh-leve Meetng;
n Reportng on the Hgh-leve Meetng themes nd outcomes, nd on the key prncpes nd
dmensons o the new economc prdgm t Ro + 20, nd;
n Convenng Commsson to eborte the dmensons o the proposed new economc prdgm,
or consderton by the 68th Sesson o the UN Gener assemby n 2013.
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17D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
inTRoDUcTionTHE nEEd FoR a nEW
EConoMIC PaRadIGM
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18 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
inTRoDUcTion
THE NEED fOR a NEW ECONOMiC PaRaDiGM
The word s despertey seekng chnge. Peope sense tht mportnt soc, economc nd envron-
ment shts re oot. There re now over seven bon peope on the pnet. Recent decdes hve
brought extrordnry mprovements n e expectncy the word over. Technoogy s hepng us to
communcte, orgnse nd ern on gob sce. Emergng economes re rsng n contnents
nd the gob mdde css s rger thn ever beore.
Yet nequty between the words rch nd poor contnues to grow, both between nd wthn coun-
tres. Extreme wether events re more requent nd severe, nd dptng to cmte chnge s now rety. Demnd or ntur resources s ncresng nd contrbutng to the degrdton o the ntur
envronment. food nd o prces hve set new records nd cute debt crses hve cscded through
the gob economy.
Whe current trends mens tht we hve no choce but to ct, there s much to gn by dong
so. Chnge nd nnovton, through the testng nd dvncement o new modes, hve been key
determnnt n humn dvncement. Ncos Srkozy, the ormer Presdent o frnce, noted tht the
gob nnc nd Europen debt crss doesnt ony mke us ree to mgne other modes, notheruture, nd nother word. it obges us to do so. and the Brtsh Prme Mnster, Dvd Cmeron, hs
brought webeng nto the UKs core mesures o progress, decrng: improvng our socetys sense
o webeng sthe centr potc chenge o our tmes.
The nternton sprton towrds chnge ws mnested when the 193 Member Sttes o the
Unted Ntons Gener assemby dopted by consensus Resouton 65/309 on Hppness: Towrds
hostc pproch to deveopment. The resouton descrbed hppness s undment humn
go nd unvers sprton, notng tht GDP by ts nture does not reect tht go; tht unsus-tnbe ptterns o producton nd consumpton mpede sustnbe deveopment; nd tht more
ncusve, equtbe nd bnced pproch s needed to promote sustnbty, erdcte poverty,
nd enhnce webeng.
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21D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
The Hgh-leve Meetng ws ttended by more thn 800 dstngushed prtcpnts, ncudng pot-
c nd government eders, representtves o governments, nternton orgnztons, cv socety,
med, nd busness, s we s edng economsts, schors, cdemcs, scentsts, nd sprtu nd
th eders.
The Hgh-leve Meetng progrmme ncuded n nugur sesson; pne dscussons on our themes
webeng nd hppness, ecoogc sustnbty, ecent octon o resources, nd r dstr-
buton; workng unch; nd n nterctve sesson n the ternoon oowed by cosng sesson. The
u progrmme o the Hgh-leve Meetng s ttched s annex V.
More thn two hundred o the 2nd apr prtcpnts contnued dscussons on 3rd nd 4th apr to
oow up on the outcomes o the Hgh-leve Meetng nd to begn cretng concrete mpementton
pns. These oow-up meetngs were structured round our workng groups:
n Experts nd Schors
n Communctons
n Pnnng
n Cv Socety nd Sprtu leders
On 4th apr, to begn nd end the dy o dscussons, our workng groups convened together
n two penry sessons tht were chred by the Prme Mnster o Bhutn. These penry sessons
provded n opportunty or ech o the workng groups to report on key outcomes, strteges, nd
recommendtons, nd to coordnte wth ech other.
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22 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
in cosng, the Prme Mnster o Bhutn expressed hs deep sense o hppness nd stscton t the
vst knowedge nd numerous expert perspectves brought to the Hgh-leve Meetng. He sd the
Roy Government o Bhutn humby ccepts the responsbty o undertkng key ctons desgned
to ctte uture pns nd eorts towrds new economc prdgm bsed on hppness nd
webeng. Subsequent steps n tht drecton ncude:
n Preprton o the present Report o the Hgh leve Meetng or submsson to the UN Secretry-
Gener or onwrd dstrbuton to member sttes;
n Requestng Hed o Governments to consder doptng recommendtons or pocy cton or-
muted by the Hgh-leve Meetng;
n Reportng on the Hgh-leve Meetng themes nd outcomes, nd on the key prncpes nd
dmensons o the new economc prdgm t Ro + 20, nd;
n Convenng Commsson to eborte the dmensons o the proposed new economc prdgm,
or consderton by the 68th Sesson o the UN Gener assemby n 2013.
Ths report w now present more deted ccount o the proceedngs o the 2nd apr Hgh-eve
Meetng nd the 3rd nd 4th apr oow-up meetngs, oowed by st o resutng recommendtons.
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inaUgURaL session
PREFaCE To THE dELIBERaTIonS
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inaUgURaL session
PREfaCE TO THE DEliBERaTiONS
The nugur sesson ws chred by h.e. M. hl clr, admtrtr, Utd nt Dl-
mt prrmm (UnDp) d t frmr prm Mtr n Zld, chred the nugur
sesson. The sesson etured ddresses by the dgntres sted beow. The u texts o ther stte-
ments re ttched s annex Vi.
n H.E. Mr. Jgm Y. Thney, Prme Mnster o Bhutn
n H.E. Mr. Bn K-moon, Secretry-Gener o the Unted Ntons, who gve the inugur address
n H.E. Mr. Nssr abduzz a-Nsser, Presdent o the 66th Sesson o the UN Gener assemby
n H.E. Mr. Mo Koterec, Presdent o the Economc nd Soc Counc
n H.E. Ms. lur Chnch, Honourbe Presdent o the Repubc o Cost Rc, who gve the Key-
note address
n Honourbe Tm fscher, Spec Envoy o the Prme Mnster o austr to Bhutn nd the
former Deputy Prme Mnster o austr
n H.E. Mr. Eero Henuom, Speker o the Prment o fnnd
n H.E. Ms. Jynth Ntrjn, Spec Envoy o the Prme Mnster o ind nd Mnster o Stte or
Envronment nd forests, Government o ind
n H.E. Mr. Gd Menshe Erdn, Mnster o Envronment Protecton, Government o isre
n H.E. Mr. Joe Nkno, Prmentry Vce-Mnster or foregn ars, Government o Jpn
n H.E. Mr. ahmed lhm am, Mnster nd Hgh Commssoner or Pnnng, Kngdom o Morocco
n H.E. Mr. Jupong Nonsrch, Spec Envoy o the Prme Mnster o Thnd nd Vce-Mnster
o foregn ars o Thndn lord Gus ODonne, Spec Envoy o the Prme Mnster o the Unted Kngdom o Gret Brtn
nd Northern irend
n Ms. Mrtne Durnd, Che Sttstcn, OECD, representng the Secretry-Gener o OECD
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The deegtons o Chn, frnce, Brz, nd the Europen Unon devered remrks n the ter-
noon sessons. The deegton o luxembourg provded wrtten sttement nd requested tht t be
ncuded n ths report s luxembourgs contrbuton to the Hgh-leve Meetng.
in her wecome remrks, h.e. M. hl clr suggested tht Bhutns ongstndng pursut o Gross
Nton Hppness (GNH) coud norm the deveopment o new economc prdgm becuse ths
pproch ntegrtes ncusve economc deveopment wth strengthenng communtes, protectng
the envronment, provdng unvers ccess to heth servces nd educton, nd preservng trd-
ton cuture nd hertge. She hghghted tht Bhutn mesures the vue o the ntons ntur,
humn, soc, nd cutur weth, nd not just ts mter nd cpt ssets.
Ms. Crk reced the hstorc 1987 report o the Word Commsson on Envronment nd Deveop-
ment, Our Common Future, wth the observton, One o the key questons beore the nternton
communty s: wht coud our common uture ook ke? Bhutn s provdng nswers to tht ques-
ton. She expressed hope tht dscussons rom the Hgh-leve Meetng coud oster common
understndng o how to bud sustnbe uture.
in hs openng ddress, h.e. Mr. Jm Y. Tly, prm Mtr But, outned the gos ndobjectves o the Hgh-leve Meetng. He emphszed tht deveopment modes ed by Gross Domes-
tc Product (GDP) no onger mde economc sense, nd tht the purpose o deveopment must be
to crete enbng condtons through pubc pocy or the pursut o the utmte go o hppness
by ctzens. He expned tht Bhutn s wtnessng growng gob nterest n ts GNH-bsed
deveopment pproch s n terntve deveopment prdgm, nd woud ke to contrbute ts
experence to the serch or hostc economc systems.
The GNH pproch, he sd, s bsed on the bee tht hppness cn be cheved by bncng theneeds o the body wth those o the mnd wthn peceu nd secure envronment. GNH, Prme
Mnster Thney sd, s sustnbty bsed, webeng centrc, ncusve economc mode. He cr-
ed tht Bhutn s not country tht hs ttned GNH, nd ke most deveopng ntons, contnues
to strugge wth the chenge o ung the bsc needs o ts peope. However, wht sets prt
Bhutn s tht t hs dopted hppness s the most undment humn need nd go.
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26 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
The prm Mtr But decred: We despertey need n economy tht serves nd nurtures
the webeng o sentent bengs on erth nd the humn hppness tht comes rom vng e
n hrmony wth the ntur word, wth our communtes, nd wth our nner seves. We need n
economy tht w serve humnty, not ensve t. it must prevent the mmnent revers o cvzton
nd oursh wthn the ntur bounds o our pnet whe ensurng the sustnbe, equtbe nd
menngu use o precous resources. Busness s usu cnnot go on nd tnkerng wth the exstng
system w not do. We need undment trnsormtonOur go tody s to unch the nttve
or such trnston.
The Prme Mnster sd he ws humbed nd nspred by the response to ths c under the uspces
o the UN Gener assemby. He outned the concrete gos nd ntended outcomes o the Hgh-
leve Meetng s oows:
n Compng the present report or the Secretry-Gener to dstrbute to UN member sttes,
ong wth set o pocy recommendtons tht governments my choose to vountry dopt
t ther own pce nd on ther own terms to move towrds the new economy;
n Ebortng the dets o the our dmensons o the proposed new economy by commsson
o emnent experts or the consderton by the 67 th sesson o the UN Gener assemby n 2013;
n Preprng strtegy to crry ths process orwrd to Ro+20 nd UN Gener assemby deber-
tons on wht must succeed the Mennum Deveopment Gos ter 2015; nd
n Outnng nttves to promote gob movement or the new webeng nd sustnbty-
bsed economc prdgm.
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27D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Harris
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28 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
in hs nugur ddress, the Un srtry-grl, h.e. Mr. B k-m, sd Bhutn hs recognzed
the supremcy o nton hppness over nton ncome snce the ery 1970s, nd commended
the Government o Bhutn or nttng the Hgh-leve Meetng. The Secretry-Gener cted sever
other recent exmpes o nton nd nternton eorts towrd more hostc pproches or me-
surement o progress, ncudng:
n The recommendton by the Secretry-Geners glbl sutblty pl to estbsh set o
ndctors to mesure progress towrd sustnbe deveopment.
n Work by Unted Kngdom sttstc uthortes on ntl wllb
n The Europen Commssons gDp d Byd Project
n The Orgnzton or Economc Cooperton nd Deveopments (OECD) Bttr L itt.
The Secretry-Gener sd tht Gross Domestc Product (GDP) s to tke nto ccount the soc
nd envronment costs o so-ced progress. He stressed, Gross Nton Product hs ong been
the yrdstck by whch economes nd potcns hve been mesured. Yet t s to tke nto ccount
the soc nd envronment costs o so-ced progress. We need new economc prdgm tht
recognzes the prty between the three prs o sustnbe deveopment. Soc, economc nd
envronment webeng re ndvsbe. Together they dene gross gob hppness.
T prdt t Un grl ambly, h.e. Mr. nr abdulzz al-nr so ced or sus-
tnbty-bsed economc prdgm to brng more ncusve, equtbe nd bnced pproch
tht w promote sustnbty, erdcte poverty, nd enhnce webeng nd hppness. lke the
UN Secretry-Gener, he dvocted prdgm tht consders economc, envronment, nd soc
webeng. He encourged Member Sttes to consder doptng prctc steps towrds pocy shts
tht w enbe sustnbty-bsed economc prdgm.
T prdt t Utd nt em d sl cul (ecosoc), h.e. Mr. Ml ktr
commended Bhutns nttve to orge hostc deveopment pth tht seeks to ntegrte sus-
tnbe nd equtbe economc nd soc deveopment wth envronment conservton, cutur
promoton nd good governnce. He emphszed tht deveopment must be ncusve. Mr. Koterec
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29D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
hghghted tht the jobs crss s ocusng ncresng ttenton on the soc pr o sustnbe
deveopment, nd tht governments must promote job creton nd decent work, prtcury or
youth nd women.
H.E. Mr. Koterec stted tht the Hgh-eve Meetng on Webeng nd Hppness s extremey reevnt
or the nt dscussons on the post-2015 deveopment gend tht re currenty tkng pce wthn
the UN. He rmed tht ECOSOC stnds redy to provde ptorm or mutstkehoder dscus-
sons on how to move orwrd on denng new economc prdgm or hostc deveopment s we
s ssurng coherent nd coordnted nttves wthn the UN system.
h.e. M. Lur cll Mrd, hurbl prdt t Rubl ct R , devered
the keynote ddress t the Hgh-leve Meetng. She stted, i m honored to open ths conerence
s Presdent o country convnced tht the purpose nd menng o deveopment s not the sheer
ccumuton o weth, but the webeng o the peope nd the pursut o ther hppness.
H.E. Ms. Chnch expned tht despte ts modest resources, Cost Rc hs mnged to contnu-
y mprove the quty o e o ts peope, nd provded sever exmpes o nttves nd resuts
rom the countrys comprehensve deveopment pth. Cost Rcns, she sd, re wre tht webe-ng s nourshed by the ntercton o economc, soc, cutur, envronment nd sprtu ctors.
H.E. Ms. Chnch eborted: The quest or webeng so demnds sutbe bnce between
sprtons nd chevements; between i nd we; between pubc nd prvte; the nsttuton nd
the spontneous; drves nd mts; trdtons nd nnovton; reedom nd responsbty.
The Presdent o Cost Rc nvted meetng prtcpnts to reect on two ssues:
1. Wht re the best pths to stmute hostc pproch to deveopment?
2. How to dvnce methodoogc pproches to systemtze good prctces, expore resuts, nd
deveop sutbe mesurements o webeng?
She expressed condence tht the Hgh-leve Meetng woud contrbute to the deveopment o
more comprehensve ndctors on humn deveopment n ts uest sense toos tht re neces-
sry to ssess the resuts o our eorts, nd eventuy, djust ther course.
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hurbl Tm fr, sl ey t prm Mtr autrl d t frmr Duty
prm Mtr autrl, shred tht s resut o hs more thn 25 yers o trve to Bhutn, hehs come to deepy pprecte the evouton o GNH n ts dmensons, prtcury becuse t
trcks bnce, hrmony nd re progress or the Bhutnese. He expned tht austr strongy
supports the urther evouton nd dopton o GNH nd webeng mesurements.
Hon. Tm fscher sd austr wecomes the UN Secretry-Geners glbl sutblty pl
recommendton or the creton o Sustnbe Deveopment index, nd strongy supports the Un
sytm ermtl-em aut (seea). He urged deegtes to tke the Hgh-leve
Meetngs gend orwrd n purposeu wy to the Ro+20 conerence n Brz. He wecomed the
dvent o GNH or uture genertons nd encourged to brng the prctc concepts ssocted
wth webeng nd sustnbty to the word.
h.e. Mr. er hlum, sr t prlmt fld, dented the need or unversy
dopted ndctors to enbe the ormton o pocy or new economc prdgm. He expned
tht fnnd ws one o the rst countres to gree on nton set o sustnbe deveopment
ndctors n the te 1990s, hs promoted the use o deveopment ndctors, nd hs creted toos
to mke normton more redy vbe or pocy mkers nd ctzens. for exmpe, the fd-tr r, vbe n fnnsh, Swedsh, nd Engsh, provdes set o nery hundred ndctors
tht descrbe the socety t rge. Ths nnovtve port ws deveoped n cooperton wth the gov-
ernment nd pocy mkers nd busnesses.
H.E. Mr. Henuom so expressed tht fnnd uy supports the Byd gDp inttve crred out
by the Europen Unon, the OECD nd other prtners nd shred tht the current Government Pro-
grmme o fnnd ncudes the deveopment o compementry ndctors.
h.e M. Jyt ntrj, sl ey t prm Mtr id d Mtr stt r
ermt d frt, grmt id, thnked the Prme Mnster o Bhutn or deverng
ecture on Gross Nton Hppness st yer n inds Prment nd provdng vube nsghts
on how to pursue the go o ncusve deveopment mennguy. She sd tht ind shres Bhu-
tns bee tht humn deveopment shoud be bsed n equ mesure on mter progress, soc
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ncuson, cutur e, nd vng n hrmony wth nture. H.E. Ms. Ntrjn stressed tht mter
progress snce the ndustr revouton hs cst tremendous pressure on the pnet, nd ntons must
ddress ths chenge together n mnner tht s r nd equtbe. She ced or the recognton
o common but derentted responsbtes, nd respect or equty, nd emphszed tht processes
must be ncusve, prtcptory, nd truy democrtc t both nton nd gob eves. H.E. Ms.
Ntrjn so cutoned tht quest or ddton ndctors to compement GDP must not move
wy rom ncusve growth. She ced or the ntegrton o three prs o sustnbe deveop-
ment, nd prdgm or sustnbe consumpton tht s nchored n the Ro Prncpes.
h.e. Mr. gld M erd, Mtr ermtl prtt, grmt irl, emph-szed: The trdton mesures o growth, prtcury GDP, rete ony to short-term progress. They
rrey provde comprehensve ssessment o the quty o e nd webeng o our ctzens. H.E.
Mr. Erdn ced on the Unted Ntons nd ts te bodes to work together wth Member Sttes
to promote new gob economc prdgm tht w dvnce the webeng o peopes. The tme
hs come to chnge the wy we thnk bout growth, nd to reze tht envronment nd soc
ssues re every bt s mportnt to the webeng o our ctzens s GDP, he dvocted.
H.E. Mr. Erdn ponted out tht we our envronment now, our envronment w us n theuture. He expned tht isres Mnstry o Envronment Protecton nd the Centr Bnk o isre
conducted study tht showed tht strcter envronment regutons ctuy mprove economc
condtons n the short term. Ths ndng ed the Mnstry o Envronment Protecton to estbsh
set o ndctors tht re compementry to GDP. These ndctors ncude both objectve nd subjec-
tve envronment, economc nd soc ndctors, whch re mesured nnuy by stte uthortes.
Ths s the rst step n ong process desgned to provde pocy mkers wth rebe, bnced
evuton o the webeng o ther ctzens.
h.e. Mr. J n, prlmtry v-Mtr r fr ar, grmt J con-
veyed tht the government o Jpn hs orgnzed nd prtcpted n nton nd nternton
eorts to denty better pproches or promotng webeng. in December 2011, Jpnese gov-
ernment commsson pubshed study tht proposed 130 webeng ndctors nd dscussed ther
pocy mpctons. These ndctors ocus on bonds mong mes, oc communtes nd nture.
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32 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
a Pne under Jpns Counc on Nton Strtegy nd Pocy s now consderng how the comms-
sons ndngs cn eed nto concrete mesures or government pocy-mkng.
H.E. Mr. Nkno stted tht the Government o Jpns nput to the Ro+20 Outcome Document pro-
posed hppness nd webeng s new crter or the deveopment gend to provde perspectves
derent thn GDP. He so noted tht n December 2011, Jpn hosted the a-p cr
Mur wllb d ftr t prr st n cooperton wth the OECD, the
asn Deveopment Bnk nd other reevnt orgnztons. at ths conerence, 180 prtcpnts rom
32 countres shred ther nttves on mesurng webeng.
h.e. Mr. amd Llm alm, Mtr d h cmmr r pl, kdm Mr,
sd tht ntcptng the uture, both on the ndvdu nd the coectve eve, requres experence n
the process o prtcptory democrcy. He descrbed Moroccos success wth prtcptory democ-
rcy over the st decde to ustrte the potent to umnte wy orwrd. He expned tht
through regon, sector-specc nd urbn progrm contrcts, prtnershp mechnsms wth the
Stte hve ensured the prtcpton o prvte opertors, oc uthortes, eected ocs nd cv
socety representtves n the the denton o objectves nd the mpementton o reorms. at the
oc government eve, the sme prtnershp pproch s used n the hum Dlmt itt(known s iNDH). Prtcptory reorm processes hve ed to dvnced regonzton nd consttu-
ton recognton o the countrys ngustc nd cutur pursm, gender equty, nd the roes o
NGOs, youth nd women n potcs nd the mngement o pubc rs.
H.E. Mr. am urther expned tht Moroccos Hgh Commsson or Pnnng, whch s n chrge o
sttstcs, hs ctted the countrys dptton to chnge by embrcng better wys to mesure
economc perormnce nd soc progress through better understndng o weth nd ncome
dsprtes.
h.e. Mr. Jull nr, sl ey t prm Mtr Tld d v-Mtr
fr ar, grmt Tld, ocused on the prncpes o moderton nd sucency.
He sd tht moderton s oten mstkeny perceved s beng t odds wth cptsm nd moder-
nty, or ssocted wth utrky. in Mr. Nonsrchs vew, moderton does not prevent prosperty, but
rther s concept tht w nchor sustnbty.
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H.E. Mr. Nonsrch expned tht moderton s one o the core prncpes enshrned n the Su-
cency Economy phosophy deveoped by Hs Mjesty the Kng o Thnd, whom the UNDPwrded the Unted Ntons rst Humn Deveopment letme achevement awrd n 2006. Su-
cency Economy s phosophy tht cs or moderton nd resonbeness, ncudng the need
or resence to extern shocks nd se-mmunty rom mpcts rsng rom ntern nd extern
chnges. H.E. Mr. Nonsrch ndcted tht ths phosophy ws nstrument n edng Thnd out
o the 1997 nnc crss nd hs been the gudng prncpe or Thnds Nton Economc nd
Soc Deveopment pns tht promote humn deveopment, reduce ncome nequtes, nd ensure
sound oundtons or sustnbe economc growth. The phosophy hs so heped the peope o
Thnd to cope wth nd recover rom the unprecedented, severe oodng n Thnd st yer.
in ne wth the bee tht the prncpes o sucency nd moderton re mportnt or the cheve-
ment o sustnbe deveopment, H.E. Mr. Nonsrch suggested: a possbe set o new ndctors,
such s Sustnbe Deveopment Gos, wth moderton nd sustnbty s core, re worthy
o consderton n order to cheve the utmte go o mprovng the ves nd webeng o the
peope.
Lrd gu oDll, sl ey t prm Mtr t Utd kdm grt Brtd nrtr irld, stted tht he ttended meetng on 1st apr orgnsed by the Erth insttute
t Coumb Unversty, wth experts rom rnge o dscpnes nd countres to dscuss the Word
Hppness Report by John Hewe, Rchrd lyrd nd Jerey Schs. at ths meetng, the mpor-
tnce o retonshps, soc cpt nd trusm ws hghghted.
lord ODonne expned tht UK Prme Mnster Dvd Cmeron s ocused on tkng prctc steps
to ensure the UK government ssesses nd supports quty o e s we s economc growth. The
UK Oce or Nton Sttstcs now hs progrmme or mesurng nton webeng. 200,000ctzens hve been ntervewed on e stscton, hppness nd ther vew o how worthwhe ther
e s nd how nxous they re. The resuts o ths survery re eedng the deveopment o new
poces tht w brng n more revenue, ncrese the productvty o pubc spendng, nd enhnce
peopes webeng. Cv servnts n the UK re beng tught to put webeng t the hert o ther
cost-benet nyss.
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lord ODonne dvocted or hppness nd webeng to be reected n the Sustnbe Deve-
opment Gos. He underscored tht hpper peope re more productve, ustrtng urther thtwebeng nd deveopment go hnd-n-hnd. He ced or edershp t the gob, nton nd
oc eves to deveop nd mpement exstng poces tht enhnce deveopment nd webeng
nd mprove the sustnbty o the pnet. in cosng, lord ODonne remrked tht the Hgh-leve
Meetng s n exmpe tht the word cn come together not just to sove crses but so to enhnce
the quty o e.
M. Mrt Durd, c sttt d Drtr t sttt Drtrt r t or-
t r em c-rt d Dlmt (oecD), expned tht or nery ten yers,the OECD hs worked to denty wys to mesure the progress o socetes beyond GDP. in 2011,
the OECD unched the Bttr L itt, whch drws on the themes dented by the stltz-
s-ftu cmm estbshed by french Presdent Srkozy. Ms. Durnd expned tht the
inttves rmework etures 11 dmensons o humn webeng, ocuses on peope rther thn on
the economc system, nd consders both objectve nd subjectve spects o webeng. Ms. Durnd
eborted tht the rmework so ssesses how current mpcts on ssets w ect webeng n
the uture. Ctzens cn nterct wth the OECD bout the determnnts o webeng nd hppness
through the Yur Bttr L idx web too.
Ms. Durnd sted number o countres tht re engged n the mesurement o webeng, ncud-
ng the Unted Kngdom, Germny, ity, austr, Soven, Jpn, Kore, Chn, Coomb, Mexco,
Morocco, nd ind. in ddton, she hghghted tht the Europen Sttstc System hs dopted
50 mur to promote the deveopment o webeng ndctors. She sd ths shows tht pocy
mkers re enggng serousy wth sttstcns on ths subject, nd tht the trnston o better
mesures nto better poces s progressng. Ms. Durnd so normed tht the 4t oecD wrld
frum on Mesurng Webeng or Deveopment nd Pocy Mkng, orgnzed jonty wth the Gov-
ernment o ind, w tke pce rom 16-19 October 2012 n New Deh oowng preprtory events
n Mexco, Jpn nd Morocco.
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Someo the mn recommendtons tht emerged rom the ddresses by the hgh-eve government
representtves ncuded:
n Hppness nd webeng concepts shoud be ncuded n the potent Sustnbe Deveopment
Gos (SDGs).
n New ndctors to mesure webeng shoud be dvnced. Prevous work on such ndctors, or
exmpe UNDPs Humn Deveopment index, the work o the Stgtz-Sen-ftouss Commsson o
french Presdent Srkozy, nd Bhutns GNH index, shoud be exmned s modes.
n Governments shoud mesure the hppness nd webeng o ther peope, nd use the determ-
nnts o hppness nd webeng to gude pubc pocy. More thn 30 governments re currentyworkng wth webeng ndctors.
n a gob ndex shoud be deveoped, oowng the structure proposed by the Stgtz-Sen-ftouss
Commsson, to provde pnetry ptorm or mesurng progress towrds hppness.
n Brod prtcpton o stkehoders s requred to ensure ntegrty nd humn deveopment.
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paneL DiscUssionsEXPLoRInG THE dIMEnSIonS
oF THE nEW EConoMIC PaRadIGM
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paneL DiscUssions
EXPlORiNG THE DiMENSiONS Of THE NEW ECONOMiC PaRaDiGM
The nugur sesson ws oowed by three hours o pne dscussons tht med to eborte our
dmensons o the proposed new economc prdgm:
n Webeng nd Hppness
n Ecent Use o Resources
n
Ecoogc Sustnbtyn fr Dstrbuton
Ths secton o the report cptures the mn des presented wthn ech o these dmensons, mng
to provde more compete understndng o the new economc prdgm.
summry t Du wllb d h
h.e. M. hl clr chred the pne dscusson on Happiness and Wellbeing. it etured sx em-
nent spekers:
n Venerbe Mttheu Rcrd rom Shechen Monstery, Nep
n Proessor Mrtn Segmn, founder o Postve Psychoogy nd Drector, Postve Psychoogy
Centre, Unversty o Pennsyvn
n Dsho Krm Ur, Presdent o the Centre or Bhutn Studes
n Dsho Krm Tshteem, Secretry o Gross Nton Hppness Commsson, Roy Government
o Bhutn
n Proessor John Hewe, Proessor Emertus o Economcs, Unversty o Brtsh Coumb
n lord Rchrd lyrd, Emertus Proessor o Economcs, london Schoo o Economcs
Beore the strt o the pne dscusson on Webeng nd Hppness, H.E. Ms. Crk nvted Proessor
Jerey Schs, Drector o the Erth insttute t Coumb Unversty, to report on the Workshop on
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38 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
Hppness orgnsed by the Erth insttute on 1st apr t Coumb Unversty. Proessor Schs shred
the oowng ndngs rom the workshop:
n The ssue o hppness requres hostc pproch rom mny perspectves.
n Hppness hs t est three menngs: hppness s mood; hppness s stscton wth ones
e; hppness s ourshng nd ung e tht eves n mpct on socety reerred to s
eudemon by arstote.
n a three o these ctegores o hppness cn be mesured nd cn be promoted by pubc
poces nd gob gos such s the Mennum Deveopment Gos (MDGs) nd Sustnbe
Deveopment Gos (SDGs).
n Gross Nton Product (GNP) by tse does not promote hppness.
n le evuton depends on mny thngs, ncudng: stscton o bsc needs; empoyment
nd ncome; strength o ones soc support network; trustworthness o government; ccess to
heth cre ncudng or ment nesses; hvng trustc nd compssonte vues. Soc sup-
port nd good ment heth re more mportnt thn ncome.
n Hppness s not ony stte o mnd nd trt, but so sk. Hppness s n rt o vng nd
cn be tught, erned nd trnsmtted.
n The benets to hppness ncude hgher productvty, ster recovery rom ness nd ower mor-
tty, more pece nd more compsson.
n Governments cn do much to promote hppness, ncudng chevng the Mennum Deve-
opment Gos (MDGs) nd meetng bsc needs; mesurng hppness; promotng ctve
bour mrket poces; promotng ment heth; promotng compsson, trusm, nd honesty;
resstng hyper-commercsm (e.g. through mts on dvertsng); resstng corrupton; cretng
nsttutons such s Bhutns Gross Nton Hppness Commsson.
n a new mesurement system, s prt o Sustnbe Deveopment Gos, s needed to compe-
ment nd correct the nton ccounts. Ths system shoud mesure hppness n ts three
senses, study the determnnts o hppness so s to promote t, nd ncude comprehensve
green ccountng.
n The epstemc communty comprsng o sttstcns, economsts, phosophers, techers nd
others must jon together to ncorporte hppness nto peopes ves.
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39D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
H.E. Ms. Crk then ntroduced the rst pnest or the themtc dscusson on Hppness nd We-
beng: Venerbe Mttheu Rcrd, Buddhst monk rom Shechen Monstery n Nep nd uthor osever books ncudng Hppness: a Gude to Deveopng les Most importnt Sk.
vrbl Mttu Rrd umnted the common pth towrd hppness or peope. He sd,
Hppness s wy o beng tht comes wth genune trustc ove, nner strength, nner reedom,
serenty tht cn be cutvted s sk dy ter dy, month ter month. He expned tht trn-
ng the mnd nd trnsormng our se s not substtute to mprovng the outer condtons, but t
goes hnd n hnd wth tht.
Venerbe Mttheu Rcrd emphszed tht the pursut o hppness s ntmtey nked wth tru-
sm, nd stted tht there s no such thng s sesh hppness, becuse ts t odds wth rety;
we re not seprte enttes. We need to hve the sense o nter-connectedness nd gob respon-
sbty. atrusm s the core o components o hppness; t must be nurtured to recognze nd
respect the nterdependence o bengs. atrusm nd hppness re not uxury, they re neces-
sty, Venerbe Mttheu Rcrd contended. He urther dded: i you hve more consderton or
others, you w do everythng to mke thngs better t the workpce, wthn the my, wthn your
proesson, so tht you cn oursh n e. and you hve more consderton or others, you w notscrce nd jeoprdze the ony home tht we hve.
prr Mrt slm, fudr pt pyly d Drtr t pt pyly
ctr t t Urty pyl, contrbuted tht he uses the cronym PERMa or the ve
psychoogc eements o webeng: P s postve emoton, ncudng hppness. E s enggement. R s
good retonshps. M s menng nd purpose n e. a s chevement nd ccompshment. Proes-
sor Segmn stted tht ve o these psychoogc eements re mesurbe nd techbe, nd
re beng tught n schoos nd corporte settngs.
Why shoud the Unted Ntons dopt webeng, hppness, s n end? sked Proessor Segmn.
Becuse ths woud ed to more productvty, better heth, nd pece, he suggested.
D krm Ur, prdt t ctr r But stud, sketched vson o person nd
socety n the mge o Gross Nton Hppness (GNH):
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40 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
GNH envsons person to be bonded deepy to her se nd supportve communty n whch trust-
worthness o the peope s very hgh nd n whch the vctmzton o humn bengs by others sdey non-exstent.
The GNH ndex evutes the eve o gvng nd recevng o vrous gts o soc tme, o goods, nd
o bour, nd t ssesses the cutur contnuty o key eements o communty.
a communty envsoned n GNH s set deepy n nture nd ecoogy. Hppness o the nhbtnts
o such beutu, rugged nd s ssessed not ony n economc terms. Ntures esthetc stmuus
cn be drecty heng s the nhbtnts enjoy vvd coours nd ght, untnted breeze, sence n
ntures sound.
Yet vng n nture n Bhutn comes t cost. The rmers o Bhutn oose hgh proporton o ther
crop nd vestock to wde dmge nd ths s the prce they py or conservton. But ths s so
n ndctor o ecoogys heth.
GNH envsons persons bsc good nture o kndness, generosty nd compsson reed rom the
represson o seshness, jeousy, nger, etc. le stscton s evoved wthn ve e domns. Emo-
tons re surveyed n order to mesure ther retonshp to mportnt spects o hppness. Becuse
sprtu ctvtes nd postve emotons re ssocted, ment devces such s decresng wnder-
ng o mnd, medtton, nd pryeru medttons, re so mesured n the GNH ndex.
Tme s ncuded n the dmenson o hppness s n ndependent eement n GNH. The person env-
soned n GNH socety shoud hve no tme poverty. He/she shoud experence the joy o sowness,
nd every dy, he/she shoud enjoy the rght o mpe tme to socze, to ctve esure, nd or
whoesome seep.
The brod orentton o GNH s post-modern becuse t ncorportes n rge mesure, non-mter
nd soc dmensons o webeng.
The next speker on the pne ws D krm Ttm, srtry t gr ntl h-
cmm t Ryl grmt But. Dsho Tshteem dened GNH s Bhutns
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41D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
deveopment pproch tht seeks bnce between mter webeng nd the sprtu, emo-
ton nd cutur needs o socety. it s motvted by the bee tht hppness s the utmte desreo every humn beng nd tht, thereore, t shoud be the purpose o deveopment to crete the
enbng condtons or hppness.
Dsho Tshteem expned how the Roy Government o Bhutn (RGOB) opertonzes GNH:
n RGOB hs creted nsttutons such s the GNH Commsson to gude Bhutns deveopment.
n RGOB hs eshed out the de o GNH nto concrete ndces nd rues to ntroduce GNH nto ts
poces nd pns.
n RGOB ssesses progress through ths hostc rmework. in order to norm nd gude urther
deveopment, surveys re undertken every two to three yers.
Dsho Tshteem then eborted the concept o GNH. He normed tht t s mde up o nne domns
vng stndrds, heth, educton, envronment, good governnce, ecoogc webeng, cutur
dversty nd resence, communty vtty, nd tme use. He sd tht we compre these to the
pocy-mkng rmeworks used by most governments, our out o the nne domns re usuy
bsent. These re the domns o psychoogc webeng, communty vtty, cutur dversty ndresence, nd tme use. Yet mny studes show tht these domns re so necessry nd vt to
the pursut o hppness.
Dsho Tshteem provded suggestons or how governments coud support psychoogc webeng
nd tme use n socety. He normed tht studes hve shown tht medtton enhnces psycho-
ogc webeng nd thereby hppness. Recognzng ths, Bhutn hs ncorported medtton s
n ndctor n the psychoogc webeng domn o the GNH ndex. Surveys n 2007 nd 2010 both
ound tht the mjorty o Bhutnese do not medtte. Dsho Tshteem expned tht thereore,Bhutn decded to ntroduce medtton nto o ts schoos n 2010 s smpe ctvty conducted
or two to three mnutes, one to two tmes dy, bscy ettng chdren experence stness, every
dy, n the hope tht they w get the benets ssocted wth such ctvty contempton,
reecton, concentrton, toernce, compsson, etc.
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42 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
Tme use s nother domn crtc or the pursut o hppness, stted Dsho Tshteem. in our
GNH prdgm, tme s e not money. and the greter the gnment between wht one rey cresbout nd how one uses tme, the hgher the chnces o beng hppy nd, thereore, we promote
through workpce poces, bnced tme use.
Dsho Tshteem expned tht surveys on these subjects re nuencng budget octon nd deve-
opment prortzton. in concuson, he oered: We ernesty beeve tht progress s mesured by
the hostc GNH prdgm w resut n sustnbe deveopment nd more menngu nd hpper
ves or our peope.
prr J hllll, prr emrtu em t t Urty Brt clumb,
ocused on three ponts brought orth rom the Word Hppness Report, whch he co-uthored wth
lord Rchrd lyrd nd Proessor Jerey Schs.
n Hppness cn be mesured nd mesured we. it s oten contngent upon the ve ctors o
my nd rends, good heth, mter sucency, reedom, nd trustng envronment.
n atrusm nd hppness re ntrnscy nked. The power o trusm cn be ocused on the
ttnment o sustnbe deveopment t gob eve. atrusm hs wys been poweru.
Peope ove to do thngs wth nd or others wth whom they ssocte, whom they trust nd
whose ves they vue.
n To sove ssues o gob sustnbty, the dentty o we must be extended beyond the here nd
now, beyond the my, the trbe nd the nton, to the erth. it must be extended beyond ths
generton to the ones tht oow. Tht cn be done n wy tht buds hppness.
Lrd Rrd Lyrd, emrtu prr em, Ld sl em, contended
tht the bsc gudng prncpe or ndvdus, ncudng pocy mkers, shoud be to crete the
most hppness n the word nd the est suerng, or both present nd uture genertons. The
cse or hppness s smpe hppness s the ony good tht s se-evdent. it s smpy understood
s nherenty good. accordngy, governments must mesure the hppness o ther peope nd use
modes or the determnnts o hppness to gude pocy.
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43D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
lord lyrd outned extern nd ntern nuences on hppness. Extern nuences ncude ncome,
soc sodrty, work, nd economc stbty. among the ntern nuences, the most mportnt rement heth. Ment ness ccounts or one-thrd o dsbtes wordwde, whch s the very reson
why t shoud be one o the governments oc. On ntern ctors, he so eborted on trusm.
Wht s mportnt s tht peope cn be trned to be more trustc. We-beng comes down to the
ctons o the ndvdus, not the governments.
in cosng, lord lyrd nvted to jon new movement tht he co-ounded ced at r h-
, whose members pedge to ed ther ves so s to crete s much hppness n the word s
they cn nd, especy, s tte msery.
summry t Du et allt Rur
Mr. ajy cbbr, att srtry-grl, att admtrtr t UnDp, d Drtr
UnDp Rl Buru r a d t p, chred the pne dscusson on Efficient Alloca-
tion of Resources. The pne ddressed the retonshps between metrcs (ncudng Gross Nton
Hppness), ndvdu experences, soc crcumstnces, nd pnetry resources. it etured two
emnent spekers:
n Proessor Joseph Stgtz, Nobe lurete nd Proessor o Economcs t Coumb Unversty
n Proessor Jerey Schs, Drector o the Erth insttute t Coumb Unversty
prr J stltz, nbl Lurt d prr em t clumb Urty,
opened by outnng some o the mn ndngs rom the stltz-s-ftu cmm tht he
chred on the mesurement o economc perormnce nd soc progress. Gven the essent roe
o metrcs n normng pocy decsons, Proessor Stgtz underscored the mportnce o dsh-
bord o sent numbers, cretng system (s Bhutn dd through GNH) beyond the stndrdmesures. Ths s mportnt becuse wht socety mesures ects wht socety does, prtcu-
ry n perormnce-orented socetes.
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44 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
Proessor Stgtz brey noted our o the mjor ures o GDP tht were ustrted by the Comms-
son. frst, GDP s to hghght tht derent peope prtke o the weth o our socety n derentwys. GDP s n verge number, whch does not reect dvergent ncome eves wthn socety. a
true commtment to equtbe deveopment, he contnued, must ttend to strt o socety, ncud-
ng the mdde css nd the poorest poputons.
a second constrnt o GDP s tht t does not reect sustnbty. a useu mesure must cpture
not just the weth o ths generton, but o uture ones s we. GDP dsregrds unsustnbe cets
o growth, prtcury wth reton to gob wrmng nd the overuse o ntur resources. Current
eves o growth re not sustnbe, prtcury s they to ccount or ntur cpt ccounts.Mesures bsed on mrket prces do not reect soc vues. a more compete dshbord o
sent mesures must ncude soc nd envronment metrcs.
a thrd ure s one tht hs been dscussed thoroughy n the Hgh-leve Meetng thus r, nmey
tht GDP does not dequtey reect webeng. Bhutns work n ths re demonstrtes tht we-
beng cn be mesured scentcy nd ccount or derences cross ndvdus. The n set o
constrnts wth GDP s technc ssues, or exmpe, how do thngs ke esure tme get cptured n
mesurement? as GDP rses, peope oten hve ess esure tme, yet the resutng mpcts nd trde-os o ths chnge re not ccounted or n the GDP mesure.
a o these shorts re mportnt becuse they ect pocy. for exmpe, the decent work gend
s centr, s wthout t, there cn be very mted webeng. Ensurng decent work s not just mtter
o GDP, but o vodng humn suerng. in terms o soc cpt, mny poces versey ect ths
becuse t s not cptured nd montored n present systems o ccountng. a prme exmpe s go-
bzton, whch msmnged, cn erode soc cpt by undermnng the oc economes tht
support nd sustn strong communtes.
in the context o todys gob economy, contnued Proessor Stgtz, ndvdu nd my webeng
rees on sucent empoyment nd decent work, soc cpt nd connectvty, nd n overrch-
ng economc rmework tht emphszes deveopment. The mnstremng o mesurements o
these essent ctors, he concuded, w usher n truy trnsormtve deveopment process. Pocy
mkers must be equpped to ocus on the brod successes o n economy. Deveopment s too
mportnt to be et soey to nnc mnstres nd economc mesures.
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45D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
prr Jry s, Drtr t ert ittut t clumb Urty, begn hs presen-
tton by remndng prtcpnts why better understndng nd more ccurte mesurement owebeng s so mportnt. frst, he noted the prdox o uence, tht s, how greter ncome
does not ed to greter e stscton. Second s the experence o countres ke Bhutn nd Cost
Rc, whch t much ower eves o ncome, hve cheved outszed eves o e stscton nd
hppness. Thrd, nd perhps most compeng, s tht we hve reched the mt o dong thngs the
od wy. We hve reched certn pnetry boundres tht not ony undermne our prospects or
growth, but so threten our humn survv. Proessor Schs noted tht those vng nd workng
n the Horn o arc nd the She know ths to be hppenng redy, s e s beng undermned
by the nstbty brought by extreme drought, ower precptton, nd other worsenng condtons.
Proessor Schs hghghted tht we re now seven bon peope, wth exponent poputon growth
hed. at the sme tme tht poor countres re experencng growth nd reductons n poverty,
whch s postve, there s n ncrese n the eve o humn ctvty nd growng stress on the pnet.
Ths s chengng, gven tht we re redy unsustnbe n the use o wter, bodversty, oss o
hbtt, nd greenhouse gs emssons.
There re sever mpctons to mngng our resources eectvey. frst, we must cknowedge thtconsumpton tht brngs no joy s ctuy brngng hrm. Second, we w need rdc trnsorm-
ton o technooges, n order to eed, house nd cre or ths growng humn my. Thrd, we need to
hve Sustnbe Deveopment Gos (SDGs) s prt o the gend or Ro+20 nd beyond. Proes-
sor Schs endorsed the ncorporton o poverty erdcton, soc ncuson, good governnce, nd
envronment sustnbty s the mens o ensurng hppness s the centr go or humnty.
summry t Du ell sutblty
Dr. Jt ptz, nbl Lurt, prr t Urty w d Drtr, glbl hltittut chred the pne dscusson on Ecological Sustainability. it etured three emnent spekers:
n Proessor Robert Costnz, Dstngushed Unversty Proessor o Sustnbty, Portnd Stte
Unversty, Edtor-n-Che o Solutions mgzne, nd Co-Presdent o the internton assoc-
ton or Ecoogc Economcs
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46 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
n Dr. Mths Wckernge, Co-cretor o the Ecoogc footprnt nd Presdent, Gob footprnt
Networkn Dr. Vndn Shv, Scentst, author, founder o Nvdny, Recpent o Rght lvehood awrd
Ths pne, whch hghghted the nks between ecoogy nd humn webeng, ed the Word Heth
Orgnztons denton o heth s more thn smpy n bsence o dsese to the heth o the
pnet, rent on ntergenerton socet webeng ong wth the survv o ts ecosystems.
The rst o the three pnests, prr Rbrt ctz prtld stt Urty, edtr-
-c slut, nd Co-Presdent o the internton assocton or Ecoogc Economcs,
emphszed the hethy ecoogc e support system requred or sustnbe humn webeng
nd hppness. in the new geoogc er o the nthropocene, the mgntude o humn mpcts on
our ecoogc e-support system requres the recongurton o our economc system, Proessor
Costnz stressed.
Reerrng to the concept o pnetry boundres, Pro. Constnz ndcted tht three o nne mjor
vrbes hve redy exceeded ther se opertng spce: cmte chnge, bodversty oss, nd the
ntrogen cyce.
from ths, Proessor Costnz moved to dscusson o Oxms vrton on pnetry boundres,
whch ncudes so the eements tht contrbute to humn webeng. These ncude ctors tht
peope recognze s contrbutors to ther webeng nd hppness n surveys, such s good soc
retons, prtcpton, ncome, etc., but so ctors tht peope do not perceve we, ke ecosystem
servces, whch nevertheess contrbute sgncnty to humn webeng nd ts sustnbty. The
doughnut between pnetry boundres nd support o webeng represents the sustnbe nd
desrbe spce or humnty. To ve wthn ths sustnbe nd desrbe spce, we need to recog-
nze the contrbutons o o our ssets to humn webeng, ncudng our but, humn, soc nd
ntur cpt ssets.
Ths type o postve vson or the uture, Proessor Costnz contnued, s necessry to ow the
trnston to new economc prdgm. We need to emphsze tht cretng ths new socety s not
scrce o quty o e, webeng, nd hppness. Qute the contrry, ng to mke ths trnston
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w be mjor scrce or humnty. Mjor soc trnstons hve hppened beore n humn hstory,
usuy s tppng ponts. Proessor Costnz predcted tht ths meetng w be ooked bck on s mjor tppng pont n the creton o sustnbe nd desrbe word.
Dr. Mt wrl, c-rtr t ell ftrt d prdt glbl ftrt
ntr, underscored the necessty o mesurng ecoogc weth n our current er o gob
overshoot. as ecoogc weth s becomng even more scrce thn nnc weth, ntons suc-
cess depends on keepng s cose o tp on ecoogc resources s they trdtony hve on ther
nnc ssets.
in essence, yng wthout ue guge s dngerous, noted Dr. Wckernge. Yet most ntons oper-
te wthout knowng how much nture they hve nd how much they use. in deveopng Ecoogc
footprnt ccountng, Gob footprnt Network hs provded n ecoogc resource ue guge
or ntons nd the word. The ccounts show tht currenty most countres nd the entre humn
enterprse re n ecoogc overshoot. it now tkes our pnet one yer nd 6 months to repensh
wht humnty uses ech yer. aso, these ccounts show tht over 83 percent o the words peope
re now vng n countres tht use more resources thn ther countres cn renew. The test resuts
or nery 200 countres re vbe t .trttr.r.
accordng to Dr. Wckernge: The footprnt s unque metrc n tht t ows nyone to compre
peopes demnd or boogcy productve ecosystems wth how much s vbe. The grphc
power o the footprnt metphor n mny nguges hs heped communcte the resource chenge
wdey: rechng schoos s we s pocy crces. The deted ccounts behnd footprnt estmtes
vvdy underscore todys e-thretenng sustnbty gp, nd suggest wys how to cose t.
Ecoogc footprnt ccountng, sd Dr. Wckernge, s but on thnkng ke rmer. it s
smpy comprng how much rm we hve to how much we use. in other words, he expned, the
Ecoogc footprnt (how much we use) mesures peopes use o crop nd, orests, grzng nd,
nd shng grounds s we s orests or provdng resources nd bsorbng wste (prtcury such
s CO2 rom oss ue burnng). in contrst, bocpcty (how much we hve) mesures how much
o ths boogcy productve re s vbe to produce these resources nd servces.
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48 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
Ths rety, sd Dr. Wckernge, drecty mpcts trde ptterns nd economc prosperty: Coun-
tres hve become ncresngy dependent on rge mounts o ntur resources tht ther countresre not be to renew wthn ther boundres. Whe trde cn bnce out some o ths demnd,
over the demnd s exceedng wht ecosystems cn renew. Thereore, even though resources re
st retvey chep, ths ncresng gob demnd s meetng suppy crunch. it tkes ever more
eort to hrvest the oss ues nd the mners, nd n some pces the resh wter. al ld
lmtd, d my l l r rtxd r lt. as resut, bsc commodtes such s ood
nd bers re becomng coster. These resource dynmcs re growng nto sgncnt drvers o
economc perormnce. Economc pnners gnorng these trends my put ther countrys economy
t per.
Comprehensve resource ccountng, s the footprnt or exmpe provdes, cn show structur
chenges or countres chenges tht re redy shpng present economc retes n mny
octons round the word nd t cn so demonstrte opportuntes or overcomng them. These
new retes, concuded Dr. Wckernge, re now becomng key prmeters or stbe economes
nd securng humn webeng.
Dr. vd s, tt, utr, d udr ndy, begn by thnkng the Roy Govern-ment o Bhutn or tkng ths very necessry step tht humnty needs. Dr. Shv remrked tht the
od system o economy ed s t stryed rom the roots o the Greek okos (Home) t shred wth
ecoogy, wth ecoogy menng the scence o the househod, nd economy reerrng to the economy
o the househod. frst the economy seprted tse rom ecoogy, nd the ws o G tht sustn
e nd webeng. Then t seprted tse rom socety, nd t seprted sustnbe producton rom
humn webeng.
Tht seprton, Dr. Shv rgued, occurred by usng the rtc mesure o growth s GDP or
GNP. Growth s bsed on cttous producton boundry, whch ssumes tht you produce wht
you consume, then you do not produce. in one e swoop, sustnbe economes tht ensure humn
hppness nd webeng were destroyed.
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49D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
Tody, she sd, the economc crss creted by the move towrds even more cttous wys o
grnerng prot (through dervtves, coter debt, securtzton, etc) hs mpcted the rch wordn USa nd Europe. Both n the North nd South we need new prdgm tht shts the economy
bck to ts roots n ntur, soc, nd cutur weth. Ths s why ths sesson t the Unted Ntons
on webeng nd hppness nd on redenng the economc prdgm s so tmey nd urgent.
in n nterconnected word o compex retes, the prmry roe o ood nd ts systems must be
prortzed, Dr. Shv contnued. Most gob probems, ncudng the ecoogc crses o speces
extncton nd cmte chos, the pubc heth crss, nd the poverty crss, rse rom non-sustn-
be modes o grcuture. its tme to recm ood s the bss o e, she sd, nd to shrnk tsecoogc ootprnt.
Exhortng prtcpnts to recognze the true mportnce o webeng, whch s mter, economc,
soc, cutur nd sprtu ctegory, nd cutonng them not to seprte webeng rom hppness
by reducng the tter to purey subjectve ctegory, Dr. Shv concuded by herdng Bhutns cur-
rent move towrds competey orgnc grcuture s n exmpe or every country to oow.
summry t Du fr Dtrbut
T hurbl Tm fr, sl ey t prm Mtr autrl d rmr Duty
prm Mtr autrl, chred the Pne on fr Dstrbuton. The pne etured our dstn-
gushed spekers.
n H.E. Ms. Mchee Bcheet, Under-Secretry-Gener nd Executve Drector o UN Women
n Mr. ajy Chhbber, assstnt Secretry-Gener, assstnt admnstrtor, UNDP, nd Drector o
UNDPs Regon Bureu or as nd the Pcc
n Mr. Enrco Govnnn, Presdent, itn Sttstc insttute, nd ormer Che Sttstcn, OECD
n Mr. Nrnder Kkr, Permnent Observer to the Unted Ntons o the internton Unon or
Conservton o Nture
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50 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
h.e. M. Mll Blt, Udr-srtry-grl d exut Drtr Un wm d
rmr prdt t Rubl cl, opened the pne dscusson hghghtng ts tmenesswthn the context o Ro+20 dscussons. She noted tht Ro+20 s to mke re derence, ts
mn go must be the webeng o allo humnty. Ms. Bcheet stressed tht r dstrbuton s t
the center o unvers webeng nd to cheve t, we hve to be ncusve. in todys word, 75% o
the gob poputon s not covered by mnm soc securty. 1.4 bon peope ve on ess thn 1.25
dors dy nd bout 2.6 bon peope do not hve ccess to dequte sntton. We need new
prdgm tht pces r dstrbuton t ts hert.
Sever eements re needed we re to ensure unvers r dstrbuton. The rst s ethc eder-
shp; edershp tht s ncusve nd s concerned wth how to bnce, nd crete more ncusve
nd bnced socety; edershp tht w work to protect nd ensure humn rghts, womens rghts,
so tht when we tk bout or , we re not evng behnd women nd young peope. Second,
we need to ensure ccess to essent goods nd bsc servces or , so tht every humn person
ves wth respect nd dgnty. a soc protectve system tht cn ensure peopes bsc needs re
dequtey met s esbe nd ordbe, especy t serves to empower peope nd ow them
to reze ther u potent.
Mr. ajy cbbr trd tr m t. T rt tt the trends ndcte tht nequty s
ncresng goby nd we re strng to see the mpct o ths. Ths ncudes, or exmpe, the arb
sprng nd the pubc cton thts tkng pce n prts o as nd ltn amerc. in response, some
eders re tryng to put n pce empoyment poces nd soc poces tht w reduce nequtes.
However, goby you hve trend towrds much greter ncresng nequty, wth concern over
gob dsorder.
a second thng Mr. Chhbber noted ws the dstncton between nequty nd nequty. To some, ths
my be too ne pont, but consder tht some nequty s resonbe s we strve or greter nd
greter humn chevement. it s dcut to decry humn nnovton nd weth creton tht mght
then ed to betterment n some prtcur persons e. However nequty, whch s nequty tht
comes rom dscrmnton, stems rom orgnzed systems tht keep peope out, women or other
prts o socety, whch breeds more nd more nequty. Mr. Chhbber rgued tht pocy ctons
shoud be more ocused on nequty.
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51D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
a thrd pont stemmed rom UNDPs test humn deveopment report, whch expored how equty
nd sustnbty re nternked to ech other. Mr. Chhbber cted s n exmpe generzed poceske gsone subsdes tht re both nequtbe nd so unsustnbe. He encourged those nter-
ested n the mportnce o equty to sustnbty to consut the test Humn Deveopment Report.
Mr. er g, prdt, itl stttl ittut, d rmr c sttt, oecD,
begn by notng tht r dstrbuton s compcted concept becuse nequty cn be thought o
n t est two derent wys. The rst s n terms o the ntr-generton dmenson o nequty,
tht s, how we dstrbute ncome, s we s heth opportuntes, envronment benets, nd other
ctors ectng webeng, cross derent poputon groups (e.g. rch, poor, men, women, north,
south nd so on). Ths dmenson heps us to mesure wht our socetes re not be to dever, such
s the possbty or everybody to progress nd to deveop over the course o ther ves.
The other dmenson o the ntergenerton nequty retes to sustnbty. Mr. g sked
why shoud we cre bout uture genertons? Essenty, we must strt thnkng n terms o vuner-
bty nd the possbty tht the uture ects our ves tody. in terms o mesurement, we need
to nd wys to vue the reducton o uture rsks. Ths woud hep to crete key potc drver, tht
s, by rewrdng poces tht reduce uture rsks nd vunerbty, perhps over mmedte gns or
ctons tht sht the responsbty to the next generton. Such mesurement woud hep to mke
sustnbe deveopment more chevbe or o us.
Mr. nrdr kr, prmt obrr t t Utd nt t itrtl U r c-
rt ntur, spekng rom n ecoogc perspectve, hghghted the need to encourge
nd ssst socetes to conserve the ntegrty nd dversty o nture, nd to ensure tht ny use o
ntur resources s equtbe, nd ecoogcy sustnbe. Ecoogc ootprnt ssessments show
tht humnty s now usng ntur resources t rte 50% ster thn the cpcty o the pnet
to regenerte. Ths ecoogc degenerton cnnot be seprted rom gob economc retes
tht re ncresngy dvdng the rch nd poor, sd Mr. Kkr, snce there s drect retonshp
between ncome, consumpton nd envronment mpct.
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Mr. Kkr hghghted some o the derents mentoned n the November 2011 submsson o the
Roy Bhutn Government or the Ro+20 process, whch noted tht:
n 20% o the words peope consume 86% o ts goods whe the poorest 20% consume just 1.3%;
n The rchest 20% use 58% o energy nd the poorest 20% ess thn 4%;
n 20% o peope produce 63% o the words greenhouse gs emssons whe the other 20% pro-
duce ony 2%;
n 12% o the words peope use 85% o the words wter;
n The rchest 20% consume 84% o pper nd hve 87% o vehces, whe the poorest 20%
use ess thn 1% o ech.
it s thus cer rom the oregong, sd Mr. Kkr, tht the stress o poverty on countess eow
humn bengs s no ess thn the stress on the pnet cused by the excessve estyes o the ew.
Moreover, contnued Mr. Kkr, n ecoogc perspectve on r dstrbuton demonstrtes tht we
re not equy responsbe or gob envronment degrdton. Ecoogc ootprnt nyss
shows tht bout 70% o the words poputon consumes n verge o just 1.3 gob h o bo-
ogcy productve spce per person we wthn the erths crryng cpcty o bout 1.8 gobh per person. Gob envronment decne cn thereore be ttrbuted to ess thn 30% o words
poputon, whch consumes n verge o 6.5 gob h o productve spce per person. The eco-
ogc ootprnt o some deveoped countres s even much hgher thn tht verge o 6.5 gob h
per person. i everyone n the word consumed t the eves o the rchest countres, wed need fur
Earth planets to provde the necessry resources nd wste ssmton cpcty noted Mr. Kkr.
Thereore, he remrked: An ecological perspective on fair distribution clearly indicates that we must
begin to challenge the excess consumption of the few and the resultant waste, if we are to alleviatepoverty without destroying the planet. Soc equty n conservton mens r dstrbuton o the
benets nd costs o conservton mong derent soc groups nd ndvdus, who hve d-
erentted needs, nterests, rghts, nd responsbtes over resources. Brod prtcpton o
stkehoders s requred n nton resource mngement nd n pocy deveopment n order to
ensure ntegrty nd rness n humn deveopment, Mr. Kkr concuded.
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53D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Harris
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54 D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
sUMMaRY ofLUnCHTIME WoRKInG
GRoUP SESSIonS
sUMMaRY of LUnchTiMe woRking gRoUp sessions
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55D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
foowng the mornng sesson, the Prme Mnster o Bhutn hosted workng unch or pr-
tcpnts. Dscussons were orgnzed round ech o the our dmensons o the new economcprdgm, s expored durng the mornng o apr 2nd.
The workng groups over unch owed or greter ntercton nd the exchnge o cretve des,
tred-nd true prctces, nd essons erned rom pst experences. Wht oows s bre summry
o the dscussons. a more deted st o comments s vbe n annex Viii nd w norm the
ongong work ter the meetng on osterng the mpementton o the new economc prdgm.
in the unchtme dscusson group on webeng nd hppness, des ocused on the centrty o
erdctng extreme poverty or chevng the new prdgm. Ths necessttes soc ncuson nd
the empowerment o peope, prtcury women nd young peope. There ws so robust ds-
cusson on the need to ensure tht the des o new economc prdgm trnste to poces nd
nttves t the oc eve. another strong theme ws the need to ern rom ndgenous peopes, who
re sked t vng n hrmony wth the ntur word nd preservng our envronment commons.
The group on ecoogc sustnbty recognzed ths s core dmenson o the new prdgm,
prtcury owng to concepts such s ntergenerton equty, ntures nherent vue, nd the nter-
connecton between hethy envronment nd humn webeng. Some o the ctons proposed to
dvnce ths dmenson ncude strengthenng ecoogc sustnbty vues n prmry nd second-
ry schoo currcu nd vung the tme peope spend enjoyng nd hepng to preserve nture.
The dscusson on the ecent use o resources underscored the need or u-cost envronment
ccountng to become wdespred prctce. The group expored soutons such s cretve wys
to redene wht consttutes weth n socetes, supportng communty-bsed eorts t mprovng
resource use ecency, nd doptng crde to crde desgns or s mny goods nd servces s
possbe.
The ourth unchtme group dscussed r dstrbuton nd noted tht nnc nstrument nd po-
ces re n mportnt too to ensure ths dmenson o the new economc prdgm. The group so
nked r dstrbuton o resources to the chevement o the decent work gend, the wdespred
shrng o technooges nd normton, s we s greter trnsprency nd good governnce.
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oveRview of TheaFTERnoon InTERaCTIVE SESSIon
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57D n em prdm: The Reprt f the High-Level Meetig Wellbeig Hppiess
oveRview of The afTeRnoon inTeRacTive session
The ternoon sesson ws chred by prr Jul Mgld, exut Drtr teur ermt ay nd ws desgned to ctte structured but nterctve dscussons
mongst prtcpnts. The m ws not to rrve t set o greed-upon concusons, but rther to
gther des to hep dvnce eorts to cheve the new economc prdgm centered on webeng
nd hppness. The comments beow re not ment to be comprehensve, but rther m to provde
n over sense o the dogue nd rnge o des tht were dscussed.
The sesson begn wth vdeotped messge rom h Ryl h t pr wl , who
conveyed hs support to the Hgh-leve Meetng nd ts tsk o envsonng new economc pr-
dgm ounded on the des o webeng nd hppness. in the vdeo messge, the Prnce o Wes
sd tht new prdgm s n essent tsk tht cnnot be gnored. Wrnng tht the grm rety
s tht our pnet hs reched pont o crss nd tht the tme or us to ct s rpdy runnng out,
Hs Roy Hghness noted tht we must hve better normton bout the vue o the Erths eco-
systems to the economy nd socety s whoe, s we s the soc, envronment nd economc
costs o wht we do. The compete sttement devered by Hs Roy Hghness, the Prnce o Wes
s vbe n Vii.
Shrng hs bee n the ntrnsc goodness o humn nture nd the prevng desre to mprove the
condtons o socety, Prnce Chres cted Proessor Joseph Stgtzs sserton tht the mnstrem
prdgm o GDP does not provde reevnt or sucent normton or the ctors n the contem-
porry gob ren. Concentrtng on mkng e eser by mxmzng the output o one ctvty,
HRH the Prnce o Wes posted, hs rendered us dngerousy myopc to the mpct ths hs on
everythng ese nd ndeed upon ourseves.
HRH the Prnce o Wes ustrted the need to ncude broder rnge o vrbes n economcmesurements nd resutnt pocy prescrptons by hghghtng n nttve o the Engsh crown:
the aut r sutblty project, estbshed n 2004 to mesure wht mtters nd count
wht counts. as set o cer, ccurte, nd mesurbe objectves essent to rmework o con-
trbutons towrd sustnbe deveopment, ths project provdes one exmpe o the concerted nd
coectve ctons necessry to conront todys gob chenges, Prnce Chres concuded.
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foowng the vdeotped messge rom HRH the Prnce o Wes, the deegtons o Chn, frnce,
Brz, nd the Europen Unon devered sttements.
The dlt c commended Bhutns GNH nttve nd ts encourgement o the nternton
communty to ctvey dscuss nd ormute bnced, ncusve, postve nd resource-conscous
economc system. Chn expressed the vew tht the trdton mode o deveopment requres
repcement by comprehensve, coordnted nd sustnbe deveopment tht strkes bnce
between economc nd soc deveopment nd envronment protecton. in the ongong eort to
cons