Posts tagged Planet Index
Costa Rica Ranked World’s Happiest Country
Nov 29th
Natural beauty makes for happy people
It’s no wonder Costa Rica ranks as one of the world’s happiest nations. With excellent health care and a high quality of life coupled with moderate cost of living, Costa Ricans live long, healthy lives in one of the most beautiful countries on earth. Whether scientists evaluate hard facts or solicit citizen opinion, Costa Rica consistently beats out wealthier countries for life satisfaction and comparative standard of living.
The World Database of Happiness considered Gallup and other surveys from 148 nations, and Costa Rica took the top spot for both Average Happiness and Happy Life Years. The first category took into account citizens’ own reports on their happiness: Costa Ricans ranked first with a score of 8.5 on a scale of 1-10; in comparison, the United States ranks 20th, reporting an average happiness of 7.4.
Fresh, affordable and abundant produce help keep Costa Ricans healthy
The second category took into account a nation’s reported happiness and average life expectancy, calculating how many happy life years its citizens lead. Again, Costa Rica ranked first with an average 66.7 happy life years; comparatively, the United States grabbed the 19th slot, averaging 57.9 happy life years.
Additionally, the Happy Planet Index (HPI) ranked nations on reported happiness and their environmental policies. The HPI begins with the basic premise that the world’s happiest people are the ones who are most content living with the smallest ecological impact – in other words, those who enjoy sustainable happiness. Again, Costa Rica slid into first place with its high life satisfaction, life expectancy, and strong environmental policies. In comparison, the United States, with a large ecological footprint, ranked 114 among the 143 nations studied.
Costa Rica is proud of its recent rankings, but the nation’s intangible achievements may be even more impressive than those already studied. An incredible 26% of its total landmass has been declared national park or private reserve, protecting 4% of the world’s total species – that’s 500,000 animal species! In addition to an abundance of flora and fauna, the country’s small area is home to a wide range of outdoor attractions, including volcanoes, cloud forests, beaches, rainforests, and rivers. Living in Costa Rica means diverse scenery, amazing wildlife, and year-round tropical weather – wouldn’t that make you happy?
All children are guaranteed the right to education
After abolishing its army in 1948, Costa Rica funneled funds into its public education and national health system, producing some of Latin America’s healthiest and best-educated individuals. Furthermore, the nation’s high level of education helped close the gender gap. According to the World Economic Forum gender gap index, Costa Rican women now enjoy more equality than their United States counterparts.
With so much in its favor, it’s easy to see why many call Costa Rica paradise. A lucky some call it home – will you be one of them?
Costa Rica Travel News – Costa Rica, Greenest & Happiest Country on Earth
Nov 5th
The country’s astounding richness in its wildlife and biodiversity makes a Costa Rica vacation an experience to remember and the nation’s commitment to its natural riches have made the country a world leader in environmental protection and conservation.
But now it seems that Costa Rica’s record has made it more than a natural sanctuary for threatened wildlife, but a world leader in global happiness too.
A study by the New Economics Foundation (NEF) which links countries’ environmental protection to the happiness of their citizens has named Costa Rica as the greenest and happiest country in the world.
The study, called the Happy Planet Index, compares the natural resources that each country consumes with their happiness and quality of life. The report combined ecological impact with other factors including life expectancy and life satisfaction to calculate which country is the most “happy” overall.
According to the Happy Planet Index, Costa Ricans have the highest life satisfaction in the world, thanks to their long life expectancy which is slightly longer than the USA average, combined with their tiny environmental impact, which is 75% smaller than the United States’ per person equivalent.
Costa Rica has become well known throughout the world for its excellent level of environmental protection. Almost one third of the country has been protected by a system of national parks, conservation areas and natural reserves.
Some of the most popular protected areas include the World Heritage Site of Corcovado National Park which is famous for its mangrove swamps, tapirs and macaws, the beautiful beach-side Manuel Antonio National park, and Tortuguero National Park, a favorite nesting ground for endangered sea turtles.
In a separate recent survey the country was voted the number one Latin America travel destination thanks to its astonishing range of national parks protected the world’s biggest concentration of exotic, and often endangered, animal species ranging from poison arrow frogs, green leatherback turtles, the resplendent quetzal and the jaguar.
