Why Costa Rica is the Happiest Nation on the Planet
Rethinking this Generation’s Definition of Success
In the way of natural beauty and international popularity as a tourist destination, Costa Rica has plenty to be proud of. Add to that the lowest unemployment rate in the region, free access to education and healthcare along with a strong democratic tradition, and your usual 3rd world country woes start to float out the window. Now try a Nobel Peace recipient for president, no standing army and a strong middle class thanks in part to widespread land ownership, and we might be looking at the happiest nation on the planet. According to the New Economics Foundation’s (NEF) recently released “Happy Planet Index”, we are!
The Index – which looks at the general level of satisfaction of a nation’s population, their ecological footprint and life expectancy – highlights the need to redefine a successful economy with high consideration paid to social AND environmental issues. This second part had developed nations like the United States (114th) and Great Britain (74th) tumble to the bottom of the 143-nation list, stating over-consumption and massive ecological footprints as major factors working against each nation’s sustainable wellbeing.
Costa Rica was an easy shoe-in for the nomination with the second highest life expectancy in the world (78.5 years) and an ever dwindling ecological footprint with goals to become 100% carbon neutral come 2021. With more than 25% of the nation’s land preserved in national parks and wildlife reserves and representing more than 6% of the world’s animal species, Costa Rica is truly an ecological wonderland that would make any naturalist happy. But what about the average citizen?
The Happy Planet study revealed that 85% of Costa Rican survey-takers claimed to be happy, 4% higher than their closest competitors. With a nominal per capita GDP estimated at ,580 by the International Monetary Fund in 2008, in comparison with the United State’s GDP of ,859, the study might just support the theory that money doesn’t buy happiness. Don’t tell that to the 3.3% of Costa Ricans living in extreme poverty, but in general terms, that is part of the logic behind the Happy Planet Index. The president of NEF stated that one of their goals is to create a new compass for world economics and not use wealth as the sole determining factor of a successful economy.
In fact, Latin American nations held nine of the Top 10 spots, and runners-up the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Guatemala and Vietnam all had GDPs below ,000 in 2008.
Anyone with a foreign perspective living in these areas will certainly see room for improvement, but the difference is that the local residents are less bothered by certain shortfalls in life and band together to get by. There is less emphasis on the self as families are used to working together to solve each other’s problems.
Living in Costa Rica myself, I see a general “live for the moment” mentality, perhaps better known as the pura vida lifestyle to locals and visitors. When you live with limited money, you use it as it comes, enjoying what you have today, today, and not worrying about the future until it becomes the present. Of course that’s easier if you’re covered by the country’s socialized healthcare, which covers 100% of your treatment should something happen to you.
I have grown up instinctively hoarding my money for bigger-picture investments like a car or a house, whereas here, such goals aren’t viewed as necessity, in part thanks to developed public transportation and the common practice of even the most humble parent providing lodging or an entire house to their grown children. The lottery is actually seen as a more realistic solution for such purchases than creating a savings account.
While this may seem irresponsible to some, compare this to societies driven by individual wealth acquisition where depression rates soar and the stock markets serve as a meter for mental sanity in Wall Street, and ask yourself is all that wealth really necessary? Will putting in 60 hour weeks and securing a millionaire retirement at the age of 60 so you can build a house on the shores of Costa Rica make you happy today? These are the questions that NEF hopes to evoke to inspire developed nations to start reconsidering their definition of happiness before its too late.
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