News

Oct 25

Fixing our broken economy

I always remember an old campaigning friend of mine, Jose, being asked on live South African TV, ‘So, does your organisation want to break the economy then?’ The tricksy journalist intended to put him in a corner, but he simply shrugged and said, ‘The economy is already broken’. We can... read more →
Oct 22

Happy Lists

Happy Lists were born out of a need to provide an antidote to the rich/celebrity lists which worship at the shrine of the wealthy, the bonus-getters, and the tax avoiders.  In 2008 David Randall decided to create a national HappyList for the Independent on Sunday which would honour a different set of... read more →
Oct 10

The power of the compassionate pause

Today is World Mental Health Day, a day of action and commitment and focus – towards promoting acceptance, diversity and empowerment, or redirecting resources or raising awareness. But working towards better mental health doesn’t need to be all big gestures and major action. We can engage in gentler, more personal... read more →
Oct 03

Measuring wellbeing is more vital than ever

This week the Office for National Statistics published its Local Wellbeing results for 2016-17, including a review of trends in wellbeing since the UK’s then prime minister David Cameron famously announced the need to measure the nation’s happiness back in 2010. He said: “Improving our society's sense of wellbeing is,... read more →
Sep 28

The austerity morality myth

There’s no denying it – self-denial is in our bones. Most of us sign up to it at some level – the endless diets, the dry Januaries, sacrifices made to prep for a marathon, even broadcasting how hard we work and how sleep-deprived that leaves us. Nobody wants to be seen... read more →
Sep 13

Governments must focus on happiness

When it comes to a government’s priorities, there is no alternative to nurturing citizens’ happiness. The word is out. GDP growth is not a good indicator of how well a country is performing, and should not be the primary goal of governments. Unlimited growth is not sustainable for planet or... read more →
Aug 25

HAPPINESS: HARDER THAN ROCKET SCIENCE?

A randomly passing alien might be forgiven for thinking that Project Earth is a pretty sorry work-in-progress. We all know the headlines: climate change, war, racial tension, terrorism, refugees, poverty, disease, cybercrime … there seems to be little evidence of humanity gearing up for a global group hug. In 2017,... read more →
Aug 21
Aug 13

Invest in yourself, take it easy!

One in 14 people in the world today suffer from an anxiety disorder. Anxiety paralyses: it prevents people from performing the simplest of activities and can lead to isolation, depression and even suicide. To make matters worse still for sufferers, this genuine medical problem is often viewed unsympathetically, as simply... read more →
Aug 06
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