International Day of Happiness 2026; March 20th.

FORUM: “Well-being in the digital age.” International Day of Happiness 2026. Did you ever wonder what makes a society happy? Is a happy society full of citizens who focus on their own happiness, people whose happiness then spills-over to others around them? Or, maybe, a happy society is composed of citizens who are sensitive to people around them, thereby making other people happy. Be among the first to read this year’s insights, centered around the theme of happiness for the young, the old, and everyone in between. The interest in happiness is, of course, global. In North America and Western Europe, young people are much less happy than 15 years ago. Over the same period, social media use has greatly increased. Many people blame social media for this fall in happiness, but does this hypothesis stand the test of rigorous scientific analysis? Social media use in the Middle East and North Africa is among the highest in the world, although considerable differences appear among countries. Heavy use is more common than in other regions: between 20% and 40% of users reported more than five hours of use in 2023–2024. Social media use is heavier among certain social groups. Gen Z, men, single individuals, less religious and more affluent respondents, as well as those with higher education, are much more likely to be heavy users. On average, heavy social media use (more than five hours per day) is associated with lower wellbeing. Heavy users are significantly more likely to report higher stress and depressive symptoms, and believe they are worse off than their parents, compared with non- or moderate users. The impact of heavy social media use on wellbeing depends on how it is used. Engaging with multiple platforms, relying on social media as a primary news source, and following influencers are associated with higher stress, increased depressive symptoms, and more negative comparisons with parents’ quality of life. The relationship between social media and happiness is contingent upon both platform design and the broader cultural and social context in which social media use takes place. So where do digital media products fall on this spectrum? Are they more like bicycles or guns?, Selecting high-quality evidence is only part of the challenge. “Good evidence” must be paired with the “good governance of evidence”.Among girls worldwide, non-users and light users of social media were more satisfied with their lives than heavy users. The key point is that many social media users wish the platform they use did not exist and would even be willing to pay to put it out of existence. Creating more equitable digital environments will require regulating platforms, as well as strengthening the social resources that help adolescents navigate a highly digitalized and unequal world. Younger adolescents appear more vulnerable to the negative wellbeing consequences of problematic digital engagement. Specifically, we ask: do internet and social media use affect subjective wellbeing not only directly, but also indirectly by altering levels of societal trust and social connection?. Most studies on the relationship between social media use and wellbeing have been carried out in Western, high-income settings, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Western Europe. Although valuable, these insights cannot be generalised. Follow the conversation with the hashtags: #HappinessDay, #20March, #InternationalDayofHappiness.

EVENTS: At United Nations HQ in New York, On Saturday; March 20th, a webinar will be held to find the ways to help countries to craft policies aimed at achieving happier societies. Register to participate!

In Washington D.C; On Friday; March 19th,  Global launch of The report on the State of Happiness in the world and celebration of International Day of Happiness 2026. 

THEMATIC DISCUSSIONS.

The report.

On Thursday, March 19th, from 08:30 a.m to 11:00 a.m. EDT in Washington D.C. The 2026 edition of the World Happiness Report will be launched. with the latest global happiness rankings powered by data examines the striking differences in how young people have fared over time across countries and regions. Examining the association between social media use and wellbeing across age groups and cultures, and drawing on interdisciplinary contributions from leading experts, the 2026 Edition seeks to clarify what societies should consider as they navigate a rapidly evolving digital age. In partnership with Gallup, Semafor will convene to explore the latest report insights and what the research reveals about generational change, loneliness and social connection. Leaders across research, policy, media, and technology will examine how institutions and communities might cultivate solutions that prioritize connection over distraction. This year marks the 14th anniversary of the World Happiness Report, during the occasion we will analyze the state of happiness in 2026 and will present how people evaluate their own lives in more than 150 countries around the world. Register to participate and Watch the launch ceremony!

EXHIBITS: The UN photographers capture people smiling, celebrating, playing, and laughing in this special collection for the International Day of Happiness.

PUBLICATION: Since it was first published, the World Happiness Report has been based on two key ideas: that happiness or life evaluation can be measured through opinion surveys, and that we can identify key determinants of well-being and thereby explain the patterns of life evaluation across countries. This information, in turn, can help countries to craft policies aimed at achieving happier societies. To learn more Download the World Happiness Report 2026!

What makes people happy? and How do we measure happiness?

International Day of Happiness 2024; March 20th.

FORUM: “Happiness for the young, the old, and everyone in between.” International Day of Happiness 2024. Did you ever wonder what makes a society happy? Is a happy society full of citizens who focus on their own happiness, people whose happiness then spills-over to others around them? Or, maybe, a happy society is composed of citizens who are sensitive to people around them, thereby making other people happy. Be among the first to read this year’s insights, centered around the theme of happiness for the young, the old, and everyone in between. Follow the conversation with the hashtags #HappinessDay, #20March, #InternationalDayofHappiness.

EVENTS: Global launch of World Happiness Report and celebration of International Day of Happiness 2024. The 2024 World Happiness Report will be launched on Wednesday, March 20th, from 08:30 a.m to 11:30 a.m. EDT in Washington D.C. Join Semafor, in partnership with Gallup, for a first look at the Report!; We'll present the brand new survey data and share key insights that will change the ways global leade rs across business, tech, politics, and beyond perceive “happiness,” and how to promote well-being through our lifetimes. This is a convening of well-being experts, policy practitioners and thought leaders to discuss the data and how economic development, global affairs, and political attitudes affect national well-being to ensure a well-lived life through all its stages. This year marks the 12th anniversary of the World Happiness Report, during the occasion we will analyze the state of happiness in 2024 and will present how people evaluate their own lives in more than 150 countries around the world. The interest in happiness is, of course, global. Since it was first published, the World Happiness Report has been based on two key ideas: that happiness or life evaluation can be measured through opinion surveys, and that we can identify key determinants of well-being and thereby explain the patterns of life evaluation across countries. This information, in turn, can help countries to craft policies aimed at achieving happier societies. What makes people happy? and How do we measure happiness? Register to participate!. Watch the launch ceremony!

EXHIBITS: The UN photographers capture people smiling, celebrating, playing, and laughing in this special collection for the International Day of Happiness.

PUBLICATION: World Happiness Report 2024.

International Day of Happiness 2023; March 20th.

 FORUM: "The importance of happiness in the lives of people around the world."  International Day of Happiness 2023.

Happiness is a fundamental human goal. The United Nations General Assembly recognizes this goal and calls for “a more inclusive, equitable and balanced approach to economic growth that promotes the happiness and well-being of all peoples.” Follow the conversation with the hashtags; #HappinessDay, #20March, #IntDayofHappiness

Take action to be happier and kinder together.

EVENTS:International Day of Happiness 2023. March 20th.

 This year marks the 11th anniversary of the World Happiness Report, which uses global survey data to report how people evaluate their own lives in more than 150 countries worldwide.

WEBINAR: Launch of the 2023 World Happiness Report (WHR); 

WHEN: 20 mars 2023 12:00 PM EDT.

Join the Editors of the World Happiness Report 2023 as we launch our 11th edition. Moderated by Sarah Jones, we will go through the themes of this year's report.

• What is the consensus view about measuring national happiness, and what kinds of behaviour does it require of individuals and institutions? (Chapter 1)

• How have trust and benevolence saved lives and supported happiness over the past three years of COVID-19 and other crises? (Chapter 2)

• What is state effectiveness and how does it affect human happiness? (Chapter 3)

• How does altruistic behaviour by individuals affect their own happiness, that of the recipient, and the overall happiness of society? (Chapter 4)

• How well does social media data enable us to measure the prevailing levels of happiness and distress? (Chapter 5)

International Day of Happiness 2022; March 20th.

 Forum: How is Life; Measuring Well-being. International Day of Happiness 2022.

Some of the priorities for future work related to Reach Human life Satisfaction are: 

•  The development of an integrated framework for measuring household income, consumption expenditures and wealth at the micro-level.
• The introduction of disparities between households with different characteristics into the national accounts framework. 
•  Better measures of the quality of employment, in particular measures of work safety and ethics, of workplace relationship and work motivation, as well as better measures of earnings inequality. 
•  Better measures of the quality of housing services beyond the availability of basic amenities, of housing costs and affordability. 
•  Better measures of morbidity, as well as of mental health and disability in particular, along with better measures of risk factors and drivers of different health outcomes. 
•  Better measures of non-cognitive skills, such as social and personality skills, as well as measures of the cognitive development of young children and of the adult population. 
•  More harmonised and recurrent measures of time use, as well as of time crunches and time stress. 
• Better measures of social connections, social network support, interpersonal trust and other dimensions of social capital. 
• Better methodologies and concepts for civic engagement indicators, in particular regarding how people perceive the quality of democratic institutions of the country where they live, so as to complement expert’s assessments of specific practices within the public sector.

Defining well-being is challenging because it requires looking at many aspects of people’s lives, as well as understanding their relative importance. Although there is no single definition of well-being, most experts and ordinary people around the world would agree that it requires meeting various human needs, some of which are essential (e.g. being in good health), as well as the ability to pursue one’s goals, to thrive and feel satisfied with their life. Since well-being is a complex phenomenon and many of its determinants are strongly correlated with each other, assessing well-being requires a comprehensive framework that includes a large number of components and that, ideally, allows gauging how their interrelations shape people’s lives. 

The framework underpinning How’s Life? identifies three pillars for understanding and measuring people’s well-being: i) material living conditions; ii) quality of life; iii) and sustainability

In terms of its scope, the approach shown in the Figure distinguishes between wellbeing today and well-being tomorrow. It identifies, for the former, a number of dimensions pertaining to either material living conditions or quality of life that are critical to people’s lives; and, for the latter, a number of conditions that have to be met to preserve the wellbeing of future generations.

In terms of its focus, the approach:

- Puts the emphasis on households and individuals, rather than on aggregate conditions

for the economy since, as discussed above, there may be a discrepancy between the economy-wide economic situation and the well-being of households. Generally speaking, the report assesses the well-being of the whole population, though in some cases the focus is put on groups of the population who are more likely to face specific well-being trade-offs (e.g. work and life balance).

- Concentrates on well-being outcomes, as opposed to well-being drivers measured by input or output indicators. Outcomes may be imperfectly correlated with inputs (e.g. health expenditure may be a poor predictor of health status if the health care system is inefficient) or outputs (e.g. the number of surgical interventions performed may say little about people’s health conditions).

- Looks at the distribution of well-being across individuals. This is especially important when there are disparities in achievements across population groups and when these are correlated across dimensions (e.g. when the likelihood of earning a low income is correlated with low educational achievement, poor health status, poor housing, etc.). In particular, How’s Life? looks at disparities across age groups, gender, income or socio-economic background.

- Considers both objective and subjective aspects of well-being. Objective components of well-being are essential to assess people’s living conditions and quality of life, but information on people’s evaluations and feelings about their own lives is also important for capturing the psychological aspects of people’s “beings and doings” (e.g. feelings of insecurity) and understanding the relationship between objective and subjective components of well-being.

In terms of current well-being, How’s Life? considers the following dimensions:

- Under material living conditions: i) Income and wealth; ii) Jobs and earnings; and iii) Housing. Income and wealth capture people’s current and future consumption possibilities. Both the availability of jobs and their quality are relevant for material well-being, not only because they increase command over resources but also because having a job provides the opportunity to fulfil one’s own ambitions and build self-esteem. Finally, housing and its quality are essential not only to meet basic needs but also to have a sense of personal security, privacy and personal space. 

- Under quality of life: i) Health status; ii) Work and life balance; iii) Education and skills; iv) Civic engagement and governance; v) Social connections; vi) Environmental quality; vii) Personal security; and viii) Subjective well-being. Being healthy is important in itself but also for performing a range of activities relevant to well-being, including work. Similarly, SUSTAINABILITY OF WELL-BEING OVER TIME Requires preserving different types of capital : Natural capital Economic capital Human capital Social capital INDIVIDUAL WELL-BEING Population averages and differences across groups Regrettables Quality of Life Material Living Conditions GDP Health status Work and life balance Education and skills Social connections Civic engagement and governance Environmental quality Personal security Subjective well-being Income and wealth Jobs and earnings Housing. everyone aspires to becoming educated, but it is also a great asset for raising the living standards of individuals and society as a whole. Being able to reconcile work and life is important for the well-being of those who value having both a job and a family while, more generally, being able to spend time on non-remunerated activities helps individuals to remain healthy and productive.

 - Civic engagement and quality of governance matter for well-being, as they allow people to have more control of their lives. Social connectedness is a basic human need that also helps fulfil many other important goals (e.g. finding a job). The quality of the environment where people live affects their health and their ability to do a number of essential activities. Likewise, an environment where people can feel secure is important to a good life. Finally, considering how people feel in terms of their own evaluations and emotions is important for seeing whether they are satisfied with their lives as a whole, and whether this is the result of objective living circumstances or other factors.

EVENTS

Join the World Happiness Week 2022; From Marth 17Th- 22nd.