2 min.
How does one assess the wealth of a nation? The GDP is hardly sufficient! The wellbeing of a nation cannot only be measured by observing the Gross Domestic Product. In fact, this had already been pointed out by Kuzents (Nobel Prize for Economics in 1971) and Bob Kennedy in his famous 1971 speech on GDP and happiness. In the Nineties, the United Nations promoted the Index of Human Development to evaluate the quality of life in member states. This includes not only pro capita income, but also health and education.
In Italy, the “Sbilanciamoci” Project brings together 47 organisations to produce the Quars Reports on the quality of regional development. The Stiglitz Commission, created by the President of the United Nations Assembly, emphasizes the need to shift from a logic dominated by production to one based on a system focusing on wellbeing.
During the 5th edition of the Global Junior Challenge (October 2009), Giovanna Bove interviewed Alfonso Molina, Scientific Director of the Fondazione Mondo Digitale, for WebTv. “We will have to start thinking about officially introducing new indicators that look beyond the GDP towards an economy of happiness,” Molina explains. “We have to think about mankind in its totality not just through the economic dimension.”
This and other reports by WebTv (Gruppo Intesa San Paolo) are part of the special report entitled “Beyond the GDP, the Economy of Happiness.”
See the report:
For further information:
Alfonso Molina’s speech at the International Conference Social Innovation for a Better World in Our Time (Inaugural Session, 7 October 2009)
