MODEL HAPPINESS PROCLAMATION

Name of (City, Campus or Organization) Happiness Proclamation WHEREAS, The Declaration of Independence states that we are endowed with “unalienable rights… among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” and the happiness, or well-being, of citizens is of utmost importance to the ( ); and WHEREAS The United Nation’s resolution adopted July 19, 2011 “Happiness: towards a holistic approach to development” recognizes “that the gross domestic product indicator by nature was not designed to and does not adequately reflect the happiness and well-being of people in a country” and encourages “additional measures that better capture the importance of the pursuit of happiness and well-being”; WHEREAS, ( ) understands that “…the welfare of a nation can scarcely be inferred from a measure of national income,” as stated by Simon Kuznets, who created the standard that became GDP; WHEREAS The idea of measuring people’s happiness or satisfaction with the way their lives are going is an important tool that will help to create a just, sustainable and resilient society;  WHEREAS ( ) understands the importance of creating a broad assessment of the happiness of its (residents) (student body); 

WHEREAS The Happiness Initiative’s Gross National Happiness Index provide valuable data and information about the well-being and happiness of our (city) (campus); and WHEREAS, ( ) is known for its leadership and innovation in the continuing effort to promote the happiness of all peoples; and WHEREAS, The ( ) acknowledge our role and responsibility for the happiness and well-being of our community;  NOW, THEREFORE, be it proclaimed by the ( )  The ( ) supports the concept of wider measures of well-being to guide public policy and allocation of resources. The ( ) encourages people and organizations to participate in The Gross National Happiness Index and encourages efforts to conduct a random sampling of our population to ensure representation of the population.   The ( ) is looking forward to seeing the results of the Gross National Happiness Index.  The ( ) encourages the commencement of local town meetings in town halls, community centers, and other public gathering spaces in neighborhoods, where our community revitalizes and reframes the debate and provokes richer broader conversation on a local and national level about subjective and objective metrics.  The ( ) intends to consult the available Gross National Happiness Index data and reports on the issues and ideas raised our community at the town meetings and other activities exploring happiness and well-being.  The ( ) will participate in the town meetings and support activities as is feasible to foster the exploration and conversation about happiness and well-being.   Signed on this day ______________________ at ________________________

Name ____________________________________ Name ____________________________________

Name ____________________________________ Name ____________________________________