Europe’s hefty carbon footprint and growing demand for energy is a recipe for unhappiness, according to new research published today.
Researchers from the New Economics Foundation (NEF) ranked countries on how efficiently they translated resource use into long and satisfying lives for their citizens. Iceland recorded the highest ratio of wellbeing to emissions, with the UK coming in 21st out of the 30 countries assessed.
Over the past 50 years Europe’s per-capita carbon footprint has risen by 70%, while life expectancy has increased by only 8% and self-reported happiness by nothing at all.
And Europe is less carbon-efficient today than it was in 1961, according to the NEF’s Happy Planet Index. Scandinavians, Icelanders and the Swiss top the index – something the researchers attribute to the prioritisation of renewable energy sources in these countries.
“Countries like Iceland…demonstrate that living within our environmental means doesn’t mean sacrificing human wellbeing,” said Nic Marks, founder of the NEF’s Centre for Wellbeing. “By learning from the differences between European countries and copying best practices, we believe it will be possible to both greatly reduce our carbon footprint and increase our wellbeing.”
Well if emissions have no link to welfare, why are developing countries like China so set in their ways on their right and need to industrialise and therefore pollute. It is them that should really take note of this report.
Comment by Steven — July 17, 2007 @ 8:45 am
Yes he’s very true abut this carbon more production !!!!!
Comment by Yash — July 18, 2007 @ 7:45 am
it is true fact and we have to think on it very seriously.
Comment by saurabh — July 19, 2007 @ 2:16 pm
vivo en la argentina y somos tan ineptos que todavia no podemos limpiar un rio desde 1880, las fabricas emites millones de prod toxicos, nuestro river plate contaminado, sera que somos tan necios y egoistas que no pensamos en futuras generaciones
Comment by gabriel — July 20, 2007 @ 1:52 pm
hey.we have to do something.if we all do something,that little work become very effective.let’s do something NOW
Comment by karl — July 20, 2007 @ 2:36 pm
Could you like, divide the spanish stuff into two sections with the other part in english so everyone may understand? It’s always fun to see what everyone writes
Comment by Jay — July 24, 2007 @ 7:27 pm
I hope that people will learn from this report. Since the austere days of the second world war and the aftermath when people had almost nothing compared to today the people of Europe have all sought to have as much as they wanted. (or thought they wanted to be “happier”
This hasn’t worked and its costing us the earth, literally.
No return to WW2, but we could use modern technology coupled with a less demanding attitude to change the course of the problem positively.
Comment by GregD — July 26, 2007 @ 7:27 am