Sonam Ongmo, a Bhutanese writer living in New York City, drove to Vermont for our GNH conference last week. Here’s her insightful, amusing, and spot-on report from her blog, “Dragon Tales” (http://www.sonamongmo.com/2010/06/gross-national-happiness-not-so-fuzzy.html):
Gross National Happiness, a BS conference for Hippies and retarded Libs?
Driving up to Vermont for the Gross National Happiness (GNH/USA) conference, my friend Karen and I joked about what to expect from it. “I packed my birkenstocks but I forgot to bring white socks,” I said. She laughed and told me she really didn’t know what to expect, whether it was going to be talk only about learning from Bhutan or something more, ” but I think I’m going to love it!”
As we pulled into down-town Burlington a car with New Jersey plates that said “Zen” popped up in front of us, “Oh he’s definitely going to this conference,” she said and we both laughed again.
We probably sounded nothing different from those who were posting comments on Burlington FreePress.com in response to the article :”Burlington conference to discuss Gross National Happiness”
One said: “Another BS conference about nothing. Figure the useless whackjobs on the left have a hand in it.”
Another said: ‘Bhutan’s current king has called for “an enlightened society in which happiness and well-being of all people and sentient beings is the ultimate purpose of governance.”
Happiness and well-being are two things the .gov can’t provide to anyone.’
And yet another wrote : “This was part of the vision that inspired six Vermonters to travel to Bhutan in November 2008 to attend the fourth International Gross National Happiness Conference.”
I have a better idea. They should move there instead, and take some of the leisure class with them. I’ll donate a ticket or two as well… I guess this is the official “Kum-by-ah” conference for burned out hippies and retarded libs and progs.
Findings based on years of research, facts and figures
But sorry to say, there was a difference between their comments and ours. Not only do I really wear birkenstocks (sometimes with white socks), I am not unfamiliar to GNH either. After all I come from the country that gave birth to its concept. And Karen? She may be American but she has been to Bhutan twice and is working on a film on GNH. Yet, it seemed like we too had certain misconceptions about it; that this was going to be something fuzzy.
To those, including myself, who thought this was going to be nothing but a gathering of idealists or “burned out hippies” or “retarded libs”let me tell you this – the conference provided nothing but concrete evidence and facts based on years and years of scientific research, about how the “developed” countries, largely the west, is embarking the wrong path to development and how it is about time to reconsider that path.
After listening to speaker after speaker who asked for nothing but for governments and civil society to engage in a socially conscientious discussion about our environment and our communities; a call for reflection into what we considered “progress” and “development”, I saw nothing “retarded” about it. Instead what did seem “retarded” to me was the idea that people made no effort whatsoever to take an ounce of interest in an enlightened movement that was happening right under their noses. Karen and I had driven over 9/10 hours to Vermont and others had come from as far as California, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Singapore and South Africa. Hippies, tree-huggers, vegans, left-wing, right-wing, whatever – we GNH promoters really couldn’t care less as to what kind of person/people embrace this development philosophy. What matters is that we get people thinking. Why does everything have to be about political partisanship in this country?
Like it or not Gross National Happiness is here to stay in the U.S of A. Vermont officially launches GNH/USA
On the drive back Karen and I talked about how substantive the talks had been. I was particularly impressed that the concept of GNH had come a long way since the 70′s. At that time a 20 something year old king of a materially poor and unknown country, so tired of explaining to westerners who came to his country demanding to know what its GDP was, said that he was concerned more about GNH (Gross National Happiness) of his people rather than its GDP. Since then GNH began its journey slowly crossing borders – simply a concept and guiding philosophy at first, but increasingly becoming grounded in scientific and economic research.
At Burlington Vermont, Writers, professors, activists, academics were now proving – beyond a reasonable doubt – the flaws of GDP as an indicator in the development index. The Financial Crises, the Environmental degradation, Oil spills – it is about time to reflect upon our actions and time to realize that GDP actually considers this kind of growth is good for us.
There is a great NEED for an alternative measure (GPI – genuine progress indicator – and GNH are some). Even if GNH is not used solely as an indicator, it can be used as a guiding philosophy to a development process that can/has become bankrupt of ethical values. It is time that societies and governments stopped giving emphasis to how much is produced and consumed, and judging progress by those standards.
Karen and I said that perhaps it was in using the term “Happiness” that frightened people or made them think GNH was all loosey goosey or fuzzy wuzzy. On June 1, the Wall Street Journal even ran an article titled “Europe’s GDP envy”, mocking European countries like France and others for thinking of GNH as an alternative to the current economic measures and philosophies because their GDP’s were tanking.
Government officials and outdated Economists don’t like being associated to something so airy fairy as “happiness” (although it is what we all aspire for as individuals). What was wrong or so impossible in doing it at the collective level? Research of GNH indicators is increasingly showing that conducive environments can be created to generate individual happiness.
Maybe something like Gross National “Balance”? Karen mused. But someone at the conference hadn’t liked the term “Gross” and had requested twice in his talk that Gross be taken out of GNH for it sounded like, he said, the Grosser the economy got, the better it was supposed to become! which in essence had a ring of truth to it given the facts laid out before us. For instance GDP was not good if mothers stayed at home with kids, it went up if mothers went to work or they hired a nanny. GDP did not count volunteer services, it really didn’t take into account anything that had social benefits to a society. It only measured progress by more consumption, more production, and more waste.
But if we could live with “Gross” Domestic Product, we should be able to go with “Gross” National Happiness, one participant said. What was so gross about happiness? But whether we like the word “gross” or not, or whether you like GNH altogether or not, it is now here to stay. GNH/USA has officially been launched and taken roots in the U.S of A!!
For the person who said, “Happiness and well being may be two things that a govt. can’t provide”that may be true because Americans are so cynical about their governments, but in many other parts of the world people believe differently. As Bhutan’s Prime Minister Jigmi Thinley said: “It [a government] must try to create the right conditions, but the individual himself and herself must pursue happiness.”
