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 The report, prepared by the Sustainable Development Solutions
Network (SDSN) and the Earth Institute at Columbia University,
showed Syria, Afghanistan and eight sub-Saharan countries as the 10
least happy places on earth to live.
The top 10 this year were Denmark, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway,
Finland, Canada, Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia, and Sweden.
Denmark was in third place last year, behind Switzerland and
Iceland.
The bottom 10 were Madagascar, Tanzania, Liberia, Guinea, Rwanda,
Benin, Afghanistan, Togo, Syria and Burundi.
The United States came in at 13, the United Kingdom at 23, France at
32, and Italy at 50.
"There is a very strong message for my country, the United States,
which is very rich, has gotten a lot richer over the last 50 years,
but has gotten no happier," said Professor Jeffrey Sachs, head of
the SDSN and special advisor to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
 While the differences between countries where people are happy and
those where they are not could be scientifically measured, "we can
understand why and do something about it," Sachs, one of the
report's authors, told Reuters in an interview in Rome.
"The message for the United States is clear. For a society that just
chases money, we are chasing the wrong things. Our social fabric is
deteriorating, social trust is deteriorating, faith in government is
deteriorating," he said.
Aiming to "survey the scientific underpinnings of measuring and
understanding subjective well-being," the report, now in its fourth
edition, ranks 157 countries by happiness levels using factors such
as per capita gross domestic product (GDP) and healthy years of life
expectancy.
It also rates "having someone to count on in times of trouble" and
freedom from corruption in government and business.
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"When countries single-mindedly pursue individual objectives, such
as economic development to the neglect of social and environmental
objectives, the results can be highly adverse for human wellbeing,
even dangerous for survival," it said.
"Many countries in recent years have achieved economic growth at the
cost of sharply rising inequality, entrenched social exclusion, and
grave damage to the natural environment."
YARDSTICK FOR HAPPINESS
The first report was issued in 2012 to support a U.N. meeting on
happiness and well-being. Five countries - Bhutan, Ecuador,
Scotland, United Arab Emirates and Venezuela - now have appointed
Ministers of Happiness charged with promoting it as a goal of public
policy.
The 2016 survey showed that three countries in particular, Ireland,
Iceland and Japan, were able to maintain their happiness levels
despite external shocks such as the post-2007 economic crisis and
the 2011 earthquake because of social support and solidarity.
Sachs pointed to Costa Rica, which came in 14th and ahead of many
wealthier countries, as an example of a healthy, happy society
although it is not an economic powerhouse.
(Reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Ruth Pitchford)
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