Every year on March 20, people celebrate the International Day of Happiness to raise awareness of the value of happiness and well-being as essential life goals. The International Day of Happiness 2025 seeks to promote happiness globally by motivating people to share tiny acts of kindness with others and pushing every country to put its residents’ joy first.
There is one major difference between a human and an animal: animals can’t express their joy and happiness with a cute smile, but a Human can always. But to bring a smile to someone’s face, it costs a lot. The rate of happiness is directly proportional to desire. Some people are happy because they have food to eat, clothes to wear, and shelter to live in. At the same time, there are some who are not happy because they only have food, clothing, and shelter but not much money to spend on their wishes.
Theme of International Day of Happiness 2025
The International Day of Happiness picks a new theme every year to highlight happiness and mental health.
This year, the theme of International Day of Happiness 2025 is “Caring and Sharing.” The theme will bring attention to the transformative potential of human connection.
A more caring world, where small acts of kindness can bring joy to many, can be ours when we offer assistance, smile, and lend a hand.
Happiness is not only limited at the individual level, but is also measured at the national level, such as how the country treats its citizens, the quality of life, the ability to provide basic facilities for a sustainable life. There are some criteria below on which the happiness index is calculated for each country.
No Poverty—Still millions of people live in extreme poverty.
Zero Hunger: Around 820 million people are undernourished in some countries, as well as huge amounts of food are wasted every year, which can easily feed the undernourished population.
Good Health and Quality Education—These are basic rights of every citizen and should be accessible to everyone easily to lead a sustainable life.
Gender Equality—Still in the 20th Century, gender inequalities-related issues are increasing. These gaps need to be reduced in order to empower our women and girls.
Clean Water and Sanitation—40% of the world population is facing water scarcity, and access to clean water is another big challenge.
Economic Growth—The growth of a nation is directly dependent on the employment of its youth population. There should be enough job opportunities for youth to empower them.
Peace, Justice, and Respect for Human Rights—So many people are forced to move out of their country because of human rights violations and are forced to live in refugee camps in other nations.
All the nations worldwide need to ensure the above issues are addressed in a timely manner, and every citizen gets a chance to live a sustainable life on this planet. To recognize the importance of happiness in people’s lives around the world, since 2013, the United Nations has been celebrating International Day of Happiness.
Bhutan was the first country that initiated a resolution to celebrate the International Day of Happiness. There is one thing that differentiates Bhutan from the developed countries: Bhutan recognized the value of national happiness over national income.
As per the happiness progress card calculated between 2016 and 2018, below are the top five countries with the highest happiness index:
- Finland (7.769)
- Denmark (7.60)
- Norway (7.554)
- Iceland (7.494)
- Netherlands (7.488)
Among the two highly populated countries, China was placed at 93rd position with a happiness index (5.191), and India was placed at 140th position with a happiness index (4.015).
Swikriti Dandotia
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