The (Un)Happy Planet Index has a map that shows how “happy” various countries are, not just in terms of human life but also in terms of how each treats the planet. The index is based on 3 statistics: life expectancy is multiplied by life satisfaction and the result is divided by the ecological footprint for that country. The results might be a bit surprising.

A question arises as to whether this is, in fact, an accurate indication of people amd planet satisfaction. Why not use the UN’s human development index instead? And can the ecological footprint numbers be considered valid? The ecological footprint of banana plantations, for instance, is attributed to the countries that consume the bananas, not the ones that produce them. No indication on the site as to how thenumbers for this statistic (or any other) were derived.