'The Economics of Happiness' Makes a Case for Simplicity

By: iO Staff, April 5, 2012

Helena Norberg-Hodge - Pictured here on location in Ladakh, the filmmaker is an analyst of the impact of the global economy on cultures and agriculture worldwide, a pioneer of the localization movement, and the founder and director of the International Society for Ecology and Culture (ISEC).

They say money can't buy love. Can it buy happiness? Is it possible to be happy, even if you're materially poor? How can communities share their resources to become more self-sufficient, sustainable and, well, happier?

These questions and more will be addressed in a screening of the award-winning documentary, The Economics of Happiness at noon on Saturday, April 7 at the Falmouth Public Library. Attendees are invited for lunch and questions and answers with the filmmaker, Helena Norberg-Hodge, following the film.

This free and public event is co-sponsored by the Citizens for Economic and Ecological Sustainability, Coonamessett Farm, Falmouth Climate Action Team, Falmouth Farmers Market and the Green Center.

Five years in the making, The Economics of Happiness outlines realistic solutions for global problems, drawing inspiration from the emerging worldwide movement for economic localization—from urban gardens in Detroit, Transition Towns, hands-on education in Japan, community farming in India and cultural preservation in Peru.

All around the world, people are resisting globalization and consolidation of corporate power and rebuilding on a more human scale with ecological economies based on a new paradigm: the economics of happiness. The film shows that the solutions to the most pressing environmental, economic and social crises can simultaneously improve one’s quality of life.

The film features acclaimed economists, environmentalists and scholars, including Vandana Shiva, British parliamentarian Zac Goldsmith, Bill McKibben, David Korten, Juliet Schor, Richard Heinberg, Bhutanese film director Khyentse Norbu and the first prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile, Samdhong Rinpoche.