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IMAGINE
and does not exploit other people, the environment, or future generations."
Catherine O'Brien
The Sustainable Happiness Course
“Advancing the concept of Sustainable Happiness for us individually and collectively is more timely and important than ever.”
Jeffrey S. Oxendine
Associate Dean
Public Health Practice
UC Berkeley School of Public Health
Lessons in Sustainable Happiness
for teachers and students
Listen
to Catherine interviewed at the UN
Taking Happiness to the Next Level
Sustainable happiness offers a fresh approach to happiness that invites reflection on sustainability issues coupled with opportunities to enhance our quality of life and contribute to individual, community, and global wellbeing. It may also be used to motivate behaviour change through compassion for others and the environment that sustains us. The concept of sustainable happiness was developed by O’Brien (2005) in order to draw attention to the consequences, both positive and adverse, of how individuals, communities, and nations pursue happiness.
Sustainable happiness has been incorporated into post-secondary courses at Cape Breton University, UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health, and Stanford University. It is a core theme for the online course in sustainable happiness for the general public.
Dr. O’Brien’s work has been recognized internationally and in 2012 she was an invited participant at the UN High Level Meeting on Happiness and Wellbeing.
