Consciousness
Portugal calling
We meet some of the women who have been drawn to a life of community in Central Portugal.
21 March 2026
The Happy Planet Index (HPI) is the world’s leading measure of sustainable wellbeing. It is calculated from three components: average life expectancy, self-reported wellbeing and ecological footprint.
The latest edition, released today (14 July) by the Hot or Cool Institute, reveals that while no country has yet achieved a fully sustainable ‘Good Life’, some nations and individuals are showing that high wellbeing doesn’t have to cost the Earth.
The 2026 report covers 134 countries and, for the first time, includes groundbreaking gender analysis.
Costa Rica has returned to the top spot, successfully combining a life expectancy higher than the USA with the third-highest self-reported wellbeing globally, all while maintaining a moderate Ecological Footprint.
Spain has climbed to fourth place, having the lowest per capita Ecological Footprint in Western Europe alongside excellent health outcomes.
Meanwhile, Tajikistan reached a surprise third place, though the report cautions that its reliance on external remittances may impact long-term sustainability.
Other high-scoring nations include Guatemala (second place), Colombia (fifth place), Mexico (ninth place) and Germany (16th place).
At the other end of the table, China ranks 51st, India 65th and the USA ranks 105th out of 134 countries.
While the global HPI has seen a fragile increase from 43.7 in 2007 to 48.5 in 2025, progress remains uneven and insufficient to meet climate goals.
For the first time, the HPI report includes an investigation into the impact of gender on sustainable wellbeing, revealing a striking ‘gender gap’ in how we inhabit the planet.
Based on analysis of survey data in 11 countries, women consistently achieve higher HPI scores than men, over 20% higher in some countries. This is driven by higher life expectancy and significantly lower ecological footprints, particularly regarding diet and transport choices.
The report finds that countries with female leaders achieve higher HPI scores. Women are shown to be more likely to prioritise care-oriented policies and climate action, suggesting that leadership style is a critical lever for sustainable wellbeing.
‘It is perhaps not much of a surprise that women are on average closer to sustainable wellbeing than men, but what really impressed me in this year’s analysis, is the effect of female leadership. Of course, we can all identify female leaders who we are not keen on, but – looking at the big picture – it seems that traits associated with female leaders do make a difference. Given that only one in seven national leaders are female, there is still a lot of progress to be made.’
SAAMAH ABDALLAH
Project lead
Drawing on data from over 40,000 respondents to the personal HPI calculator launched in 2024, the report challenges the assumption that sustainability requires a lower quality of life.
The findings show that high-carbon lifestyles are actually associated with lower life satisfaction and shorter life expectancy.
In contrast, sustainable behaviours – such as reduced meat intake and active transport – correlate with better wellbeing outcomes. This suggests that the transition to sustainability is not about sacrifice, but about redefining what constitutes a good life.
The HPI makes it clear that GDP does not measure what matters. The countries that do best are by no means the richest in the world in terms of GDP, whereas the highest income countries such as Singapore, Luxembourg and the USA perform poorly, primarily due to their disproportionate environmental impacts.
The Hot or Cool Institute advocates for nations to initiate citizen assemblies to identify small sets of headline indicators to define how well they are doing.
These sets should be large enough to be able to capture the key distinctions and tensions between sustainability, wellbeing and inequality, while small enough to provide a clear picture.
Citizen assemblies ensure that the selected indicators have democratic legitimacy and a publicly endorsed mandate.
In spring this year, Hot or Cool conducted a first pilot of this approach in the town of Kerava in Finland, which showed how normal residents can come together and make informed decisions about how we measure societal success. A second pilot is being planned in Recife, Brazil.
We meet some of the women who have been drawn to a life of community in Central Portugal.
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