The concept of happiness seems to be woven into the fabric of our world today. We are encouraged to smile, celebrate, and be mindful of our own state of happiness. Happy face emojis are used to measure quality of services throughout the hospitality sector, including airlines and hospitals. Why has happiness become so important as of late? How can we achieve happiness in our lives?
The United Nations (UN), declared March 20th as the International Day of Happiness. According to the UN, this day should be celebrate and recognize the significance of happiness in the lives of everyone across the globe. The UN has a set of 17 sustainable development goals, which they launched in 2015. These goals contribute to 3 major aspects that lead to well-being and happiness. The 3 aspects include; seeking to end poverty, reducing inequality and protecting the planet on which we live. There was also an official resolution made by the UN General Assembly on the 12th of July 2012, stating that happiness and well-being must be understood and acknowledged through various means so that they resonate with public policy objectives. The UN would also like March 20th to be a day where people are able to realize and actualize the relevance of happiness within global issues.
The country of Bhutan is a leader when it comes to international happiness day, being the first to initiate the resolution. Bhutan values national happiness over national income, and has famously adopted the concept of gross national happiness over gross national product.
The United Arab Emirates is also following suit, and appointed its first Minister of State for Happiness, Her Excellency Ohood bint Khalifa Al Roumi. During a recent visit to the GEMS Wellington Academy Sillicon Oasis, Dubai, Zayaan Merchant, a student, recalled that “Her Excellency encouraged us to keep happiness as a constant, to help cope with challenges and changes that come our way. She suggested we should use this time to find happiness in the small things we do.... meditate, help people out... it is these things that will help us clear our minds and focus on our education”.
March 20th is seen as a day of celebration in which countries come together to acknowledge the importance of happiness and work to implement happiness when looking to solve world issues. It is a day where world citizens must seek to ascertain the prime role happiness plays in one’s life, and how this affects one’s surroundings and perceptions of the world. In support of this mandate, the Ismaili Centre, Dubai holds events throughout the year, celebrating the arts of music dance, poetry, and the beauty of pluralism. The very architecture of the building inspires peace, calm, and happiness to visitors and staff members.
Moreover, the activities at the Ismaili Centre, Dubai not only promote the ethos of caring for the greater community, but also prompt us as individuals to rise to that level of happiness where each member of the global community truly matters. So yes, happiness can define who we are, guiding our compassion and actions towards the betterment of our immediate and global family. Let us celebrate March 20th as the day when we begin to bring awareness of happiness, and charter our course of bringing happiness to all. Given our current challenging times, let’s reach out to others with an e-smile, a rose, a joke, a call, or a message like the following:
“As we drift through this challenging time, I just want you to know that you that you mean the world to me and I wish you an absolutely amazing day of happiness today and for the duration of our distance”.
HAPPY INTERNATIONAL DAY OF HAPPINESS
Written by: Saniya Aziz
