Three female Prime Minister's leading the way in prioritising well-being

This is a great TED talk from Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

Nicola is one of three female Prime Minister's leading the way in prioritising well-being, the other two being Iceland's Katrín Jakobsdóttir and New Zealand's Jacinda Ardern.

In the Opening address at the Wellbeing Economy Governments workshop on May 1, 2019 Katrin said:

Fifty years have elapsed since Robert Kennedy rightly said that GDP measures everything except that which makes life worthwhile. Economics is nonetheless still centered on the measurable. We have built an economic model under which constant growth is not only essential, but also considered positive no matter how it is achieved and at what costs. This has led to increased social and economic inequality and an ever-escalating climate crisis. It has left us in a cycle of wasteful consumption where we need to produce in order to get by and we need to consume so that we can produce more. 

The Well-being Economy Governments project differs from this thinking. It entails not only an analysis of the drawbacks of our current economic model, but also a commitment to building an alternative future, focusing on the wellbeing of current and future generations. Sustainability is at the heart of the wellbeing economy. Recent works by scholars, academics and the OECD have been influential in reshaping the way we think about going beyond the GDP; we have seen diversity enter economic thought and increasing numbers of economists point out that economics aren’t a value free zone and economic decisions affect our society and our environment.

What are you measuring in your life and workplace that could give way to a more meaningful way of showing your progress towards your higher purpose goals?

I for one am seeking to help end neoliberalism which is the resurgence of 19th-century ideas associated with laissez-faire economic liberalism and free market capitalism. GDP is one of the useless ideas from this out-dated way of thinking.

I'm also trying to help end self-interest driven, self-righteous, conservative politics & everything either/or. Think Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison and the more well known leaders (mistakenly so called I believe) Donald Trump and Boris Johnson.

None of these three men, nor people with ideologies like them are good for our personal nor the world's well-being. Thank goodness for @katrinjak @NicolaSturgeon and @jacindaardern.

Be remarkable.
Ian