Australia Ranked Tops: Happiest Country in World!!

From the Wall Street Journal this morning, they have this headline: "Australia Tops List of Happiest Countries" with these highlights: "A fading mining boom may be taking the gloss off Australia's resource-rich economy but the country has retained the title of happiest industrialized nation in the world. That's according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Better Life Index, which ranked the world's developed economies on criteria such as jobs, income, environment and health. Australia kept the top spot for the third year running, ahead of Sweden—also known for its high living standards and robust economy—and Canada, a rival resource-exporting nation that, like Australia, has reaped the benefits of increasing Asian demand for raw materials. The upbeat outlook comes as policy makers in Australia try to rebalance the economy, the world's 12th largest, away from a heavy reliance on mining and energy exports toward growth in manufacturing, construction, and consumer spending. 'It's the quality of life that one can enjoy here,' said Gaurav Chawla, 27, a careers adviser who moved to Sydney from New Delhi seven years ago. 'It's more secure here, cleaner, less cars on the road and less pollution.' Australia's high rank in the OECD index—based on data from the United Nations, individual governments and other sources—is largely due to its economy."

ECONOMIC DETAILS: Australia . . . "mostly sidestepped the economic woes afflicting much of the developed world after the financial crisis and has expanded for 21 years straight without a recession. Unemployment stood at 5.5% in April from 5.6% in March, compared with 12.1% in the euro zone. 'There is no one under the age of 40 now who has experienced a recession as an adult member of the workforce,' said Saul Eslake, an economist at Bank of America-Merrill Lynch in Sydney. A record 5.7 million foreigners visited the country last year, led by tourists from the U.S. and China, even as the Australian dollar traded at close to 30 year highs. There are weaknesses, though. Consumer confidence remains in the doldrums even after the central bank this month lowered interest rates to a record low 2.75%. Households blame the poor mood on a rising cost of living, an unpopular government, and growing signs a long mining boom is nearing an end. Somewhat surprisingly for a country famed for its beaches and barbecues, Aussies spend slightly less time on leisure activities and personal care—eating and sleeping—than their overseas peers. While locals complain of living costs, Australian households on average spend 19% of their disposable income on keeping a roof over their heads, below the OECD's average of 21%. And 85% of Australian respondents said they were in good health, well above the survey average of 69%. The negatives in Australia are more than offset by the beach lifestyle and climate, said Geraldine Alvarez, 33, who moved to Sydney from the Philippines two decades ago."

Interesting summary and details about Australia, its economy, people, etc. Look forward to our first visit there in Jan. 2014 before doing our Solstice Sydney to Auckland cruise. The NBC Today show this morning also mentioned this story and its details.

The Top 10: OECD's Better Life Index ranks the world's developed economies on quality-of-life criteria.

1. Australia

2. Sweden

3. Canada

4. Norway

5. Switzerland

6. United States

7. Denmark

8. The Netherlands

9. Iceland

10. United Kingdom

Full story at:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323855804578508554126690568.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_LEFTTopStories

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Celebrity Solstice Visual Highlights? From our June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in France, Italy, Kotor and Dubrovnik, I have pull together a number of wonderful visuals of the Solstice, its features, food, entertainment, options, etc. We are now at 6,160 views for this shorter version of my larger full review of that cruise and all of the port pictures/details. Check these postings and added info at:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1803477

Terry, thanks for posting this.

Keith

Where the hell is New Zealand?????????????????????????

Where the hell is New Zealand?????????????????????????

Good question! There were 34 industrialized countries included in this survey. You can go to:

http://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org

in order to get ALL of the details and specifics from this research.

As best I can determine, NZ was close to the top ten, but its income was considered below average. Here are some of the details for what they said on your country: "New Zealand performs exceptionally well in overall well-being, as shown by the fact that it ranks among the top countries in a large number of topics in the Better Life Index. Money, while it cannot buy happiness, is an important means to achieving higher living standards. In New-Zealand, the average household net-adjusted disposable income is 21 892 USD a year, less than the OECD average of 23 047 USD a year. But there is a considerable gap between the richest and poorest – the top 20% of the population earn five times as much as the bottom 20%. In terms of employment, 73% of people aged 15 to 64 in New-Zealand have a paid job, above the OECD employment average of 66%. Some 78% of men are in paid work, compared with 67% of women. People in New-Zealand work 1 762 hours a year, slightly less than the OECD average of 1 776 hours. Around 13% of employees work very long hours, more than the OECD average of 9%, with 20% of men working very long hours compared with 6% for women."

Here are some eduction, demographics, other details for NZ: "Having a good education is an important requisite for finding a job. In New-Zealand, 73% of adults aged 25-64 have earned the equivalent of a high-school degree, close to the OECD average of 74%. This is slightly truer of men than women, as 74% of men have successfully completed high-school compared with 72% of women. New-Zealand is a top-performing country in terms of the quality of its educational system. The average student scored 524 in reading literacy, maths and science in the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). This score is higher than the OECD average of 497, making New-Zealand one of the strongest OECD countries in students’ skills. On average in New-Zealand, girls outperformed boys by 15 points, higher than the average OECD gap of 9 points. In terms of health, life expectancy at birth in New-Zealand is 81 years, one year higher than the OECD average of 80 years. Life expectancy for women is 83 years, compared with 79 for men. The level of atmospheric PM10 – tiny air pollutant particles small enough to enter and cause damage to the lungs –is 12 micrograms per cubic meter, considerably lower than the OECD average of 21 micrograms per cubic meter. New-Zealand also does well in terms of water quality, as 88% of people say they are satisfied with the quality of their water, higher than the 84% OECD average. Concerning the public sphere, there is a strong sense of community and high levels of civic participation in New-Zealand, where 93% of people believe that they know someone they could rely on in time of need, higher than the OECD average of 90%. Voter turnout, a measure of public trust in government and of citizens’ participation in the political process, was 74% during recent elections, higher than the OECD average of 72%. Voter turnout for the top 20% of the population is an estimated 81%, whereas the participation rate of the bottom 20% is an estimated 75%. This 6 percentage point difference is lower than the OECD average difference of 12 percentage points, and suggests there is broad social inclusion in New Zealand’s democratic institutions."

NZ SUMMARY POINTS: "In general, 83% of people in New-Zealand say they have more positive experiences in an average day (feelings of rest, pride in accomplishment, enjoyment, etc) than negative ones (pain, worry, sadness, boredom, etc), more than OECD average of 80%."

From everything we have heard and that I have read, NZ ranks very high with great people, etc. Don't know why NZ is not in the top ten in this research. On their website, you can dig deeper in all of these various data items. Compared to Australia, NZ ranked significantly behind its western neighbor in these five key categories: housing, income, jobs, community and education. In five other categories, they were very close. NZ was much better than Australia for "work-life balance".

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 131,454 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

Thanks Terry fascinating.

Was born in NZ and have lived in UK for 30 years and in no way can I see them in position 10. Have also lived in Caribbean and East Africa.

I think on balance NZ is a fantastic place to live (money is very tight for 60% of population) We lost everything (commercially) in the earthquakes but as long as I can afford a couple of cruises a year life's a goodin.\

thanks again for your interesting articles

Paul

Having been to both countries, I would say NZ is ther calmest country in the world (except for Auckland rush hour). Driving during the work day and schools in session, there is lite traffic (or nonexistent on parts of South Island) It;s a drivers dream.

It take exception to the comment to light traffic in Aus. Melbourne and Sydney have some horrendous jams. Returning from the Great Ocean Hiway, traffic was backed up (going the other way thankfully) at least 5 miles.

Australians are happy with their economic situation (very high standard of living).

Sydney absolutely has some awful traffic! Also very high real estate prices making it difficult for young people to access the market. Which in turn puts pressure on their parents (like us) to assist. High life expectancy means many people in their nineties requiring long term care placements, the cost often partly funded by their children (like us)

Not really complaining, but we would have a fantastic standard of living if we didn't feel the need to assist two married daughters as well as two very elderly mothers!!