skip to Main Content

Gross National Happiness USA is a 501c(3) Tax-Exempt non-profit organization with a mission to increase personal happiness and our collective wellbeing by changing how we measure progress and success.

We are building new pathways to sustainable happiness and wellbeing in the United States. Recognizing our abundant wisdom and tapping into our collect impact potential, we work with local, national and global partners to celebrate and create resonance between what we value and how we live, taking care to include the wellbeing of all living creatures and the planet.

Our History

In November 2008, 66 international guests attended the fourth Annual Gross National Happiness Research Conference in Thimphu, Bhutan. Six of those attendees were from the state of Vermont. We decided the time was ripe to import GNH concepts to the U.S., starting with our small but progressive New England home state.
In the spring of 2009, the Vermont-based, non-partisan, non-profit organization Gross National Happiness USA was established.

That fall, GNHUSA founders attended the fifth international GNH research conference in Brazil and, the following June 2010, hosted the first US-based conference on Gross National Happiness and other alternative indicators, at Champlain College in Burlington, VT.

In May of 2012, GNHUSA with co-sponsors organized Measure What Matters, a conference building a collaborative of data experts in Vermont. Since then the United Nations General Assembly has passed a resolution to develop and use alternative indicators in global development efforts. The UN also declared March 20th the “International Day of Happiness.” The United States has appointed a federally mandated commission that will oversee implementation of the new Key National Indicator System, designed to help the American people better assess the nation’s progress. The state of Vermont declared April 13th (President Jefferson’s birthday) “Pursuit of Happiness Day,” and became the first state to pass legislation enabling development of alternative indicators and to assist in making policy.
From August 25th to October 7th, two GNHUSA board members walked 594 miles, from Vermont to Washington DC, to collect statements and stories that will inform the development of Vermont’s well-being Indicators and, eventually, a happiness guidebook.


Where we are today?

GNHUSA is an organization with a big vision and big plans. We have been spreading GNH ideas in the public and with many other organizations. Our vision is for a happy and sustainable future. We believe that we will get what we measure. Our current measures of progress (GDP, for example) are faulty, limited and dangerous. We want to implement measures to expand beyond economic production and consumption measures to indicators that better reflect our values. GNHUSA appreciates the importance of research and the power of policy-making and collaborates in developing well-being indicators, tools and best practices. Ultimately, the American people must demand this shift to a true pursuit of Happiness.

We know in our hearts, and research has proven, that happiness and well-being involve many domains which include:

1) Psychological Well-being
2) Physical Health
3) Time Balance
4) Community Vitality
5) Education
6) Culture
7) Environment
8) Good Governance
9) Standard of Living

Luckily, Americans are optimistic and scrappy. We are entrepreneurial, creative and inspired to solve problems. We invite you to rediscover, with us, a true pursuit of happiness.

Happiness Trailblazers – Board Members

Rob Moore

Rob is the president for GNHUSA. Rob is a policy analyst based in Columbus, Ohio and the principal for Scioto Analysis, a policy analysis firm in Columbus. Rob has worked…

read more

Michael Moser

Michael is a researcher, facilitator and educator based in Vermont.  He coordinates the Vermont State Data Center, located at the University of Vermont’s Center for Rural Studies and is interested…

read more

Susan T. Schuster

Susan serves as the Vice President for GNHUSA. Recognized as an innovative and energetic cross-sector corporate social impact strategist, catalyst, and convener, Susan designs, builds and evaluates a portfolio of…

read more

Sabastian Hunt

Sabastian Hunt serves as the secretary and communications chair for GNHUSA. Sabastian is an entrepreneur based in Omaha, Nebraska. Sabastian currently runs a business called Habitable which makes magnetic habit…

read more

Harry Brisson

Harry Brisson is an independent researcher and board member for GNHUSA. He previously lead Nielsen’s Media Lab, where he investigated the impact of emerging technology and trends on consumers, publishers,…

read more

Nicki Donlon

Nicki Donlon is currently serving as interim treasurer for GNHUSA. Nicki is a CPA, passionate in serving all types of not-for-profit and Healthcare organizations. She not only serves in a…

read more

Oliver Gladfelter

Oliver Gladfelter of Chicago, Illinois is a board member for GNHUSA. As a data scientist and data visualization engineer, Oliver specializes in distilling complicated findings into accessible and approachable formats,…

read more

Board Advisors

Carl Polley

Carl Polley

Carl teaches Mandarin Chinese language and culture at Kapi‘olani Community College, within the University of Hawai‘i system, in Honolulu. He teaches all levels of Chinese, from beginner to high advanced.…

read more
Sharon Parker

Sharon Parker

Sharon Parker is recently retired from service as the Assistant Chancellor for Equity and Diversity at the University of Washington Tacoma, where she has worked since 2007, as the campus’…

read more

Ginny Sassaman

Ginny is a co-founder and previous president of GNHUSA. In 2011, she created the Happiness Paradigm Store and Experience, which expanded to include the Happiness Paradigm blog where she posts essays…

read more
Paula Francis

Paula Francis

Paula is a co-founder of GNHUSA, and chief Happiness Walker. She has been enamored with the idea of an economy grounded in happiness since first learning about the concept in…

read more
Beth Allgood

Beth Allgood

Beth serves as US Campaigns Director for the International Fund for Animal Welfare. In that role, she assures the strategic development and implementation of IFAW’s US projects and campaigns with…

read more

Past Founding Board Members

Tom Barefoot

Tom Barefoot

Tom is co-founder of GNHUSA and recently served as Vice President. He attended the Loomis Chaffee School, did undergraduate work at Tufts University in Literature and Philosophy, studied and taught…

read more

aeaf18_70b0aa0ba6d5415588288a59ad8e5e12

Back To Top