Quality of Life, Economy, and Sustainability

Improving our quality of life must be the ultimate goal of economic recovery and sustainable development. Consequently, post-pandemic financial aid should not just boost GDP but directly enhance human well-being and environmental health. Therefore, we must measure economic progress through social and ecological sustainability rather than purely financial metrics.

This is a time to listen, empathize, and make decisions, even when we face doubts and lack guarantees. Furthermore, through these recovery funds, Europe confirms its historic commitment to social solidarity, which brings hope to us all.

However, we must ask ourselves: how will we measure the impact of these investments? Indeed, if the economy does not improve the quality of life and well-being of citizens, what is its purpose?

How does the post-COVID crisis accelerate our health experience?

I heard this phrase from the esteemed Xavier Marcet some time ago. Naturally, we all want to save businesses and maintain a high quality of life for everyone. However, do we want to return to the old normal, or will we embrace new opportunities?

Since entering the post-COVID era, we have experienced greater self-awareness. Consequently, many people now question whether high economic growth matters when basic human rights are still denied to our neighbors.

Today, health is much more than a list of physical, mental, and nutritional recommendations. Instead, health requires deep immersion and a new understanding. Therefore, we must take personal responsibility for our lifestyle and recognize how our behaviors affect others.

After all, health is not merely the absence of disease. It is a complete state of physical, mental, and relational well-being. At the WHI Institute, we also include the health of our environments and inner selves. Ultimately, the only path to a better quality of life starts with Salutogénesis, which invites deep self-knowledge.

Health crisis vs. economic crisis: what will we prioritize?

This is the perfect moment to redefine our goals and rethink our lifestyle. Specifically, we must expand our self-awareness and global vision of sustainability. By doing so, we can rebuild what makes us truly unique. We must discern what to keep and what to change, learning and unlearning along the way. Indeed, have we forgotten our desire for durability? Thus, the time has come to mature, open up, and look inward.

GDP and quality of life: what and how do we measure?

Since the 1970s, experts have deeply questioned using GDP to measure the quality of life and social progress.

However, the 2008 financial crisis triggered widespread social unrest. Consequently, France established the Sarkozy Commission to analyze economic development and social progress.

Its mission was to recognize the limits of GDP as an economic indicator. Therefore, it identified key variables to evaluate sustainable development. Published in 2009, the Commission’s Report on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress proposed twelve main recommendations to spark this vital debate.

Specifically, five recommendations focused on material well-being, five on the quality of life, and two on environmental sustainability. These guidelines emphasized the capacity of development to endure over time.

What are the Sarkozy Commission recommendations for quality of life?

Out of the five recommendations dedicated to the quality of life, two are particularly relevant to our progress. Understanding and integrating them can deeply transform both individuals and society:

• Six: Quality of life depends on objective conditions and personal capabilities. Therefore, we must improve statistical measures for health, education, and environmental conditions. In particular, we need robust tools to measure social relationships, political participation, and security to predict life satisfaction.

• Ten: Both objective and subjective measures of well-being provide essential information about the quality of life. Consequently, statistical institutes should design surveys that capture how people evaluate their lives, experiences, and priorities.

Despite growing interest, these recommendations have not yet led to real policy changes. Indeed, traditional metrics still dominate our systems. However, this is beginning to change today.

How can we include well-being and human development in budgets?

Should we prioritize health or profit? Are people and financial results really incompatible? On the contrary, they are two sides of the same coin, yet organizations often treat them as conflicting assets.

Although perfect plans do not exist during crises, we can still identify and accelerate new opportunities. Following the rapid rise of digital models in our lives, we must now drive a second acceleration. Specifically, this shift focuses on improving our quality of life and adopting new economic development indices.

Since the 2009 Commission report, international organizations have developed numerous new indicators. These metrics emphasize the need to measure well-being, progress, and quality of life. Consequently, they serve to complement or replace traditional GDP.

Albert Einstein wisely stated that not everything that counts can be counted. From our perspective, however, we believe that economic well-being both counts and can be measured.

In future posts, we will share tools that measure what truly matters to citizens. These resources will help design public and private policies. Ultimately, they will directly improve individual and economic well-being, sustainability (SDGs-2030), and quality of life for people and organizations alike.