Editor’s note: Our family appreciates all that Reinette Senum does for our town. She is incredibly energetic, smart, “results oriented” and, well, happy. The Nevada City Farmers Market — now part of the town’s fabric — was spearheaded by Reinette and some others.
Most of our conversations are not about partisan politics, because most of the problems we face around here are nonpartisan.Take happiness, for example. I’ve never taken happiness for granted.
When I worked at The Chronicle at Fifth and Mission in downtown S.F., I used to run into a man each day, dressed “to the nines” in a white suit. He’d tap dance to the song of “When you’re smiling” on the street corner, and it always would put a smile on the face of even the biggest pickle-puss.
In our town, Reneitte, the Wollman school and others want to help measure our happiness. Here’s an email from Reinette, AKA our “happiness liaison,” about a Nevada City Happiness Initiative:
Can you measure happiness? Nevada City Happiness Initiative thinks so. In association with Nevada City Sustainability Team and Woolman Semester students, it is releasing the first comprehensive survey of happiness in this region, as part of this exciting new initiative. From March 23rd to April 6th, Nevada City residents can take the Happiness survey that could ultimately be used to craft city policy. Though the survey will be open to all Nevada County residents, Nevada City city officials will extrapolate city residents’ anonymous survey results only.
The official Happiness Launch Party will take place Friday, March 23rd, 5:30-7 p.m. at Nevada City City Hall. The 16 minute short film, Gross Domestic Happiness – Bhutan, will be screened. The short film shares how the Happiness Index originated from the King of Bhutan who wanted to champion an initiative that would measure the general well-being of his country rather than just the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Today, this very survey has been crafted for Americans and though an individual can take the survey numerous times, the Nevada City Happiness Team asks for residents to take the survey once only between March 23rd to April 6th to procure the most accurate survey results.
Emily Zionts, who teaches Global Issues and Peace Studies at the Woolman Semester, remarks that the school’s involvement with the Happiness Initiative teaches students to question the GDP as a measure of prosperity. “All throughout our curriculum, Woolman students examine the unchallenged assumptions, which are propelling our world towards deeper and deeper human and environmental crises.
Often at the root of these issues we find repeating themes of overconsumption, materialism, economic system that favor profit over people, and the overemphasized cultural values of competition and individualism,” says Zionts.
Students are also excited about the addition to the curriculum. “I’m excited about Woolman’s involvement in the Happiness Initiative because I think that it is a more accurate way of measuring the well being of Nevada County’s residents,” said Savannah Henderson, Woolman Semester student. “I believe that by participating in the Happiness Initiative I am helping the local government help Nevada City.”
“The Happiness Initiative has been a great addition to our service week because it teaches us about localization and promoting the wellness of this community,” says Jenny Davis, another Woolman student.
The survey is now online at happycounts.org. Anyone may take the survey and receive an immediate evaluation of personal well-being for each of the ten domains of happiness identified by international researchers: psychological well-being; physical health; time balance; work experience, education; cultural vitality and access; social connection; good government; environmental quality and access to nature; and material well-being.
The survey takes a holistic approach to wellbeing and asks poignant questions that allow for reflection and insight. “It takes about 15 minutes to complete,” says Laura Musikanski, Executive Director of the Happiness Initiative, a national project.
“But you’ll find it’s worth the time because it really makes you think about your life and how to improve it. It’s part of an exciting new effort to add quality of life and sustainability to our assessments of progress. It’s being used in many countries now, but this is the first opportunity for Americans to take the survey. The results will be useful to individuals, organizations and policy makers who want to base their efforts to increase well-being on solid science and comprehensive information.”
Getting a pulse on the community has yielded positive results in the past. “In 2007, the Nevada City chamber of commerce conducted a survey, and from that survey we found out that our community wanted to have local grown produce available; we now have a Nevada City farmer’s market
We found out that people wanted to have more of a community center; we’re now working on the Alpha Building Community Collaborative. Whether you’re happy or not, by taking this survey you’re going to help us craft policy that’s going to help us determine our future for a long time, and the well being of our community,” comments Reinette Senum, current council member and former mayor.
The Nevada City Happiness Initiative is seeking other partner organizations that will encourage members and staff to take the survey and use the results to improve their own internal well-being practices. The Nevada City Happiness Initiative also seeks volunteers and financial support to make possible a broad, scientifically valid sampling of Nevada City area residents.
The results of that scientific survey will be combined with objective indicators of wellbeing (eg., green house gas emissions, life expectancy) for each of the domains to create a scorecard for the area that can be updated on a regular basis. More information on the entire project can be found at happycounts.org.
To learn more and get involved with the Nevada City Happiness Initiative email nevadacityhappiness@gmail.com. As well, sign up for timely updates and information on Twitter (nevadacityhappy).
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Let’s not forget Mikail Graham’s, “The Good News Show”, Thursdays at noon on KVMR.
I loved this idea when I heard about during the Wild and Scenic Film Festival.
Happiness will generally come to those despite their SES and many times to those who live a subsistence lifestyle. My brother lives in a town village that has no power, no running water, feet deep pot hole dirt roads, no government services, and average wage of around $1 a day. Yet he says they are some of the happiest people he has ever lived around.
That being said he also says they have some of the worst hardships he has ever witnessed as well. Everyone older than 40 remembers Pol Pot and everyone had a relative killed during the days of the Khmer Rouge. The day I left last year a tank land mine left over from the civil war was triggered killing 13 people. Some who were children and there were several children left without parents due to the explosion. When life is so brutal it allows people to really appreciate the smallest positive things. The US is one of only a handful of nations that will not sign Land Mine Ban Treaty.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/05/14-0
Despite my pointing to daunting issues all the time I am a relatively happy person and attribute this to a low impact basic lifestyle. I am an eternal optimist believing that someday enough people will care and create the change we want to see in the world. Until we understand what the problems are and their origins we are helpless to come up with the solutions.
Happiness is, doing for others.
Jeff, thanks for recalling “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.” I remember my parents taking me to see that very popular musical–it was on tour from Broadway–up in the The City when I was 11 years old. I thought we saw it at the old Fox Theatre (http://www.historigraphics.com/fox/welcome.shtml), but apparently the Fox was torn down in 1963. Dang memory cobwebs…
Don’t Worry, Be Happy.
As expected, Russ Steele, one of the truly angriest, isolated men in our community, makes fun of the effort:
http://2012nevadacounty.wordpress.com/2012/03/20/get-happy-in-nevada-city-on-march-23/
How sad.
Jeff, I don’t know why you read those guys.
I am not certain how happy any American would be living in Bhutan.
It is a monarchy with Buddhism as the dominant religion. The country is very poor, quite cut off from the rest of civilization in the Himalayas, and state dress is compulsory. No mini skirts. No jeans. No tattoos I’ll bet either.
Happiness means different things to different people. Here in Nevada City happiness is at an all time low for many. I heard NC has 24 business vacancies. Can this be true?
I remember a lot of happy faces when we moved here in ’96. They were they faces of the hundreds of real estate agents grinning out from tiny photos in the newspaper supplements, thick with their ads. They gleefully helped ratchet up the price of housing while doing the favor of promising folks with shaky credit scores that, for them, homeownership was realistic.
I wonder where all those happy faces are now. They sure aren’t paving the pages of the newspapers like they used to. Perhaps their good intentions have been used to pave something else.
Folks, the only way out of this mess is to quit whining and get to work and sacrifice like we have never done before. The Greatest Generation did it and so can we.
Blame it on Anna Haynes and her all-inclusive “NCVoices.” If it weren’t for that aggregation site, I never would see them. As it is, I have to scroll over to the far right under “climate contrarians.” LOL.
Happiness is all a state of mind. Now where did I put that yoga mat and incense??
I long ago decided that happiness was a personal choice. In any given situation, you can choose to make the worst of it or to make the best of it.
I was raised by a parent who thought that their happiness was everyone else’s responsibility, especially me. My role in life at that time was to make my parent happy and when I inevitably failed, I was held responsible for their unhappiness. So learning this was key to my survival.
This doesn’t mean that I haven’t had to work through wrenching loss and threatening situations, or that I never feel sad. What it means that I know the goal is happiness, that it is in my own hands, and that it is up to me to work for it.
Gail, congratulations for freeing yourself.
I had a similar experience as you growing up.
I became a people pleaser and for years, a doormat for others.
I am older now, my folks have passed on, but I am good with them.
I don’t blame them.
But, I no longer give big hunks of myself away to unworthy people. When I act on generosity, I am not expecting anything in return.
If I do for folks, it’s because it pleases me.
That’s the way to happiness, bless the day with self-determination and self-respect.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts Judy — deeply appreciated.
P.S. I meant Judith — fingers did Judy all on their own. Sorry about that.
Judy is just fine Gail.
Sounds like fun on March 23…now, if I can only remember where I hid my happy pills..
Make the late Meher Baba proud.