The most deservedly happy place on the planet is the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu, according to an index published recently. Vanuatu comes top because its people are happy with their lot, live to nearly 70 and do little damage to the planet. Said Marke Lowen of Vanuatu Online, the country's online newspaper, 'People are generally happy here because they get by on very little. This is not a consumer-driven society.
Life here is about community and family and goodwill to other people. It's a place where you don't worry too much.' The Economics Foundation, who compiled the index, said that the small population of 200,000 and the lack of aggressive marketing in what is essentially a subsistence economy were other factors which elevated the country to its top-dog status, adding that people in Vanuatu considered themselves 'caretakers' of the land. The Foundation believes that the survey shows that people can live long, fulfilled lives without using more than their fair share of the Earth's resources.