Well-Being in Ireland Conference

Designing Measures and Implementing Policies

Internationally, there is increasing interest in, and analysis of, human well-being and the economic, social, environmental and psychological factors that contribute to it. Current thinking suggests that to measure social progress and national well-being we need something more than GDP. GDP has traditionally been used as the primary measure of how society is progressing, based on the view that a growing economy will result in a thriving society. However, in recent decades people have begun to question the adequacy of GDP as an indicator of progress, especially as the link between economic growth and psychological and social well-being is not always positive. There is a wider question of what matters in life, and the ongoing debate about individual and societal wellbeing seeks to address this question. Following on from last year’s successful conference on barriers to well-being in Ireland, the Health and Well-being research cluster at the Whitaker Institute, NUI Galway in collaboration with TASC are delighted to host a conference, Thursday 6th June 2013, that will focus on well-being measurement and the design of a national well-being index for Ireland, and you are cordially invited to attend. This conference will feature keynote lectures from the directors of the Canadian, UK, and Scottish well-being indices, short presentations highlight key perspectives on well-being, a collective intelligence design session focused on the design of a new Irish index of well-being, and a poster session. Additionally, there will be an essay competition with prizes for the most innovative, critical, and integrative perspectives on the measurement of well-being at a national level. Full details below.

Links

Programme and Registration