Vanuatu
Life expectancy
90th out of 147 countries.
Carbon footprint
43rd out of 147 countries.
Wellbeing
9th out of 147 countries.
Vanuatu
Finishing first in the most recent edition of the Happy Planet Index, this tropical chain of islands in the Pacific Ocean has high levels of life satisfaction and a low Carbon Footprint, due to a culture of strong social connections, no military, and significant use of renewable energy. People living in Vanuatu have higher wellbeing than those living in Japan, while Vanuatu’s Ecological Footprint is just a quarter of the size of Japan’s. While Vanuatu performs well on the Happy Planet Index, like many island nations, it is highly vulnerable to tropical cyclones and typhoons, a problem likely to be exacerbated by climate change.
Human rights abuses are a problem in most of the world, including in some of the high-ranking countries in the Happy Planet Index results. While the Happy Planet Index may reflect some of the negative impacts of these abuses, it does not seek to directly measure this. For more information about human rights in this country, visit Amnesty International.
Vanuatu over time
This graph maps the results of the country’s Happy Planet Index and component measures over time, including goals for attainable results in 2030. Learn more about how the Happy Planet Index is calculated.
Happy Planet Index
Carbon footprint
Wellbeing
Life expectancy
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