Iceland

Now why in the world am I writing about Iceland? This country has been in my mind since I read that Iceland is found to be best able to give citizens a long and happy life. Using carbon efficiency, life satisfaction and life expectancy, the European Happy Planet Index reveals for the first time the carbon efficiency with which 30 European nations produce long, happy lives for their citizens

Iceland, as you all may know is cold throughout the year and the highest air temperature recorded was 30.5°C (86.9°F) on 22 June 1939 at Teigarhorn on the southeastern coast.
As per CIA world fact book, literacy, longevity, income, and social cohesion are first-rate by world standards.

Today, Iceland is a developed country, the world's fifth and second in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) per capita and human development respectively
Iceland is the fifth most productive country in the world based on GDP per capita at purchasing power parity. It is also ranked second on the 2006 United Nations Human Development Index. Renewable energy in Iceland provides over 70% of the nation's primary energy[10] and the country expects to be energy-independent by 2050.

Energy dependant by 2050? Now which other so called biggest country can boast this? We predict that so and so country will grow by leaps and bounds but can it ever beat the record of Iceland?

Life satisfaction – now aren’t we all slogging just for this? So how did Iceland achieve this? What has it done specifically to make its citizen happy and satisfied with an unemployment rate of 1.3% (2006 est.) which is among the lowest in the European Economic Area.

I am not sure how. But this country can teach us a few things which we are refusing to acknowledge in this present rat race. Burning fossil fuels by tons and building high rise buildings can never give the citizens a happy and satisfied life.

Countries that have most closely followed the Anglo-Saxon, strongly market-led economic model show up as the least efficient. These findings question what the economy is there for. What is the point if we burn vast quantities of fossil fuels to make, buy and consume ever more stuff, without noticeably benefiting our well-being? We know that someone is just as likely to have high life satisfaction while living within their environmental means, as someone who recklessly over-consumes. So, what is preventing us from radically changing direction, and reaping the benefits? If Europe doesn't lead, India, China and Brazil will not follow," says Andrew Simms, nef's policy director and head of the climate change programme.

Click for further read.