Economics of Happiness

Brooklyn Flea 6.6.2010 Dean Kelm

Last Thursday, post blizzard no. 2, I stepped into my rubber boots (the brilliant Loeffler Randall pair), trudged through the piles of snow and slush ponds to attended a screening of The Economics of Happiness, the "closed" Cooper Hewitt Great Hall. My friend, gifted patternmaker and co-conspirator Gabby met me to watch this moving documentary about the effects of globalization and the localism movement bubbling up in response to our declining mental and environmental health.

It's a bit ironic, but I really believe I moved to NY to escape globalization and find my "Sesame Street". I wanted to find neighborhood to live in, a place where there were still local businesses, family owned businesses (like the one I grew up in), artists, craftspeople, food cooked from scratch in small batches and distinct culture. Brooklyn, more specifically has provided me with a nutritious local life and a foundation to build a happy life. This is where I have chosen to live but this movie showed many locations around the world where happiness thrives or thrived before the subsidized big boxes, western marketing and the pressure of consumption moved in.

This could turn into a REALLY long blog post but I suggest you,

SEE THIS MOVIE, buy the DVD, hold a screening.

We live on a planet with finite resources and continue to demand infinite growth at any expense.

In addition, check out these other organizations writing about New Economic Theory/Alternatives. Its not scary, it'll make you happy, I promise.

BALLE Business Alliance for Local Living Economies

SLOW FOOD

NEW ECONOMICS INSTITUTE (formerly the EF Schumacher Society)

Some Good Cheez to Kick Off 2011

THIS IS YOUR LIFE. DO WHAT YOU LOVE AND DO IT OFTEN. IF YOU DON'T LIKE SOMETHING, CHANGE IT. IF YOU DON'T LIKE YOUR JOB, QUIT. IF YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH TIME, STOP WATCHING TV. IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE, STOP; THEY WILL BE WAITING FOR YOU WHEN YOU START DOING THINGS YOU LOVE. STOP OVER ANALYZING, ALL EMOTIONS ARE BEAUTIFUL. WHEN YOU EAT, APPRECIATE EVERY LAST BITE. LIFE IS SIMPLE. OPEN YOUR MIND, ARMS AND HEART TO NEW THINGS AND PEOPLE, WE ARE UNITED IN OUR DIFFERENCES. ASK THE NEXT PERSON YOU SEE WHAT THIER PASSION IS, AND SHARE YOUR INSPIRING DREAM WITH THEM. TRAVEL OFTEN; GETTING LOST WILL HELP YOU FIND YOURSELF. SOME OPPORTUNITIES ONLY COME ONCE, SEIZE THEM. LIFE IS ABOUT THE PEOPLE YOU MEET AND THE THINGS YOU CREATE WITH THEM. SO GO OUT AND START CREATING. LIVE YOUR DREAM AND WEAR YOUR PASSION. LIFE IS SHORT.
//THE HOLSTEE MANIFESTO - 2009\\