Pathways To Happiness for Social Support - how government can foster feeling cared about. This is one of a set of tools for communities, policy makers and grassroots activists working in the happiness and beyond GDP movement. The rest of the tools can be found at http://www.happycounts.org/happy-community-toolkit.html

1. Pathways to Happiness
Policies to address feeling cared about

2. Pathways to Happiness are ways to address
feeling cared about

3. Social
Support
scores are
strong but
have edged
down over
time.
100= happiest

4. Let’s look at one aspect of social support:
feeling cared about

5. Our scores for
feeling cared
about have
gone down but
increased in
the last year.
a score below 40 means we do not feel people care about us, 80 or above means we do feel cared about

6. Courageous Policies

7. Parental resilience programs
Parenting classes and early childhood support
Programs to help at risk and not at risk families
Parenting respite and participation
Childhood development information
and other information and resources

8. Early childhood support examples
http://www.ci.loveland.co.us/departments/police/community-resources/school-resources/parenting-resources
Example of a city’s parenting resources:
http://santaclaraca.gov/residents/children-youth-teens/santa-clara-0-to-6/parents

9. Programs to foster connection
Information about the connections between friendship, health and longevity
Awareness raising about the important of actual interactions
Areas for play, study, work, picnicking, entertainment & enjoyment
Access to public spaces to encourage connecting
(not virtual)

10. Resources about social connections
http://www.cssp.org/reform/strengthening-families/2013/SF_Social-Connections.pdf
Information sheet about social connections
http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/pag/30/1/95/
Research article on social connections in college students

11. What’s it going to take?

12. Learning to listen
Training ourselves to listen
without judgment of the
other person’s feelings.
Training ourselves to
acknowledge another
person’s feelings without
judgment.

13. Spreading Kindness
something as simple as opening a door
Make a daily habit of an act of kindness
words of appreciation and admiration to a young person
sharing a meal or giving away your hat to a homeless person
giving a loved on a long hug
and other acts of kindness

14. Other policies in the Pathways to Happiness tool series
Campaign finance reform
Guaranteed basic income
Media reform
Massive public transportation
Local food reliance
Village living (cities and rural)
Multi-use zoning
Public spaces
Political festivals
Participatory governance
Participatory budgeting
Anti-corruption policies
Transparency in government
Compassion training for police
Community-based monitoring
Sousveillance
Vote holiday
Vacation laws
Family leave laws
Sick leave laws
Flex time and job share laws
Telecommuting policies
Babies at work policies
Intergenerational care
Department of neighborhoods
Volunteer programs
Mindfulness practice in schools
Social justice awareness raising
Mental health –priority counseling
Same Sex Marriage Laws
Public child care
Age-friendly cities
Loneliness awareness campaign

15. We envision a world where all beings can thrive.
Can you envision it too?
happycounts.org