The Institute for Quality of Life, headquartered in London, recently released their Happy City Index report. While a majority of the gold-ranked “happiest” cities are located in Europe, three Taiwanese cities made it onto the list in the silver category. Taipei ranked 46th, Kaohsiung ranked 64th, and Taoyuan ranked 88th.
To compile the report, researchers at the Institute analyzed various indicators that are directly related to the residents’ quality of life and happiness, including education, inclusive policies, economy, mobility, environmental protection, access to green areas, and innovation.
Some of the highest scoring cities include Aarhus, Zurich, and Berlin. The top 17 cities with the highest total scores are primarily located in Denmark, Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Austria, and Iceland.
The only U.S. city to achieve gold rank was Minneapolis, Minnesota; however, Boston, Baltimore, and Washington D.C. were all listed in the silver category. In Asia, gold-ranked cities include Osaka, Singapore, and Seoul, and silver-ranked cities include Tokyo and Busan, in addition to the three aforementioned Taiwanese cities.
The researchers noted that the inherent diversity of cities and their inhabitants make it impossible to establish a true ranking or identify a single best city. As a result, they intend to highlight the cities of the world that make the effort to prioritize the cultivation of happiness.