An Ancient Interpretation of the Right to Happiness in Contemporary International Law

Naderi, Anosh

doi:10.22099/jls.2025.53251.5330

An Ancient Interpretation of the Right to Happiness in Contemporary International Law

Document Type : ٍEnglish Articles

Author

Anosh Naderi

Academic Teacher, Faculty of Law, University of Technology Sydney (UTS), NSW, Australia

10.22099/jls.2025.53251.5330

Abstract

This article reassesses the ‘right to happiness’ by reading Achaemenid royal inscriptions alongside contemporary international instruments (UNGA resolutions and the 2030 Agenda). It advances two claims. First, a semantic and philological reading of Old Persian (notably the lexeme šiyāti-/šiyāta-) and close readings of Darius the Great and Xerxes’ inscriptions show that Achaemenid kings framed collective welfare – peace, subsistence and moral order – as a governmental obligation grounded in divine legitimacy. Second, when mapped onto modern frameworks, this tripartite ancient schema (security against violence, protection from famine and material want, and the suppression of institutional falsehood/corruption) anticipates key duties now articulated across human-rights instruments and the Sustainable Development Goals. Where Achaemenid inscriptions explicitly invoke ‘happiness’, contemporary international law increasingly seeks to preserve analogous aims under the rubric of ‘well-being’, translating ancient normative commitments into modern duties enforceable through rights and SDG frameworks.
Methodologically the study combines lexical reconstruction, textual exegesis of primary inscriptions (DNa, DNb, DPe/DPd, XPh) and doctrinal comparison with UN resolutions and SDG indicators to identify continuities and measurement gaps. The article argues that Achaemenid šiyāti functions as a proto-right that clarifies why governance, justice and resilience must be central to any legalized conception of wellbeing; it also proposes targeted sub-indicators (disaster resilience, rule-of-law metrics, transparency measures) to better align SDG monitoring with the normative content of the right to happiness. The intervention contributes to the history of human-rights ideas and to debates about operationalizing wellbeing in international law.

Keywords

Main Subjects

International aw of human rights

References

Addink, H. (2019, April 18). Good Governance: Concept and Context [Online edition]. Oxford University Press.

Agrawal, S., Sharma, N., Dhayal, K. S., & Esposito, L. (2024). From Economic Wealth to Well-Being: Exploring the Importance of Happiness Economy for Sustainable Development Through Systematic Literature Review. Quality & Quantity, 58(6), 5503-5530. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-024-01892-z

Altarriba, J., & Basnight-Brown, D. (2022). The Psychology of Communication: The Interplay Between Language and Culture Through Time. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 53(7-8), 860-874. https://doi.org/10.1177/00220221221114046

Baghbidi, H. R. (2009). Darius and the Bisotun Inscription: A New Interpretation of the Last Paragraph of Column IV. Journal of Persianate Studies, 2(1), 44-61. https://doi.org/10.1163/187471609X454662

Boroditsky, L., Schmidt, L. A., & Phillips, W. (2003). Sex, Syntax, and Semantics. In D. Gentner & S. Goldin-Meadow (Eds.), Language in Mind: Advances in the Study of Language and Cognition. MIT Press. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/4117.003.0010

Boyce, M. (2005). Further on the Calendar of Zoroastrian Feasts. Journal of the British Institute of Persian Studies, 43, 1-38. https://doi.org/10.2307/4300681

Brosius, M. (2023). The Persian Empire: Perspectives on Culture and Society. In K. Radner, N. Moeller, & D. T. Potts (Eds.), The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East: Volume V, The Age of Persia (2nd ed.). Oxford Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190687663.003.0065

Carroll, J. B. (Ed.). (1956). Language, Thought, and Reality: Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee Whorf. MIT Press.

Chetri, S. (2024). Gross National Happiness: The Interdependent Domains of Happiness. In S. Chetri, T. Dutta, et al. (Eds.), Handbook of Happiness: Reflections and Praxis from Around the World. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-2637-4_7

Clark, A. E., Flèche, S., & Senik, C. (2016). Economic Growth Evens Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys. The Review of Income and Wealth, 62(3), 405–419. https://doi.org/10.1111/roiw.12190

Corlatean, T. (2019, August). Right to Happiness: A Challenge for International Organizations and Governments. In Proceedings of the 14^th International RAIS Conference (19-20 August 2019). Research Association for Interdisciplinary Studies.

Cubelli, R., Paolieri, D., Lotto, L., & Job, R. (2011). The Effect of Grammatical Gender on Object Categorization. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 37(2), 449-460. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021965

Daga, G. (2014, April). Towards A New Development Paradigm: Critical Analysis of Gross National Happiness [Master’s thesis, Jindal School of Government and Public Policy].

De Neve, J.-E., & Sachs, J. D. (2020). The SDGs and Human Well-Being: A Global Analysis of Synergies, Trade-Offs, and Regional Differences. Scientific Reports, 10(1), 15113–15113. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-71916-9

Ermis-Mert, A. (2023). Happiness, Life Satisfaction, and Gender Equality at the Micro and Macro Levels. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 25(4), 1-13.

Fellmeth, A., & McInerney-Lankford, S. (2022). International Human Rights Law and the Concept of Good Governance. Human Rights Quarterly, 44(1), 137. https://doi.org/10.1353/hrq.2022.0000

Filippone, E. (2012). DPd/DPe and the Political Discourse of King Darius. in G. P. Basello & A. Rossi (Eds.), System and Ideology in the Achaemenid State. Università Degli Studi di Napoli l’Orientale.

Greco, S., Ishizaka, A., et al. (2017). Measuring Well-Being by a Multidimensional Spatial Model in OECD Better Life Index Framework (MPRA Paper No. 83526). University of Munich.

Guiry, N. (2024, March). International law & the Sustainable Development Goals (Research Report, Vol. 7). University College Cork, Center for Law and the Environment, School of Law.

Hartz, P. R. (2009). Zoroastrianism (3rd ed.). Infobase Publishing.

Harvey, S. L., Lehmann, W. P., & Slocum, J. (2024). Old Iranian [Online edition]. The University of Texas at Austin, College of Liberal Arts, Linguistics Research Center.

Ilias Bantekas and Katerina Akestoridi, ‘Sustainable Development Goals, Between Politics and Soft Law: The Emergence of Political Normativity in International Law’ (2023) 37(4) Emory International Law Review 499.

Iriarte, L., & Musikanski, L. (2019). Bridging the Gap between the Sustainable Development Goals and Happiness Metrics. International Journal of Community Well-Being, 1(2), 115-135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42413-018-0012-2

Jeon, M. & Shin, M. (2014). An Analysis of Factors Influencing Individually and Socially Oriented Happiness: The Case of Seoul. Korean Journal of Policy Studies, 29(2), 43-69. http://dx.doi.org/10.52372/kjps29203

Joshanloo, M. (2015). Conceptions of Happiness and Identity Integration in Iran: A Situated Perspective. Middle East Journal of Positive Psychology, 1(1), 24-35.

Kent, R. G. (1953). Old Persian: Grammar, Texts, Lexicon (2nd ed.). American Oriental Society.

Krishnan, L. (2024). Happiness Research from the Psychological Perspective: Thoughts of an Optimist. In S. Chetri, T. Dutta, et al. (Eds.), Handbook of Happiness: Reflections and Praxis from Around the World. Springer. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1007/978-981-99-2637-4_1

Kubiszewski, I., Mulder, K., Jarvis, D., & Costanza, R. (2022). Toward better measurement of sustainable development and wellbeing: A small number of SDG indicators reliably predict life satisfaction. Sustainable Development (Bradford, West Yorkshire, England), 30(1), 139–148. https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.2234

Kuhrt, A. (2007). The Persian Empire: A Corpus of Sources from the Achaemenid Period. Routledge.

Leslie-Anne Duvic-Paoli. (2021). From Aspirational Politics to Soft Law?: Exploring the International Legal Effects of Sustainable Development Goal 7 on Affordable and Clean Energy. Melbourne Journal of International Law, 22(1), 1-23.

Liao, S. M. (2015, June 18). Human Rights as Fundamental Conditions for a Good Life. In R. Cruft, S. M. Liao, & M. Renzo (Eds.), Philosophical Foundations of Human Rights [Online edition]. Oxford Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199688623.003.0004

Lincoln, B. (2008). The Role of Religion in Achaemenian Imperialism. In N. Brisch (Ed.), Religion and Power: Divine Kingship in the Ancient World and Beyond. Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.

Lincoln, B. (2012). Happiness for Mankind: Achaemenian Religion and the Imperial Project. Peeters Publishers.

Llewellyn-Jones, L. (2023). Persians: The Age of the Great Kings. Wildfire.

Malandra, W. W. (1983). An Introduction to Ancient Iranian Religion: Readings from the Avesta and Achaemenid Inscriptions. University of Minnesota Press.

Mitchell, C. (2014). A Note on the Creation Formula in Zechariah 12:1–8; Isaiah 42:5–6; and Old Persian Inscriptions. Journal of Biblical Literature, 133(2), 305-308. https://doi.org/10.1353/jbl.2014.0026

Mitchell, C. (2015). Achaemenid Persian Concepts Pertaining to Covenant and Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. In R. J. Bautch & G. N. Knoppers (Eds.), Covenant in the Persian Period: From Genesis to Chronicles (1st ed.). Eisenbrauns. https://doi.org/10.5325/j.ctv18r6r64.19

Omri, A., & Ben Mabrouk, N. (2020). Good governance for sustainable development goals: Getting ahead of the pack or falling behind? Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 83, 106388–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2020.106388

Ott, J. C. (2011). Government and Happiness in 130 Nations: Good Governance Fosters Higher Level and More Equality of Happiness. Social Indicators Research, 102(1), 3–22. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-010-9719-z

Perlovsky, L. (2009). Language and emotions: Emotional Sapir–Whorf Hypothesis. Neural Networks, 22(5), 518-526. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neunet.2009.06.034

Regier, T., & Xu, Y. (2017). The Sapir‐Whorf Hypothesis and Inference Under Uncertainty. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Cognitive Science, 8(6), e1440-n/a. https://doi.org/10.1002/wcs.1440

Research Papers

Shagoshtasbi, M. & Hasanzadeh Niri, M. (2023). Joy and Happiness in the Ancient Iranian Texts’ (2023) 14(2) Classical Persian Literature 159.

Tabibzadeh, P. & Lorinejad, M. (2024). The Right to Happiness in light of Sustainable Development Goals. Public Law Studies Quarterly, 53(4), 2081-2104. https://doi.org/10.22059/jplsq.2021.321652.2748

Tideman, S. G. (2009). Gross National Happiness: Towards a New Paradigm in Economics. Center for Bhutan Studies.

Ura, K. (2015, December). The experience of Gross National Happiness as Development Framework (Working Paper No. 42). Asian Development Bank.

van Norren, D. E. (2020). The Sustainable Development Goals viewed through Gross National Happiness, Ubuntu, and Buen Vivir. International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, 20(3), 431-458. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10784-020-09487-3

Vasiliki Voukelatou, V., Gabrielli, L., Miliou, I., Cresci, S., Sharma, R., Tesconi, M., & Pappalardo, L. (2021). Measuring objective and subjective well-being: dimensions and data sources. International Journal of Data Science and Analytics, 11(4), 279-309. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41060-020-00224-2

Wan, T. T. W. (2023). Constitutionalization of Happiness: A Global and Comparative Inquiry. German Law Journal, 24(7), 1209-1236. https://doi.org/10.1017/glj.2023.84

Wiesehöfer, J. (2014, January 23). Law and Religion in Achaemenid Ira. In A. C. Hagedorn & R. G. Kratz (Eds.), Law and Religion in the Eastern Mediterranean: From Antiquity to Early Islam [Online edition]. Oxford Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199550234.003.0003

Reports

EESC. (2014, June 10). Let’s Talk Happiness: Beyond GDP – Principal Conclusions. Conference of the Various Interests Group of the European Economic and Social Committee, Brussels.

Helliwell, J. F., Layard, R., & Sachs, J. (Eds.). (2012). World Happiness Report 2012. UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

OECD. (2024, March 1). Measuring Subjective Well-Being Across OECD Countries (OECD Policy Insights on Well-being, Inclusion and Equal Opportunity, No. 16). OECD Publishing.

OECD. (2024, April 2). Measuring well-being beyond GDP in Asia, South-East Asia and Korea (OECD Papers on Well-being and Inequalities, No. 22). OECD Publishing.

State Council Information Office of the People’s Republic of China. (2023). A Global Community of Shared Future: China’s Proposals and Actions.

UN Documents

United Nations General Assembly. (2011, August 25). Happiness: Towards a holistic approach to development (GA Res. 65/309, UN Doc. A/RES/65/309) [Resolution]. (Adopted July 19, 2011).

United Nations General Assembly. (2012, July 12). International Day of Happiness (GA Res. 66/281, UN Doc. A/RES/66/281) [Resolution]. (Adopted June 28, 2012).

United Nations General Assembly. (2015, October 21). Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (GA Res. 70/1, UN Doc. A/RES/70/1) [Resolution]. (Adopted September 25, 2015).

UNESCO. (2024). Why the World Needs Happy Schools: Global Report on Happiness in and for Learning. UNESCO.

United Nations. (1989, November 20). Convention on the Rights of the Child [Treaty]. (Entered into force September 2, 1990).

United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development. (1987). Report of the world Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future. Oxford University Press.

Volume 17, Issue 3 - Serial Number 57
October 2025
Pages 451-480

Article View: 58
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An Ancient Interpretation of the Right to Happiness in Contemporary International Law

References

Addink, H. (2019, April 18). Good Governance: Concept and Context [Online edition]. Oxford University Press.

Agrawal, S., Sharma, N., Dhayal, K. S., & Esposito, L. (2024). From Economic Wealth to Well-Being: Exploring the Importance of Happiness Economy for Sustainable Development Through Systematic Literature Review. Quality & Quantity, 58(6), 5503-5530. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-024-01892-z

Altarriba, J., & Basnight-Brown, D. (2022). The Psychology of Communication: The Interplay Between Language and Culture Through Time. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 53(7-8), 860-874. https://doi.org/10.1177/00220221221114046

Baghbidi, H. R. (2009). Darius and the Bisotun Inscription: A New Interpretation of the Last Paragraph of Column IV. Journal of Persianate Studies, 2(1), 44-61. https://doi.org/10.1163/187471609X454662

Boroditsky, L., Schmidt, L. A., & Phillips, W. (2003). Sex, Syntax, and Semantics. In D. Gentner & S. Goldin-Meadow (Eds.), Language in Mind: Advances in the Study of Language and Cognition. MIT Press. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/4117.003.0010

Boyce, M. (2005). Further on the Calendar of Zoroastrian Feasts. Journal of the British Institute of Persian Studies, 43, 1-38. https://doi.org/10.2307/4300681

Brosius, M. (2023). The Persian Empire: Perspectives on Culture and Society. In K. Radner, N. Moeller, & D. T. Potts (Eds.), The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East: Volume V, The Age of Persia (2nd ed.). Oxford Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190687663.003.0065

Carroll, J. B. (Ed.). (1956). Language, Thought, and Reality: Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee Whorf. MIT Press.

Chetri, S. (2024). Gross National Happiness: The Interdependent Domains of Happiness. In S. Chetri, T. Dutta, et al. (Eds.), Handbook of Happiness: Reflections and Praxis from Around the World. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-2637-4_7

Clark, A. E., Flèche, S., & Senik, C. (2016). Economic Growth Evens Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys. The Review of Income and Wealth, 62(3), 405–419. https://doi.org/10.1111/roiw.12190

Corlatean, T. (2019, August). Right to Happiness: A Challenge for International Organizations and Governments. In Proceedings of the 14th International RAIS Conference (19-20 August 2019). Research Association for Interdisciplinary Studies.

Cubelli, R., Paolieri, D., Lotto, L., & Job, R. (2011). The Effect of Grammatical Gender on Object Categorization. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 37(2), 449-460. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021965

Daga, G. (2014, April). Towards A New Development Paradigm: Critical Analysis of Gross National Happiness [Master’s thesis, Jindal School of Government and Public Policy].

De Neve, J.-E., & Sachs, J. D. (2020). The SDGs and Human Well-Being: A Global Analysis of Synergies, Trade-Offs, and Regional Differences. Scientific Reports, 10(1), 15113–15113. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-71916-9

Ermis-Mert, A. (2023). Happiness, Life Satisfaction, and Gender Equality at the Micro and Macro Levels. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 25(4), 1-13.

Fellmeth, A., & McInerney-Lankford, S. (2022). International Human Rights Law and the Concept of Good Governance. Human Rights Quarterly, 44(1), 137. https://doi.org/10.1353/hrq.2022.0000

Filippone, E. (2012). DPd/DPe and the Political Discourse of King Darius. in G. P. Basello & A. Rossi (Eds.), System and Ideology in the Achaemenid State. Università Degli Studi di Napoli l’Orientale.

Greco, S., Ishizaka, A., et al. (2017). Measuring Well-Being by a Multidimensional Spatial Model in OECD Better Life Index Framework (MPRA Paper No. 83526). University of Munich.

Guiry, N. (2024, March). International law & the Sustainable Development Goals (Research Report, Vol. 7). University College Cork, Center for Law and the Environment, School of Law.

Hartz, P. R. (2009). Zoroastrianism (3rd ed.). Infobase Publishing.

Harvey, S. L., Lehmann, W. P., & Slocum, J. (2024). Old Iranian [Online edition]. The University of Texas at Austin, College of Liberal Arts, Linguistics Research Center.

Ilias Bantekas and Katerina Akestoridi, ‘Sustainable Development Goals, Between Politics and Soft Law: The Emergence of Political Normativity in International Law’ (2023) 37(4) Emory International Law Review 499.

Iriarte, L., & Musikanski, L. (2019). Bridging the Gap between the Sustainable Development Goals and Happiness Metrics. International Journal of Community Well-Being, 1(2), 115-135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42413-018-0012-2

Jeon, M. & Shin, M. (2014). An Analysis of Factors Influencing Individually and Socially Oriented Happiness: The Case of Seoul. Korean Journal of Policy Studies, 29(2), 43-69. http://dx.doi.org/10.52372/kjps29203

Joshanloo, M. (2015). Conceptions of Happiness and Identity Integration in Iran: A Situated Perspective. Middle East Journal of Positive Psychology, 1(1), 24-35.

Kent, R. G. (1953). Old Persian: Grammar, Texts, Lexicon (2nd ed.). American Oriental Society.

Krishnan, L. (2024). Happiness Research from the Psychological Perspective: Thoughts of an Optimist. In S. Chetri, T. Dutta, et al. (Eds.), Handbook of Happiness: Reflections and Praxis from Around the World. Springer. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1007/978-981-99-2637-4_1

Kuhrt, A. (2007). The Persian Empire: A Corpus of Sources from the Achaemenid Period. Routledge.

Leslie-Anne Duvic-Paoli. (2021). From Aspirational Politics to Soft Law?: Exploring the International Legal Effects of Sustainable Development Goal 7 on Affordable and Clean Energy. Melbourne Journal of International Law, 22(1), 1-23.

Liao, S. M. (2015, June 18). Human Rights as Fundamental Conditions for a Good Life. In R. Cruft, S. M. Liao, & M. Renzo (Eds.), Philosophical Foundations of Human Rights [Online edition]. Oxford Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199688623.003.0004

Lincoln, B. (2008). The Role of Religion in Achaemenian Imperialism. In N. Brisch (Ed.), Religion and Power: Divine Kingship in the Ancient World and Beyond. Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.

Lincoln, B. (2012). Happiness for Mankind: Achaemenian Religion and the Imperial Project. Peeters Publishers.

Llewellyn-Jones, L. (2023). Persians: The Age of the Great Kings. Wildfire.

Malandra, W. W. (1983). An Introduction to Ancient Iranian Religion: Readings from the Avesta and Achaemenid Inscriptions. University of Minnesota Press.

Mitchell, C. (2014). A Note on the Creation Formula in Zechariah 12:1–8; Isaiah 42:5–6; and Old Persian Inscriptions. Journal of Biblical Literature, 133(2), 305-308. https://doi.org/10.1353/jbl.2014.0026

Mitchell, C. (2015). Achaemenid Persian Concepts Pertaining to Covenant and Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. In R. J. Bautch & G. N. Knoppers (Eds.), Covenant in the Persian Period: From Genesis to Chronicles (1st ed.). Eisenbrauns. https://doi.org/10.5325/j.ctv18r6r64.19

Omri, A., & Ben Mabrouk, N. (2020). Good governance for sustainable development goals: Getting ahead of the pack or falling behind? Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 83, 106388–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2020.106388

Ott, J. C. (2011). Government and Happiness in 130 Nations: Good Governance Fosters Higher Level and More Equality of Happiness. Social Indicators Research, 102(1), 3–22. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-010-9719-z

Perlovsky, L. (2009). Language and emotions: Emotional Sapir–Whorf Hypothesis. Neural Networks, 22(5), 518-526. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neunet.2009.06.034

Regier, T., & Xu, Y. (2017). The Sapir‐Whorf Hypothesis and Inference Under Uncertainty. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Cognitive Science, 8(6), e1440-n/a. https://doi.org/10.1002/wcs.1440

Shagoshtasbi, M. & Hasanzadeh Niri, M. (2023). Joy and Happiness in the Ancient Iranian Texts’ (2023) 14(2) Classical Persian Literature 159.

Tabibzadeh, P. & Lorinejad, M. (2024). The Right to Happiness in light of Sustainable Development Goals. Public Law Studies Quarterly, 53(4), 2081-2104. https://doi.org/10.22059/jplsq.2021.321652.2748

Tideman, S. G. (2009). Gross National Happiness: Towards a New Paradigm in Economics. Center for Bhutan Studies.

Ura, K. (2015, December). The experience of Gross National Happiness as Development Framework (Working Paper No. 42). Asian Development Bank.

van Norren, D. E. (2020). The Sustainable Development Goals viewed through Gross National Happiness, Ubuntu, and Buen Vivir. International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, 20(3), 431-458. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10784-020-09487-3

Wan, T. T. W. (2023). Constitutionalization of Happiness: A Global and Comparative Inquiry. German Law Journal, 24(7), 1209-1236. https://doi.org/10.1017/glj.2023.84

Wiesehöfer, J. (2014, January 23). Law and Religion in Achaemenid Ira. In A. C. Hagedorn & R. G. Kratz (Eds.), Law and Religion in the Eastern Mediterranean: From Antiquity to Early Islam [Online edition]. Oxford Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199550234.003.0003

EESC. (2014, June 10). Let’s Talk Happiness: Beyond GDP – Principal Conclusions. Conference of the Various Interests Group of the European Economic and Social Committee, Brussels.

Helliwell, J. F., Layard, R., & Sachs, J. (Eds.). (2012). World Happiness Report 2012. UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

OECD. (2024, March 1). Measuring Subjective Well-Being Across OECD Countries (OECD Policy Insights on Well-being, Inclusion and Equal Opportunity, No. 16). OECD Publishing.

OECD. (2024, April 2). Measuring well-being beyond GDP in Asia, South-East Asia and Korea (OECD Papers on Well-being and Inequalities, No. 22). OECD Publishing.

State Council Information Office of the People’s Republic of China. (2023). A Global Community of Shared Future: China’s Proposals and Actions.

United Nations General Assembly. (2011, August 25). Happiness: Towards a holistic approach to development (GA Res. 65/309, UN Doc. A/RES/65/309) [Resolution]. (Adopted July 19, 2011).

United Nations General Assembly. (2012, July 12). International Day of Happiness (GA Res. 66/281, UN Doc. A/RES/66/281) [Resolution]. (Adopted June 28, 2012).

United Nations General Assembly. (2015, October 21). Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (GA Res. 70/1, UN Doc. A/RES/70/1) [Resolution]. (Adopted September 25, 2015).

UNESCO. (2024). Why the World Needs Happy Schools: Global Report on Happiness in and for Learning. UNESCO.

United Nations. (1989, November 20). Convention on the Rights of the Child [Treaty]. (Entered into force September 2, 1990).

United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development. (1987). Report of the world Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future. Oxford University Press.

Volume 17, Issue 3 - Serial Number 57October 2025Pages 451-480

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Corlatean, T. (2019, August). Right to Happiness: A Challenge for International Organizations and Governments. In Proceedings of the 14^th International RAIS Conference (19-20 August 2019). Research Association for Interdisciplinary Studies.

Volume 17, Issue 3 - Serial Number 57
October 2025
Pages 451-480