About Us

John F. Helliwell is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of British Columbia and a Distinguished Fellow of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research. He has been an editor of the World Happiness Report since its first edition in 2012 and leads a team of researchers to prepare the global rankings of national happiness each year.

John is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and an Officer of the Order of Canada. His books include How Much Do National Borders Matter? (1998), The Contribution of Human and Social Capital to Sustained Economic Growth and Well-Being (2001), and Globalization and Well-Being (2002).

Professor Lord Layard is a labour economist who has worked for most of his life on how to reduce unemployment and inequality. He is also one of the first economists to work on happiness and was a founding editor of the World Happiness Report in 2012. His main current interest is in how cost-benefit analysis can better reflect what people really value.

Richard was founder-director of LSE’s Centre for Economic Performance and is now director of the Centre’s programme on wellbeing. His books include Happiness: Lessons from a New Science (2005), The Origins of Happiness: The Science of Well-Being Over the Life Course (2018), and Wellbeing: Science and Policy (2023).

Jeffrey D. Sachs is University Professor and Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University, where he directed the Earth Institute from 2002 until 2016. He is a founding editor of the World Happiness Report, alongside John F. Helliwell and Richard Layard.

Jeffrey is President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and he has been Special Advisor to three United Nations Secretaries-General. He spent over twenty years as a professor at Harvard University, where he received his B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees. His most recent books are The Ages of Globalization: Geography, Technology, and Institutions (2020) and Ethics in Action for Sustainable Development (2022).

Jan-Emmanuel De Neve is Professor of Economics and Behavioural Science at Saïd Business School, a Fellow of Harris Manchester College, and Director of the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford. He became an editor of the World Happiness Report in 2020.

Prior to joining Oxford, Jan was Assistant Professor in Political Economy and Behavioural Science at University College London and a Visiting Professor in Economics and Political Science at INSEAD. His research interests are in behavioural economics, political economy, and human wellbeing. His recent works include Wellbeing: Science and Policy (2023) and Why Workplace Wellbeing Matters: The Science Behind Employee Happiness and Organizational Performance (2024).

Lara B. Aknin is a Distinguished Professor of Social Psychology at Simon Fraser University where she directs the Helping and Happiness Lab. She chaired the Mental Health and Wellbeing Task Force for The Lancet’s COVID-19 Commission and joined the World Happiness Report’s editorial board in 2021.

Lara’s research interests lie at the intersection of social psychology, positive psychology, economics, and decision-making. Her research questions include what makes people happy, the emotional consequences of kind or generous behaviour, and the wellbeing outcomes of specific spending choices. Her research examines people’s perceptions of the money and happiness relationship, and whether people reap greater happiness from spending money on others or themselves.

Shun Wang is a Senior Associate Professor at the International Business School Suzhou in Xian Jiaotong-Liverpool University. Before that, he was a Professor at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management in Korea. He has contributed to the World Happiness Report since the first edition in 2012 and became an editor in 2021.

Shun’s research focuses mainly on subjective wellbeing, economic development, and the Chinese economy. This ongoing research agenda has led to new insights into the relationship between the socioeconomic environment and happiness. He is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Happiness Studies and has been a consultant for the Asia Development Bank and the World Bank.

Barry Grimes coordinates the annual publication of the World Happiness Report, working in partnership with Gallup, Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Centre, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and the Editorial Board. He is an experienced communications and events specialist, working across the public, private, and non-profit sectors for over 15 years.

In 2019, Barry helped to set up the Happier Lives Institute, a charity evaluator that compares the impact of international NGOs using subjective wellbeing measures. In 2022, he was part of the organising team for the Wellbeing Research & Policy Conference in Oxford. Most recently, his work at the International Alliance of Mental Health Research Funders supported greater collaboration across the sector.

Jonathan Whitney manages all content and communications output for the World Happiness Report, including media requests. He also serves as Head of Communications for the University of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Centre and marketing and communications lead to the charitable organisation the World Wellbeing Movement.

Jonathan is a trained journalist accredited by the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) and has a background in academic research communications, having previously worked at the University of Leicester. He has also held communications roles in the charity and sporting sectors.

Leoni Boyle is the Office Manager and Research Associate at the Wellbeing Research Centre. She graduated with an MSc in Child Development and Education from the University of Oxford, and an MA in Education from the University of Cambridge. She is currently studying part-time for a PhD in Education at the University of Birmingham.

Leoni’s research interests focus around the advocation for children, particularly marginalised children, within cultural contexts where social stigmas might act as a barrier to these individuals being fully recognised and supported within society. She co-authored a chapter on child and adolescent wellbeing in World Happiness Report 2024.

Ryan Swaney is a Senior Designer and Developer based at the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network in New York. He joined the SDSN in 2017 and brings with him over 20 years of experience as a graphic designer and full-stack web developer.

Ryan has led design and development efforts on projects such as the Zero Emissions Solutions Conference, the Sustainable Development Report, and the World Happiness Report. Prior to joining the SDSN, Ryan served as a web developer at The Earth Institute supporting initiatives such as the Millennium Villages Project, The State of the Planet, and the International Research Institute for Climate and Society.

John and Stephanie Stislow have led the design of the World Happiness Report since 2012.

Throughout John’s 27-year experience, he has designed integrated brands, print collateral and interactive media for start-ups to Fortune 500 companies in various sectors including: media and broadcast; science and education; healthcare; art and architecture; research and policy-making; and banking and finance.

Stephanie’s 26 years of experience, advanced problem solving and ability to distil complex projects into simple, powerful ideas have benefitted major book publishers and packagers, museums and magazines.