When UnPopulist Senior Producer Landry Ayres moved to Finland three years ago, he'd heard it was the happiest country in the world as deemed by the UN's World Happiness Report (WHR), but had also heard that this title was...suspect, to put it politely. Both Finns and Americans he spoke to doubted the validity of the report's findings, whether it be based on their exposure to stereotypical Finnish introversion, or their aversion to the concept of an objective "happiness" ranking.

Yet, for the past seven years, without fail, on March 20 (the UN's International Day of Happiness), Finland has been come out on top and been awarded the title. Landry wanted to know why and how: why Finland continues to come out on top so consistently, and how do we even measure how happy a nation is?

While there are valid critiques one can level at the WHR, its findings continue to identify something exceptional about the Nordic nations' ability to foster satisfied populations. Landry was pleasantly surprised to discover that, contrary to simplistic and surface-level explanations, Nordic liberalism clearly explains how Finland and its neighbors top the charts year to year.

His latest video attempts to guide you through the same journey his research took him on; from the WHR’s methodology and findings, through common arguments for doubting them, and ultimately to a place where we can hopefully all take away something that allows us to live peaceful, fulfilling, contented lives.

View it below or on YouTube (and subscribe to our YouTube channel), and after watching, tell us: what does happiness mean to you?