2. Denmark

This year, Denmark held on to second place. The country ranks near the top of all recorded indicators, including life expectancy, social assistance, and generosity, but it is also a country that is heavily invested in renewable energy generation.

Aside from socioeconomic concerns, the country’s contentment stems in part from a reverence for the planet on which it is founded. Visit Denmark in the summer and stay at a traditional Danish coastal inn to get a taste of the “at one with nature” mentality. You can’t help but feel a little more joyous after a few days cycling down the coast, eating fresh mussels and house-made bread, and soaking in views of the Baltic Sea from a shaded hammock.