Ever wondered where is the best place in the world to live in? Well, according to a survey by the Readers’ Digest Magazine, it’s Finland that tops the list as the world’s most comfortably habitable place. The study was conducted by environmental economist Matthew Kahn. He did the rankings on the basis of green indices like quality of air and drinking water as well as socioeconomic indicators like education,income and life expectancy. According to the study, Finland won high marks for air and water quality, a low incidence of infant disease and how well it protects citizens from water pollution and natural disasters.
The Scandinavian countries top the list with Iceland, Norway and Sweden following close behind Finland. At the bottom of the list are the African countries, with Ethiopia ranked lowest. The statistical basis of the ranking is the UN’s Human Development Index and the Environmental Sustainability Index drawn up by Yale and Columbia universities and the World Economic Forum.
Finland, also known as “Land of a Thousand Lakes” for its many clear blue lakes, also scores high on the United Nations’ Human Development Index and ranked as the sixth happiest nation in the world. And no wonder, who wouldn’t be happy to live in the best place on earth?
Image: ICT-UC Europe
Via: Yahoo!, Shanghai Daily, Wikipedia
