Better Days

By Sonny Angara The world’s major religions all extoll the virtues of gratitude. From Christianity to Islam, Buddhism to Hinduism — some reference is always made to the importance of gratefulness to achieving a good life. Even science has shown that adopting an “attitude of gratitude” yields immense benefits — including better mental health outcomes …

By Sonny Angara Just this year, we met a man from Iligan City, Lanao del Norte who had been complaining for months about a wound on his foot that wouldn’t heal. The man suspected he had diabetes, though he couldn’t confirm it — much less treat it — since he and his family relied solely …

By Sonny Angara Economic managers today use the concept of gross domestic product (GDP) as a primary measure of their country’s economic success. Even in the Philippines, discussions on the performance and the general outlook for our economy focus heavily on whether GDP growth rates remain among the fastest in the world. Among the concept’s …

By Sonny Angara Some say that where “oil was the primary fuel of the 20th century economy,” creativity is what drives economic growth and development in the 21st. A 2010 United Nations (UN) report noted that between 2000 and 2010, so-called “creative industries” grew at an annual pace that was more than twice of services, …

By Sonny Angara Forty years ago, delegates from 135 countries, including the Philippines, signed at an international conference the first global declaration affirming “primary health care” as key to upholding every person’s right to a healthy life. Many consider this “Alma-Ata Declaration” among the critical public health milestones of the 20th century, signaling a global …

By Sonny Angara I was raised in a household that put a premium on learning and education. My siblings and I were not given free rein when it came to toy stores. But come a visit to the bookstore, and my parents willingly got us whatever book we desired. That kind of support definitely allowed …

By Sonny Angara Several studies have shown that there are real mental health benefits to having greener cities. One published in the Journal of the American Medical Association detailed a case of how the conversion of abandoned lots in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania into community parks and gardens actually led to a 68-percent decrease in residents’ feelings …

By Sonny Angara In his Theory of Moral Sentiments, the great economic philosopher Adam Smith wrote, “Little else is requisite to carry a state to the highest degree of opulence from the lowest barbarism but peace, easy taxes and a tolerable administration of justice …” Does peace reign over the Philippines? Is the administration of …

By Sonny Angara There are probably no other topics more crucial to our long-term growth that do not get enough mainstream attention than S&T innovation and R&D. Almost everything in 21st century life — from the food we eat to the smartphones in our pockets to the type of jobs our people will have in …

By Sonny Angara Parag Khanna, a senior research fellow at the New America Foundation, wrote in 2011: “The 21st century will not be dominated by America or China, Brazil or India, but by the ‘City.’ In a world that increasingly appears ungovernable, cities — not states — are islands of governance on which the future …