Societies must meet human needs for well-being if they are to become socially and environmentally sustainable. While poor communities need additional consumption to do well, it will be important to prioritize and monitor growth of human wellbeing rather than growth in material consumption.

More equitable distribution of resources and empowerment will require the ‘haves’to give up some of their material wealth, but none of their well-being. Finally, we need considerably more research on the key drivers of well-being: what do humans really need in order to feel well, both physically and emotionally, and lead satisfying and meaningful lives?

This will require a significant paradigm shift: away from growth, competitiveness and personal gain, and towards shared wealth, wellbeing and happiness. In return for these changes, communities and societies may experience better social relationships and less conflict. The material demands placed on the environment can be reduced to a sustainable level. A commitment to addressing human well-being in an equitable way will foster the joint decision-making and collaboration needed to solve the world’s problems. Once success and happiness are no longer defined solely in terms of material wealth, human well-being can be created, re-established, and retained for a growing number of people without exceeding sustainability limits and planetary boundaries.