Luis Miguel Gallardo
Founder & President
Social innovator elevating the vibration of the planet — connecting thought leaders, activists, and communities around the science of happiness and holistic education.
Inspiring people worldwide
Welcome to the World Happiness Foundation.
A polycentric, interconnected network of government leaders, policymakers, researchers, educators, business leaders, artists, activists, and changemakers — collectively realizing the future of happiness through innovation, learning and cooperation.
Since 2018
A movement, not an institution.
Theory of Change
"On our pathway to fundamental peace: freedom, consciousness and happiness become the key pillars of our evolution."
— Luis Gallardo, Founder & President. To reach #10billionhappyby2050 we estimate that 25 million changemakers — educators, health professionals, business leaders and government officials — must positively impact 400 people each in their lifetime. We have 26 years. We can do it.
8M+
Educators
8M+
Health Professionals
9M+
Business & Government Leaders
From Values to Goals
Ten billion free, conscious and happy people by 2050.
Freedom
The ability to be yourself.
Consciousness
The opportunity to expand and evolve.
Happiness
The lived experience of being well.
01 · Founders, Patronage & Board
A council of leaders, scientists, artists and activists.
Meet a few of the voices shaping the Foundation. Our full advisory board spans 40+ leaders across every continent.
Satinder Singh Rekhi
Founding Board Member
Champion of happiness and well-being education. Believes in a simple motto — happy people are more successful.
Philip Kotler
Advisory Board Member
One of the world's leading marketing thinkers. Honorary degrees from 22 universities including Stockholm, Zurich, Athens and DePaul.
Vandana Shiva
Advisory Board Member
Physicist, ecologist and founder of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Natural Resource Policy in Dehra Dun.
Thakur S. Powdyel
Advisory Board Member
Former Minister of Education in Bhutan. Educator by conviction — author of My Green School and champion of Gross National Happiness.
02 · Advisory Board — extended
Saamdu Chetri
Advisory Board Member
Dr. Saamdu played a great role in consolidating the Swiss development support program in Bhutan, balancing both hardware (constructing aesthetically based training institute, colleges, hospital, research centres) and software programs (Human Resource and Training). As well expanding several programs to the national level in Education, Renewable Natural Resources, Rural Infrastructure.
Mavis Tsai
Advisory Board Member
Is a clinical psychologist and senior research scientist at the University of Washington’s Center for Science of Social Connection. She is the co-creator of Functional Analytic Psychotherapy (FAP), a treatment that harnesses the power of the therapeutic relationship to transform clients’ lives. She is a recipient of Washington State Psychological Association’s Distinguished Psychologist Award in recognition of significant contributions to the field of psychology, and is a Fellow of the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science.
Manas Mandal
Advisory Board Member
Dr. Manas K Mandal is a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Indian Institute of Technology - Kharagpur. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, IISC, Bangalore. He was formerly a Distinguished Scientist and Director-General - Life sciences in DRDO, India. He holds a Ph.D. degree in psychology from Calcutta University, India; completed his post-doctoral research as Fulbright Fellow, USA, & a NSERC Fellow, Canada. As a visiting faculty, Dr. Mandal completed his tenure at Harvard University, USA; Kyushu University, Japan; & Aachen University, Germany.
Aneel Chima
Advisory Board Member
Aneel Chima, PhD, is director of the Division of Health and Human Performance and of the Stanford Flourishing Project. His teaching and research aims to answer the questions, "What does it mean to flourish as human beings in an age of hyper-complexity?" and "What is the future of human flourishing as cultural and life rhythms increasingly accelerate?" He is co-founder and managing partner of AT THE CORE, a consulting boutique specializing in facilitating transformative change through enhancing the emotional, social, and neurophysiological drivers of team and leadership thriving.
Isha
Advisory Board Member
交清琼（lisa） 中国不丹文化使者 幸福行者联盟创始人 深圳幸福美幸福顾问 世界幸福基金会创始董事会成员不丹皇太后度母基金中国幸福大使 首位入住不丹皇宫任教的华人导师 Isha is co-founder of the World Happiness Foundation in China. The First Chinese Tutor to Teach at the Bhutan Palace. Founder of Happy Traveler Alliance.
Raj Raghunathan
Advisory Board Member
Raj Raghunathan is the Zale Centennial Professor of Business at the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin. He is interested in exploring how people’s judgments and decisions impact their happiness and fulfillment. Raj’s work has appeared in both scientific journals like The Journal of Consumer Research, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes and The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and in mass media outlets like The Atlantic, The New York Times, Fortune, Forbes, Harvard Business Review, Inc, and Fast Company.
Paul Atkins
Advisory Board Member
He is a Visiting Associate Professor with the Crawford School of Public Policy (Australian National University) where he teaches leadership and organisational behaviour. His research has focused on the interventions to reduce stress while enhancing relationships, wellbeing, perspective taking and cooperation in groups and organisations. Paul is a registered organisational psychologist with a PhD in Psychology from Cambridge University.
Rosalinda Ballesteros
Advisory Board Member
“In 2012, we started looking at a new educational model. We asked what was most important to students, parents and employers, and what they wanted in their lives. The answer was to be happy, to have happy kids or happy employees. We thought as a university we should approach the topic in a very serious way,” shares Rosalinda Ballesteros Valdes, Vice President of High School Programs for Universidad TecMilenio. After one phone call from the Provost to Martin Seligman, MAPP’s Education Director James Pawelski was soon on a plane to Monterrey to consult with her team.
Yogesh Kochhar
Advisory Board Member
Yogi has had 30 years of experience spanning continents (the UK, the US, and Asia), serving diverse sectors in various profiles. His last assignment was with Microsoft India as part of their leadership team. He is the founder of YourOneLife which is a unique, first-of-its-kind, compelling happiness app. It granularities happiness in an objective. The app has been approved by the higher education regulator in India and is being rolled out to impact 8 million students. YourOneLife has been acknowledged by UN-SDSN Europe as a notable initiative.
Loretta Breuning
Advisory Board Member
Founder of the Inner Mammal Institute and Professor Emerita of Management at California State University, East Bay. She is the author of many personal development books, including Habits of a Happy Brain: Retrain Your Brain to Boost Your Serotonin, Dopamine, Oxytocin and Endorphin Levels. As a teacher and a parent, she was not convinced by prevailing theories of human motivation. Then she learned about the brain chemistry we share with earlier mammals and everything made sense.
Mohit Mukherjee
Advisory Board Member
Mohit is the founding Director of Centre for Executive Education. He has also served as Vice President of Programs for Watson U, the first incubator leading to a degree for next generation social entrepreneurs. Prior to these positions, Mohit Mukherjee served as Education Program Manager of the Earth Charter Initiative, a global movement of organizations and individuals promoting sustainable development.
Berry Liberman
Advisory Board Member
Berry Liberman is the co-founder and Creative Director of Small Giants, the Publisher and Editor of Dumbo Feather magazine and a mum to the three cutest kids in the world. Small Giants was founded in 2007 to create, support, nurture and empower businesses that are contributing to the world in a meaningful way. Dumbo Feather is a labour of love. Designed, edited and printed in Melbourne, Australia, it is a quarterly journal highlighting the stories of extraordinary people, living lives of passion and commitment to changing the world we live in.
Daniel Almagor
Advisory Board Member
Daniel Almagor is CEO of Small Giants, a company he started with his wife, Berry Liberman, to effect social and environmental change through business, and Australia's first B Corporation. He is also the founding Chairman of the Impact Investment Group, a finance vehicle for B corporations and other like minded businesses. He was the inaugural Social Entrepreneur in Residence at RMIT, the founder and former CEO of Engineers Without Borders Australia, Chairperson of Jewish Aid Australia and on the wisdom council for Hub Melbourne.
Nichol Bradford
Advisory Board Member
Nichol Bradford is fascinated by human potential, and has always been interested in how technology can help individuals expand beyond their perceived limits to develop and transform themselves to the highest level. She spent the last decade exploring these ideas in the online game industry, serving as a senior executive with responsibility for strategy, operations and marketing for major brands that include: Activision Blizzard, Disney, and Vivendi. Now, as the CEO of the Willow Group, Nichol is applying those same skills to the realm of elevating psychological well-being.
Valerie Freilich
Advisory Board Member
She is a Global Executive and Leadership coach and an Awareness Courage and Love Leader for the ACL Global project. A lifelong experiential learner she is bringing 25 years of wisdom to Organizations in developing individual and collective leadership and caring capacities to thrive in challenging and complex environments. She works for a broad spectrum of industries including Finance, Healthcare, Tech Education, Luxury brands, Media. She is an Ashridge coach (UK) and an Advisory board member for the Executive Women’s Leadership Program at Florida International University (FIU)
Edith Shiro
Advisory Board Member
Dr. Edith Shiro is a Clinical Psychologist and Co-founder of the Trauma and Resilience Center, with a private practice in Miami, Florida, where she specializes in trauma, post-traumatic stress, and post-traumatic growth. Recognized as an expert in the field of post-traumatic growth, Dr. Shiro regularly speaks at large international conferences, universities, schools, and community centers, and is a regular on TV and radio. Author of The Trampoline Effect (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Tia Kansara
Advisory Board Member
A multi-award-winning entrepreneur and economist. The youngest to ever receive the Royal Institute British Architects honorary fellowship, she is the co-founder of Kansara Hackney Ltd, the first ISO-certified sustainable lifestyle consultancy, and CEO of Replenish Earth Ltd, a cause and a collective action to protect the global commons. Hailed amongst the Top 100 most influential leaders in Tech by the Financial Times and Inclusive Boards, her clients include Coca Cola, Bloomberg, the European Commission, Forbes, Formula One, MIT, and Siemens.
Deepak Ohri
Advisory Board Member
Founder and CEO of lebua Hotels and Resorts is well-known worldwide as an award-winning entrepreneur who has transformed the luxury hospitality landscape in Asia. He was the first to create the world's highest rooftop restaurant that has earned two 2 Michelin stars and the first to develop the concept of a vertical destination. Executive in Residence in Entrepreneurship and Innovation and Chairman of Executive Board at Pino Global Entrepreneurship Center at FIU. In March 2022, Mr. Ohri joined CIBER Advisory Board.
Vibha Tara
Advisory Board Member
Vibha works globally for emotional and spiritual intelligence, primarily to educate hearts. She considers humanity as her religion is and is on a joyful journey to raise consciousness of her BEING and DOING. Popularly known as Gratitude Champion,Vibha has more than 30 years of work life, out which first half has ‘Heart and Head’ work, in social development sector, in the areas of Public Health, Education and Governance, with United Nations, Population Services International and Johns Hopkins University in India and assignments in the USA, Russia, Netherlands, Myanmar, Thailand, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka. Since 2007, Vibha's focus is on ‘Heart and Spirit’ based work, by conducting Gratitude Joyshops, Organization Happiness and Holistic well-being through her non-profit Muskaan (Smile). She is also nurturing her recently launched socio-spiritual intervention Tara@Satrikh, in a village near Lucknow, India. A practitioner of Vipaasana, mindful living, wisdom of Advait, Vibha undertakes road trips (Shukriyasafar) anchored in gratitude and kindness.
Nancy Richmond
Advisory Board Member
Dr. Nancy Richmond is a recognized keynote speaker, university educator, and business consultant. She is a faculty member at Florida International University’s College of Business for the Department of Marketing and Logistics. Her specialization is in social media, marketing, wellbeing, and innovating in a digital world. She is a social media expert and influencer with over 300,000+ followers. As a professor and consultant, she has helped thousands of individuals and companies in the areas of social media, leadership development, and digital innovation from around the globe. Dr. Richmond tackles problems holistically and creates transformative solutions with advanced degrees in marketing, counseling, and education. She is well-known for being a people connector and giving presentations that will inspire you to take your goals to the next level. Her research is on social media, wellbeing, and digital education. Dr. Richmond is a strong advocate for using social skills, innovation, and technology to help promote community building, social good, and sustainability.
Matthew Brownstein
Advisory Board Member
Matthew J. Brownstein is the CEO of Anahat Education Group and the Executive Director of the Institute of Interpersonal Hypnotherapy. Matthew founded the International Association of Interpersonal Hypnotherapists, and OnlineMonastery.com where he teaches the Anahat Meditation System. He is the author of five books including The Sacred Geometry of Meditation, The Sutras on Healing and Enlightenment, and Interpersonal Hypnotherapy. Matthew is a student and teacher of A Course in Miracles and offers free classes on Meditation, Hypnotherapy, Spiritual Growth, and Life Mastery Work through the Institute. He is the founder of the Interpersonal NLP Society, Silent Light Publishers, and IGE Business Networking Groups.
Rolando Gadala-Maria
Advisory Board Member
Rolando is the Founder and CEO of Visage Capital Group with more than 35 years of experience as a serial entrepreneur with a strong unique set of skills and experience in founding new businesses, investing and restructuring existing businesses, Mergers, Acquisitions, business strategies, and business growth models. Rolando sits on the boards of several corporations as well as non-profit organizations. Rolando is the author of "Awakened Leaders", a leadership mentoring program that has earned credentials from IESE Business School, Spain, transforming corporate and community leaders to become highly empowered to impact positively their business growth, their families, and their communities. He has been a guest speaker at several national and international organizations including the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), Young Presidents Organization (YPO), and Universities, among others. Rolando is also a pro-bono mentor of startups at Singularity University helping them achieve successful and sustainable business models to achieve exponential growth. He is also an active member of YPO where he served as Chair for YPO Gold Latin America (Young Presidents Organization) and was a board member on the international board of WPO (World Presidents Organization).
Ellen Campos Sousa, PhD
Advisory Board Member
Dr. Ellen Campos Sousa is an Assistant Professor at the Godbold College of Business at Gardner-Webb University (GWU). She is passionate about self-development and helping others to grow. Her background as a business professor, her strong knowledge in the field of mindfulness, and the kindness she employs in her teaching enable her to be a uniquely-positioned asset with respect to helping both people and organizations alike to achieve their potential. Dr. Campos Sousa is an expert in mindfulness programs, serving as both a developer and a facilitator. She also developed and teaches the ‘Mindfulness and Happiness in Management’ undergraduate course. As a researcher, her focus is to study the impact of mindfulness interventions on consumer well-being across different countries and contexts (e.g., vulnerable women, college and High school students, work-life balance, waiting time). Her research has been recognized with multiple awards and grants, published in a top-tier journal, and presented in several leading international conferences.
Carine Bouery
Advisory Board Member
Carine Bouery is committed to helping people and planet live in happiness and harmony, and she does that specifically for Middle Eastern communities and corporates based out of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With over 20 years of corporate experience in branding, marketing and communications predominantly in the Energy sector across the Middle East and North Africa, Carine is also an award-winning and certified workplace neuro-happiness and employee experience strategist, facilitator and speaker who helps organizations foster fun, meaningful and innovative corporate cultures while also making their marketing, communications and sustainability strategies come to life.
Zahra Karsan
Advisory Board Member
Certified in Mindset Coaching, Positive Psychology and Neuroscience, Zahra is a trusted Success Coach to dozens of global executives and a Public Speaker. She is the best selling author of How Do You TAKE YOUR HAPPY? and is the creator of the REWIRE System, a groundbreaking methodology that retrains your brain for greater happiness and success. Her company, GetZEND, offers a suite of products that include online video training and the award winning GetZENd App to help you stay on track with your goals.
Liliana Nuñez
Advisory Board Member
As an International Forest Therapy Guide, she promotes nature reconnection for our mental and physical health. Liliana has a crucial international background and has guided many forest therapy walks in 11 different forests and parks distributed in 9 countries. Nowadays, she is the CEO of Institución para el Bienestar Qué y Cómo, a Non-Profit Organization based in Mexico focused on generating self-reflection, self-care, and well-being in adults, mainly caregivers of small children, generating awareness of our impact on future generations. She loves helping and volunteering when it provokes joy and lots of smiles.
Jennifer Price
Advisory Board Member
Jennifer is a top-ranking Real Estate Producer at Berkshire Hathaway EWM Realty in Miami, FL where she has been recognized with several awards for her impressive sales and premier service to the industry. She attributes her success to her immense passion for enriching the lives of those who put their trust in her. Formerly the Director of International Sales at The Biltmore Hotel and Director of Sales for US and Europe at America Economia Magazine, By nature, she is a giver and connector with the purpose of helping and inspiring those around her.
Silvia Parra
Advisory Board Member
Silvia Parra is a pioneering artist whose eclectic journey has taken her from the world of consulting to the realm of arts and global well-being, establishing her as a unique and prominent artist with numerous international awards and recognitions. She firmly believes in the educational power of art, infusing each of her works, immersions, and curations with vibrant and authentic energy. Her goal is to elevate consciousness, promote preservation, and foster peace and happiness on the planet.
Rashi Bunny
Advisory Board Member
Founder Director, Banjara Theatre. To rise, to excel, to make unbeatable teams, to innovate as individuals, to be a master of all that we are meant to be: This can be facilitated through these fun, entertaining, exciting EXPERIENTIAL Workshops, which use the tools of Theatre, Art, Films, Music, Movement, and inner Processes. That Light, I bring that Light and Spark and Glow to People's life.
Michelle Taminato
Advisory Board Member
Michelle Taminato is a distinguished entrepreneur and CEO of CollabSoul, a leading regenerative network in Latin America. With over 21 years of global consultancy experience, her focus on governance, innovation, and leadership development has impacted private, public, and non-profit sectors. At CollabSoul, Michelle drives innovative solutions integrating Happiness, Collaboration, and Innovation.
Paula Dinaro
Advisory Board Member
Paula Dinaro, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is a renowned Life Coach and Spiritual Guide who has dedicated her life to promoting well-being and spiritual awareness. With a background in advertising and television production, Paula has worked with major Hispanic networks and prestigious clients such as AT&T and Citi Bank. Her unique method, R.A.I.S.E., combines spirituality and mindfulness to help people find peace and joy through self-discovery and reconnecting with their inner wisdom.
Dr. Jayati Sinha
Advisory Board Member
Dr. Jayati Sinha is an Associate Professor of Marketing at the FIU College of Business. Her research examines contextual factors in decision-making and consumer health, and well-being across cultures. Dr. Sinha has (co)authored numerous articles in leading marketing and psychology journals. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Alliance for Aging, Inc. and as an advisory board member for Healthy West Kendall, and actively partners with for-profit and non-profit organizations across South Florida.
Elle Ullmann
Advisory Board Member
Elle has a proven record of success in building brand partnerships within the music, esports, and entertainment industries. She launched MELT Music & Media Agency, an immersive digital company. Elle is about empowering people to reach their full potential. She Produced the “Reel Heroes” series, which offers access to iconic celebrities like Daymond John, Steve Forbes, and Tommy Hilfiger to help young entrepreneurs realize their dreams by providing knowledge on how to access capital and scale their brands. In a world where many are experiencing isolation, her passion is to empower people with the tools for happiness.
Rita Hernández
Advisory Board Member
Neurodistinct global media executive and an Emmy and Clio-awarded pioneer with over 40 years of influence in International Media Markets, with a profound expertise in the US Hispanic and General Markets. As CEO of ICONIKA Media, she leads groundbreaking marketing intelligence solutions, positioning ICONIKA as a strategic bridge across global markets. She is also the driving force behind ASPIKA—the world’s largest community for the neurodistinct—dedicated to amplifying neurodiverse voices across 60+ countries.
03 · Our 2024–2027 Goals
How we build toward 10 billion.
Provide Access
Latest innovations, initiatives, policies, experiences, research, technology and tools that are positively changing the way we feel, understand and act.
Advocate
Equip purpose-driven organizations with the resources to create workplace happiness culture and well-being.
Integrate
Champion the integration of new Happiness Curriculums in educational institutions.
Support
Advocate for and support governments in their initiatives to include Gross Global Happiness (GGH) as a measure of societal well-being.
Create Environment
Create a conducive environment for advocacy for Gross Global Happiness.
Build Awareness
Build global awareness of the work of individuals, organizations and institutions in the field of Happiness and Well-Being.
Provide a Platform
For knowledge and experience sharing in the field of happiness and well-being.
Values Matter
When action is rooted in values, we become unstoppable forces for good.
Discovery
Curiosity leads to discovery. Discovery leads to wisdom and innovation. Learn from experience, expand your comfort zone.
Connection
I am because you are. Bridge your lived experience with the experiences of others — suffering and joy alike.
Gratitude
Gratitude is a fundamental component of happiness — for ourselves, our communities, and the planet.
Compassion
The ultimate act of kindness. An empathetic embrace of the other and a clear act of leadership.
Join us
Four ways to help — Partner, Participate, Host an Agora, Donate.
All we need is 1% of the population to join us in our mission. Are you in?