Happiness&Wellbeing: Maria Paola Chiesi at the Vatican workshop

The Covid-19 pandemic has been certainly an opportunity to reflect on the lifestyle of our society and on the future of the new generations. Alongside the health crisis, however, on the path to our “normal” life, the risk is to forget other equally important crises, such as the social and climate ones. It is therefore essential that world leaders work together for the development of the planet, to ensure the well-being and happiness of all individuals.

This was the main topic of the workshop "Happiness & Wellbeing", held by the Vatican last Tuesday, May 26. The event was the conclusion of a long collaborative work that began in 2019 and it was organized by the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences and the UN SDSN (United National Sustainable Development Solutions Network), with the support of the Chiesi Foundation.

The workshop was attended, even if only virtually, by experts and representatives of religious institutions from all over the world. Also Maria Paola Chiesi, Shared Value & Sustainability Head, took part to the event, addressing her speech on the impact of Covid-19 on the well-being of communities and the possible solutions for an economic and social recovery, finally equal and sustainable.

Here below a significant part of her speech:

“We need leaders in our institutions, who have this long-term vision, who have the courage to guide us to new patterns of prosperity. We need strong rules that clearly indicate the way forward with no compromises. The economy is already damaged. We are at the starting blocks and we must make the right choices. We need virtuous, regenerative companies that leverage business as a force for good, which see profit as a mean as opposed to an end. These companies have a clear purpose to solve societal challenges and profit is necessary to the long-term sustainability of the company itself”.