In fall 2018, Vancouver enlisted Happy Cities to evaluate its Pavement-to-Plaza initiative. Over 700 residents were surveyed in September 2018 at transformed plaza sites and control areas. The survey assessed subjective well-being factors like social connection, trust, care for place, and sense of belonging using academically-validated measures.

Multi-family housing complexes are urban hubs. Boosting sociability requires thoughtful design and community engagement, fostering stronger connections.

In summer 2016, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) initiated a transformative project to envision Vancouver's Granville Island in 2040. Despite its storied success as a hub where arts, industry, and surprises intersect, a refresh was necessary to ensure its continued relevance for the future.

The driving question behind this ambitious collaboration at the Museum of Vancouver, spearheaded by Happy Cities principal Charles Montgomery, alongside four other community partners and hundreds of participants…

We advocate that evidence on design's impact on happiness empowers designers, planners, and citizens to co-create better communities. Teaming up with Laboratorio para la Ciudad, an urban innovation lab, we applied this approach in a complex, contested district in Mexico City.