Switzerland is home to one of the world's most thriving economies[1] and also one of the happiest populations[2] on the globe. So what's the Swiss secret sauce? The tiny, landlocked central European country is known for investing in its people. In fact, according to the World Economic Forum's 2013 Human Capital Report, Switzerland invests more in the health, education and talent of its people than any other country in the world.


"Switzerland is a very small country with a small population, and it actually has very few natural resources," Saadia Zahidi, Senior Director of the World Economic Forum, tells The Huffington Post. "The biggest resource it does have is people, and that's what it's been investing in for quite some time. It's led to an economy that is competitive, highly innovative, and has adopted technology fast."


Leveraging the skills and talents of its people is key to the future of any country or institution, and will determine how prepared a country is to face the demands of a competitive global economy, the WEF Human Capital Report explains[3] . WEF's comprehensive index examined 51 indicators to determine how various countries invest in their people, and how they're leveraging those investments in terms of productivity and a robust economy.


"Countries that invest in human capital end up getting returns in terms of economic growth," says Zahidi. "And then countries that have that economic growth are able to reinvest further in human capital. So you have this virtuous cycle that's established."


Human capital is a function of four pillars: health and wellness, education, work and employment, and what WEF calls an "enabling environment," which includes factors like legal framework and infrastructure that allow for returns on human capital. Switzerland topped the index by generating high scores across the four pillars, coming in first in the health and wellness and workforce and employment categories, second for enabling environment and fourth in education -- which goes a long way in explaining the success of the Swiss economy[4] .


Here are five things Switzerland can teach the rest of the world about creating a robust economy and a healthy, happy population by investing in its people.


They have excellent health care.


When it comes to health and wellness -- taking into account longevity, infant mortality, the general state of physical and mental health of the population, and quality of healthcare -- the Index places the Swiss in the number-one spot. Thanks to the Santésuisse system, the Swiss have the lowest government spending[5] on health care in the developed world -- and some of the healthiest citizens.


"The Swiss have universal coverage, the healthiest population in the Western Hemisphere, and a government that spends a mere 2.7 percent of GDP on health care: about a third of what ours spends," writes Forbes's Avik Roy[6] . "The Swiss system isn’t perfectly transposable onto the United States, but it is vastly superior. And the Swiss do it with a top federal income tax rate of only 11.5 percent, compared to 35 percent in the U.S. of A."


Their people are not only healthy, but happy.


Switzerland was ranked the world's third happiest country[7] in the UN's 2013 World Happiness Report, and it was also rated among the countries with the highest levels of well-being on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)'s Better Life Index 2013[8] .


Switzerland has the eighth-lowest rate of depression in the world, which may have a sizeable impact on the workforce and economy. Depression is ranked as the leading cause of disability worldwide, and according to World Health Organization estimates[9] , mental health illnesses costs developed countries 3-4 percent of annual GNP[10] . There is one area, however, where significant improvement is needed: Switzerland came in 64th out of 122 countries in terms of stress levels.


They invest in top-notch education.


According to the OECD Better Life Index[11] , 86 percent of adults aged 25-64 in Switzerland have earned the equivalent of a high school degree, which is higher than the global OECD average of 74 percent, and the Swiss also have higher average test scores in literacy, math and science.


"Not all rich countries have what has been rated by business leaders as very high-quality education," Zahidi explains. "If you look at Switzerland, the quality of management schools is number-one in the world, the quality of math and science education is number-five in the world, and the quality of primary schools is also number-one. For Internet access in schools, they're number seven in the world."


They care about talent and innovation.


Switzerland comes in first in the world for innovation, on-the-job staff training, attracting talent from elsewhere, and for government-provided training. The Swiss are number two for pay being relating to productivity, and number-three for retaining their own talent, according to the Index.


"They've created the right environment for people to start their own businesses," says Zahidi. "And for their intellectual and physical property to be protected."


Case in point: 99 percent[12] of the Swiss economy is comprised of SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises), which also represent 75 percent of the workforce.


They've created an environment where people can thrive.


In addition to investing in their human capital, the Swiss have created a system that allows people and companies to leverage that capital. This includes ease of transportation and Internet connectivity.


The Swiss Institute for Management Development explains the Swiss have followed the "golden rules of competitiveness." As Stéphane Garelli of the Institute told The New York Times[13] in May, these rules are: “Manufacture, diversify, export, invest in infrastructure, educate, support small and medium enterprises, enforce fiscal discipline, and above all maintain social cohesion.”


The World Economic Forum's goal is to bring the lessons of what the Swiss do well to other nations to promote better investment in human capital globally.


"Each country's story is somewhat unique and there are learnings to be had across various countries," says Zahidi. "For us, the next step is going to be, can we try to have cross-country learning? Are there best practices in certain countries that can be transferred to others?"



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    In 1971, a group of 300 flower children and free-thinkers left San Francisco to blaze a trail out east, settling in rural Tennessee to become the founders of what is now America's oldest hippie commune. <a href="http://www.thefarmcommunity.com/" target="_blank">The Farm</a>, located just outside Summertown, Tennessee, is still around to this day, and was the subject of the 2012 documentary "American Commune." Now composed of roughly 200 members, the vegetarian intentional community was founded on -- and still lives by -- their core values of nonviolence and respect for the environment.




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  • Arcosanti, Arizona


    The "urban laboratory" that is Arcosanti was first created in the 1970s in the Arizona desert 70 miles north of Phoenix as a social experiment of sorts, and it's still standing to this day. Citizens of Arcosanti collaborate in creating and selling their signature product, ceramic and bronze wind bells, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/02/16/garden/20120216-ARCOSANTI-2.html" target="_blank">according to The New York Times</a>. The roughly 50 inhabitants of the community ("arconauts") continue living out founder Paolo Soleri's idea of "arcology" -- architecture fused with ecology.




  • Finca Bellavista Sustainable Treehouse Community, Costa Rica


    Finca Bellavista is probably the closest that real life can get to Swiss Family Robinson. The sustainable treehouse community is comprised of more than 25 elevated structures, as well as a base camp community center, located deep in the Costa Rica rainforest more than a mile and a half from the nearest town. Its typical resident is a laid-back, environmentally conscious American expatriate, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/finca-bellavista-2012-7?op=1" target="_blank">according to founders Erica and Matt Hogan</a>, who started building Finca in 2006. "In general, people [who live here] want a simpler lifestyle," <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/finca-bellavista-2012-7?op=1" target="_blank">Hogan told Business Insider</a>. "They want a life less ordinary. They're usually very green, environmentally-conscious and want to live off the grid."




  • Twin Oaks, Virginia


    Founded in 1967, the intentional community of Twin Oaks is one of the most successful of that era. The small commune is situated on 450 acres of land in Louisa, Virginia and is famous for its tofu. Approximately 100 residents live in the community now, which consists of seven group houses along with a gathering area, swimming hole, graveyard, soy production facility, several greenhouses, and more. "Of the thousands of similar communal experiments forged throughout the ’60s and ’70s, Twin Oaks is one of only a handful to have survived," <a href="http://theclustermag.com/2013/04/working-in-a-moneyless-world-2/" target="_blank">Cluster Magazine wrote in a recent profile</a>, "as other utopian experiments collapsed under the pressure of self-sustainability and interpersonal drama."




  • New Songdo City, Korea


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  • Yogaville, Buckingham, Virginia


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    Created in 1996, <a href="http://ecovillageithaca.org/evi/index.php/about/about" target="_blank">Ithaca's Ecovillage</a> is a sustainable intentional community and education center which describes itself as an "alternative model for suburban living which provides a satisfying, healthy, socially rich lifestyle, while minimizing ecological impact." It currently has two 30-home co-housing neighborhoods, named "Frog" and "Song," with plans to build a third (the forthcoming "Tree"), as well as community gardens and organic farms.




  • Polestar Yoga Community, Big Island, Hawaii


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