The World Happiness Report just dropped, and it’s clear—our work at the Gambrell Foundation has never been more relevant. This year’s focus? Relationships. Whether it’s family, friends, neighbors, or even the barista who knows your name, the report is full of data showing that connection is at the heart of a great life. If you’ve been following our work, you know that the WRH findings are similar to what Dr. Robert Walldinger showed in his book The Good Life.

Realdania’s newly released Danish happiness study—one of the largest ever conducted—also backs this up in a big way. With over 122,000 responses, it found that social connection is the most important factor in our happiness. Not just deep relationships, but even small interactions matter. A nod from a neighbor. A chat at the grocery store. It all adds up.

One surprising finding? The happiest people in Denmark aren’t Danish. They’re immigrants—especially from the Philippines and the U.S.—who consistently reported higher well-being than native Danes. Why? A strong sense of meaning, trust in local government, and the feeling of safety, especially for children. These aren’t just Scandinavian luxuries—they’re designable outcomes. We can build toward them here in Charlotte and throughout the US.

This is something we need to do…and quickly. The World Happiness Report also notes rising loneliness, especially among young people. In 2023, nearly 1 in 5 young adults said they had no one to rely on. That’s why our work at Gambrell focuses on belonging, purpose, awe, wonder, and the small but powerful rituals—like shared meals—that create community.

So as we think about what it means to live a great life, as you would define it, we should be taking cues from Denmark—and from our own instincts. Invest in relationships. Build trust. Design spaces that spark connection. It’s not just good policy. It’s what makes life worth living.

By Sally Gambrell Bridgford

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Whenever I want to have a great day, I start my morning with a sun salutation as an essential part of my yoga routine. The physical and mental benefits of yoga are well-known — from improved strength, balance, and flexibility, to more energy and better moods overall. Beyond these benefits, hobbies connect us to a community of like-minded enthusiasts while also encouraging us to more intentionally experience awe and wonder. 

Exploring different hobbies and embracing new experiences are critical components of Living Greatly. That’s why we partnered with award-winning urban strategist Tommi Laitio on his latest research on the value of hobbies as an instrumental part of our Charlotte community fully realizing its purpose. 

 

1. Why are hobbies important to living greatly, particularly in Charlotte?

The short answer is that hobbies make people’s eyes light up. A sign of a real hobby is that you could talk about it for hours.

In our report, we define a hobby as something done voluntarily and regularly by oneself or with others for enjoyment, relaxation, and pleasure. This means a hobby can be anything from needlework and pickleball to 19th-century dolls or football. Research shows that hobbies bring agency, belonging, and mastery into our lives. Hobbies let us experience joy, relieve stress from school or work, and provide moments of wonder. Having at least one hobby is shown to be associated with fewer depressive symptoms and higher reported health. Hobbies allow us to develop character. They bring new people into our lives. Especially for children, they help build and hold onto an identity, develop and sustain supportive relationships, and bring more trusted adults into their lives. Having a weekly hobby correlates with children feeling less lonely, experiencing less stress, being less bullied, feeling better, and sleeping more. Hobbies also enhance the joy of learning, boost persistence, and teach self-regulation, all of which benefit academic performance.

In 2024, I had the opportunity to interview dozens of nonprofit leaders, public servants, and philanthropic leaders on hobbies in Charlotte. What I heard was a desire to rethink the idea of success in Charlotte, especially for children. According to the 2021 Charlotte-Mecklenburg Youth Risk Behavior Survey, only 56 percent of students report feeling good about themselves, a decline from 76 percent in 2013. Almost a third of teens reported that their mental health was most of the time or always “not good.” Hobbies are a simple yet effective way to foster belonging.  As one of our interviewees with a long history of youth work in Charlotte said: “What teens need is not difficult. They need fun and creative things to do.”

2. What brought you to begin researching hobbies and their impact?

I was a bookish, talkative, and a bit clumsy kid growing up in the ’80s and ’90s in a small town in Finland. It was the weekend scouting camps and weekly classes in painting and photography that really shaped me into who I am. In my hobbies, I experienced what it means to a child when you see them, when you believe in them, and when you give them responsibility while promising support. 

That experience is what drove me into youth work, eventually running the city of Helsinki’s Youth Department and then its entire Culture and Leisure Services. In overseeing everything from arts education to swimming halls, making sure that every child had at least one thing in their life that they really enjoyed doing was an annual goal that I needed to report on to the City Council. 

During that time, I was fortunate to meet Brian Collier. When I moved to the US in 2022, I had the opportunity to work with the Gambrell Foundation team on an expedition to Finland. One of the main issues that moved the participants was this simple idea of hobbies. After the trip, we agreed to try to capture the Finnish model and explore how this idea of hobbies would resonate with the Charlotte Community. 

3. What challenges or barriers prevent people from engaging with hobbies in their daily lives, and how can we as a society better address those barriers?

The list of main challenges is fairly simple: cost, access, facilities, and transportation. Transportation was mentioned by many as one of the greatest obstacles to real equity. Several interviewees and workshop participants advocated for neighborhood-level investments as a way to counter the limited public transportation and walkability in Charlotte.  

Next to these obstacles, we know from research that there are barriers that are much more subtle but real. They are things like do you see people like you in the activity, how do you feel about your body, have you had a lot of disappointments in your life, do you know what is available, do your interests differ from those of your friends and is the instruction encouraging or humiliating. 

To create a truly equitable and enjoyable hobby ecosystem, we need to listen to kids more, try out new things more often, and create opportunities for learning from others. That is why the report advocates for research, capacity building, grants, and place-based investments.

4. What is your personal favorite hobby and why?

I am a library lover. I love reading. I read around 40-50 books a year. I read both fiction and nonfiction and increasingly listen to narrative fiction when I go for a walk or even to the gym. I also enjoy running in new cities and neighborhoods. And I want to get back to something that I was doing in Finland, which was live model drawing. I loved it as the two-minute exercises force you to look at the human body very carefully, and you don’t have too much time to criticize your own ideas.

5. What does it mean to you to Live Greatly?

The Nobel Prize-winning economist and philosopher Amartya Sen defines a good life as being able to live a life one has reason to value. “Reason to value” means that you know what’s available, you have the rights, access, and resources to utilize the choices around you, and you have agency to assemble your own life so that it looks like yours and nobody else’s. 

My “reason to value” is feeling like I leave a positive handprint in the lives of people and places around me, tasting and doing new things frequently, being wrong and having to adjust my thinking often enough, and the simple pleasures of going to our country house in Finland, chopping wood, carrying water, lighting the fireplace in the sauna, and sitting on the porch waiting for the sauna to warm up and listening to the sounds of the stream behind the building.

By Dr. Ingrid W. Medlock

Journey with me — step away from the confines of your offices, classrooms, workspaces, and the congested hustle-bustle of your day-to-day routine, and free your mind! Imagine traveling from the United States and arriving in a city surrounded by majestic — yet functional and minimalistic — Nordic architecture as you breathe in the fresh, cool, and crisp air. The accentuated voices you hear are soft, warm, yet speaking in an unfamiliar tongue. The pace of your walk has slowed from the usual swift hurriedness to a rhythmic stroll that allows you to engage with nature and cordially smile at the many passersby who are just as enamoured with you as you are with them. This is when you realize that you can finally exhale; your mind can relax and be present in the moment instead of anxiously planning for the next event on your overbooked calendar.  My friend, welcome to Helsinki, Finland, where the country truly lives up to its unofficial motto: “room to roam” as well as the proposed motto: “strong, stable and free.”  

 

Words cannot express my appreciation to have the unexpected pleasure and honor to be invited to participate in The Gambrell Foundation Study Trip to Finland and Amsterdam with fellow Charlotteans. Although the purpose of our trip was to study and learn about Finnish and Dutch education and society (often praised for their happiness and well-being), it was clear after the first couple of days that this eclectic traveling group from Charlotte, North Carolina, would also study the passions and purpose that we each shared within our daily work. Together, we learned how we could collectively increase happiness and wellbeing for our own community. 

 

The trip participants included: elected officials, philanthropists, students, professors, entrepreneurs, social activists, computer scientists, healthcare professionals, engineers, education administrators, creative artists, corporate leaders, and country ambassadors who may have otherwise never truly connected how we did while learning and observing together on this study trip. The impeccable tour itinerary, immersive cultural activities, and educational lectures were extremely insightful and very instrumental in helping our group of unassuming strangers evolve into a multi-faceted team of kindred spirits — destined, determined and dedicated to enriching the lives of our fellow citizens in Charlotte. Since we have returned to the United States and intentionally remained connected, I realize that this trip has been the springboard for us to strategically partner in several unique ways to address systemic, educational, holistic, and creative needs, as well as the overall communal needs of our city. 

 

Now, let’s travel back to Finland for a moment, to the woods of an island off the Helsinki coast. Imagine a day of exploration, foraging, and adventure, where every moment is an opportunity to learn and grow. Can you hear the leaves rustling under your feet? Feel the warmth of the sun on your chilled cheeks? Do you hear the gentle whisper of the wind and the laughter of friends echoing against the backdrop of towering trees?

 

Just like in a classroom, we gathered knowledge, but on this island, our learning experiences looked and felt so unique. We experienced mindfulness, resilience, teamwork, and leadership — just like you would in a top-notch classroom, but with a twist. In the wilderness, we learned about mindfulness as we individually engaged with, embraced, and appreciated the peacefulness of nature. We learned about resilience as we navigated hilly, wooded trails in the pouring rain. We naturally bonded and practiced teamwork as we foraged for our dinner, experienced the sauna culture and plunged in the Baltic Sea together. Finally, we leaned into our leadership skills as we strategically planned how we would use our experiences abroad to begin to cultivate and enhance the thriving, altruistic culture of Charlotte collaboratively as a team. This focus on being present with nature confirmed that health in mind, body, and spirit begins with intentional exposure to our beautiful earth in its natural state, which then leads to an appreciation for all created beings to function and live in harmony. As I explored the many facets of Finland, this country proved to be the epitome of simple lives lived in harmony.

 

As we ventured to Amsterdam, it struck me as being the New York of the Netherlands! A beautiful canal system, cobblestone streets, delicious cuisine, a network of bicycle paths, a hodgepodge of stores, a fantastic museum district, and streets filled with entertainment for all — our visit to Amsterdam was unforgettable. The Amsterdam experience was exciting; fast-paced; artistically, architecturally and culturally profound; diverse, yet complex in regard to the historically significant background of the citizens of Amsterdam. The complexities of the history of the diverse population, more specifically Black immigrants, seemed to mirror that of the civil rights movement in America and was sobering to discover. After learning about some of the history of the people of Amsterdam and the challenges they’ve overcome, the motto, ​​Heldhaftig, Vastberaden, Barmhartig, which means “valiant, steadfast and compassionate” is truly fitting. As in Finland, Amsterdam provided an educational experience interwoven with deep, cultural engagement that left an indelible mark on me as a leader in education.

The 2024 Gambrell Foundation Study Trip reminded me to embrace both worlds — the structured, formal education of the classroom and the unpredictable lessons of nature. Hence, as an educator it is extremely important to remember not to relegate learning to the classroom. Let us venture into the wilderness and to other countries where we can learn about ourselves, about each other, and about the world we inhabit. I conclude with the words of John Muir, naturalist and conservationist who inspired the creation of the US National Park System, “In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks.” So, my friend, as we aspire to enhance and improve life in Charlotte, in North Carolina, and within our overall society, let us walk together, hand in hand, heart to heart, as we continue to explore the beauty of diverse life experiences. Because ultimately, it is through these lessons that we will cultivate not just knowledgeable individuals, but mindful, empathetic, resilient, and inspired leaders capable of creating a more fruitful tomorrow collaborating together as unassuming strangers turned kindred spirits!