Helsinki and the case for happiness

It’s interesting how the city almost slumbers during the colder months, and then suddenly awakens with the first rays of sunshine,” says Toni Kostian, owner of Michelin-starred Grön, one of the stars of Helsinki’s culinary scene. Summer is coming, and his city is indeed wide awake. And most likely smiling: for the eighth consecutive year running, the UN World Happiness Report has ranked Finland as the happiest nation in the world.

In its capital, though, the root of happiness isn’t…