Welcome to Alles Gute, the SPIEGEL newsletter with only good news. Nice to have you here!
As a German in Norway, you quickly learn how wonderful life can be even with little money. Last week I was there on a research trip. Of course, I already knew that the cost of living there is about the same as in Switzerland. And yet I was amazed when I paid around ten euros for a sandwich at the bakery in Oslo.
So that we don't misunderstand each other, I don't want to complain from a privileged position. Life in Northern Europe is (almost) always beautiful: democratic societies, a caring state, comparatively green cities. No wonder these countries top many rankings worldwide.
But isn't it even nicer with more money?
It would be wrong to equate money with life satisfaction. Even if you have to be frugal in Oslo, you can have a good time there. If you want, you can take the subway directly to the toboggan run, there is a beautiful library, and even in winter it is a pleasure to stroll around this beautiful city. And the people are warm and attentive even in sub-zero temperatures. Despite the money or because of it?
My colleague Franziska Schindler spoke with the scientist Eric Galbraith about how quality of life and money are related. Galbraith and his team interviewed 3,000 people in 19 different locations around the world, such as Mongolia and Madagascar. Many of them lived disconnected from the Western economic and value system. But happiness, he discovered, is something that people really think about everywhere.
»I don't want to say that it's good to be poor. “It’s just that, according to our results, people don’t necessarily need great material wealth to be happy,” says Galbraith.
An important reason for satisfaction in the communities examined is that there are comparatively small differences in income. Cohesion also changes many people's lives for the better. Which might bring us back to Scandinavia. My colleague Franziska Schindler rightly asks whether it is even possible for a Western researcher to study other people's happiness without imposing your own ideas on them. It is precisely because of such thoughts that I would like to recommend the interview to you.
What else was good this week – for the world:
Somalia gets its first TV talk show only by women.
Naima Said Salah is the first presenter in her country to get her own show. Your team is made up entirely of women – that’s also a first. The discussions will focus on political issues in Somalia, such as a shortage of teachers or environmental problems, but also on the situation of women and girls in the country, as our colleagues at the Guardian report.
95-year-old celebrates master's degree at university
Lifelong learning is an idea that is often talked about. David Marjot takes them really seriously. He completed his training as a doctor 72 years ago. At 95, he now also has a degree in modern European philosophy. »I was lucky to have world-class lecturers. It was a very positive experience," said Marjot and now wants to continue his university career.
Descendants of resistance fighters call for the defense of democracy
In recent weeks, hundreds of thousands have demonstrated against right-wing extremism across Germany. Now more than 280 people whose ancestors resisted National Socialism are turning to the public. They warn against populism and exclusion in Europe. “We have already seen in Germany what this can lead to,” they write. You can read more about the appeal here.
Orcas can apparently free themselves
It was a drama that didn't look good for a long time: around a dozen killer whales were trapped by drift ice off the coast of Japan, and rescue hardly seemed possible. But obviously the animals didn't need human help at all in the end. A happy ending!
Germans want to be pioneers in climate protection
More than half of all Germans want their country to make faster progress in climate protection than other countries. This is shown by an Ifo survey. But they obviously fear that this could quickly become too expensive for the individual. The majority rejects a CO₂ price, as suggested not only by activists and politicians but also economists. You can read here what the Germans would like instead and what experts say about it.
What’s good – for you:
Lighthouse keepers wanted
Are you open to change and do you like the sea? Then the island of Wangerooge might have the right offer for you: they are currently looking for a new lighthouse keeper (m/f/d). It is not necessary to have much knowledge of seafaring; the tower has actually been out of use since 1969. You can find out here why people are still looking and what is really important for the job.
Stricter rules for Schufa
Very few people can say exactly how the creditworthiness check works. According to a groundbreaking ruling, the data of consumers in Europe should be protected significantly better in the future. The federal government has decided on new rules for this. You can read here what exactly is going to change at Schufa and how it came about.
How private nursing care insurance can help
The 100-year-old club is growing thanks to prosperity and medical progress. But anyone who needs care in old age usually only gets a portion of the costs reimbursed by the state. A variety of additional policies are intended to help with precautions. But when is private insurance actually worthwhile and what does it cover? A guide.
Banks have to make transfers faster
With private providers like PayPal, it often happens in seconds, but anyone who wants to make a transfer at their bank often has to wait for days - or even has to pay. According to the “Tagesschau”, the European Parliament has now initiated a reform. In the future, payments should be processed within ten seconds and be free of charge. Now don't mistype it!
And otherwise?
It's really no news that animals make us happier people. Every Saturday walk through the park or along a paddock shows this: people just like animals, and ideally it even works the other way around. Journalists are also happy when they don't have to report on crises, conflict areas and misery from time to time, but can travel behind a manatee or research how dogs motivate children to exercise more.
But Pony Poppy's relevance doesn't require any complicated efforts. Because the little horse has a responsible job: He visits retirement homes in Great Britain and helps the elderly there to find peace, allow themselves to be close and smile again. Poppy is not the only care pony who is allowed to walk into the living room for this job - and who can also trudge along the hallways with Grandma on the walker if necessary.
The animal therapist Sarah Woodland regularly shows her employees working together on the Instagram account “Dinyk Ponies”. The animals are all role models when it comes to empathy and patience. To be honest, even without hip problems or dementia, they make me happy just by watching them.
And by the way, you can meet the cutest wild animals of the year here:
What kind of understanding animals did you recently meet? Have you experienced or seen anything else beautiful? Feel free to send us your personal good news from the week by email to GuteNachrichten.Newsletter@spiegel.de - we will present some of the submissions again in the coming weeks*.
Have a nice weekend! And if you haven't signed up for this new weekly newsletter yet, you can order it for free here.
Yours, Jan Petter, SPIEGEL Europe reporter in the “Global Society” project
(* By submitting a submission, you agree to – if desired – anonymous publication on
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This article is part of the Global Society project
AreaWhat is the Global Society project?open
Under the title “Global Society,” reporters from
Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe
report on injustices in a globalized world, socio-political challenges and sustainable development. The reports, analyses, photo series, videos and podcasts appear in a separate section in SPIEGEL's foreign department. The project is long-term and is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF).
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The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) has been supporting the project since 2019 for an initial period of three years with a total of around 2.3 million euros - around 760,000 euros per year. In 2021, the project was extended under the same conditions by almost three and a half years until spring 2025.
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In recent years, SPIEGEL has already implemented two projects with the European Journalism Center (EJC) and the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: the “Expedition ÜberMorgen” about global sustainability goals and the journalistic refugee project “The New Arrivals”, as part of this project several award-winning multimedia reports on the topics of migration and flight have been created.
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