This past week the 2010 Human Development Index (HDI) came out and marked its 20th anniversary. The idea behind the HDI report is that a country’s development cannot be measured in GDP alone. The quality of life for the people living in the county is what matters.

Data on every type of development factor from internet accessibility to maternal mortality rates to average years of school has been collected from 169 countries. This year they’ve added a special section looking at global trends of the past two decades. And it’s all free. All the data, their methodology, the analysis, it’s all available to anyone with internet access. The internet is amazing! (So is UNDP for not charging us to see their very pretty graphs.)

Just for fun (yes, I think comparing development stats between countries is fun) let’s compare Norway, Brazil, the US and Tajikistan. Why Tajikistan? Because Tajikistan is fun to say.

Overall HDI ranking (out of 169 countries)
Norway 1
Brazil 73
United States 4
Tajikistan 112

Life Expectancy at Birth
Norway 81
Brazil 72.9
US 79.5
Tajikistan 67.3

Mean Years of Schooling (among adults)
Norway 12.6
Brazil 7.1
US 12.4
Tajikistan 9.7

GDP per capita (2008 PPP US$)
Norway $58,277
Brazil $10,846
US $46,652
Tajikistan $2,064

Inequality Gini Coefficient (0 is perfectly equal distribution)
Norway 25.8
Brazil 55
US 40.8
Tajikistan N/A

Adolescent Fertility Rate (Births per 1,000 women 15-19)
Norway 8.6
Brazil 75.6
US 35.9
Tajikistan 28.4

Homicide Rate (per 100,000)
Norway 0.6
Brazil 22
US 5.2
Tajikistan 2.3

So, what can we conclude from all these numbers? Norway deserves some hearty congratulations for doing apparently everything right. I think the only reason we all aren’t heading to Norway and putting plaster gnomes in our windows is because most people want to see the sun more than six months out of the year.

We can all be grateful we don’t live in Tajikistan no matter how fabulous the name is. Brazil has come a long way but still has serious problems particularly in terms of education and violence. Better public education would also go a long way in combatting other issues such as teen pregnancy.

And what about the US? There are serious problems facing the US, but the fear and despair manifesting itself in the media, political rhetoric, and comment streams isn’t warranted. Life in the US is good. Not perfect, but in comparison to the vast majority countries the quality of life you can have in the States is luxurious.

If people would just stop screaming at each other as if we’re on a burning ship that’s sinking into shark infested waters, we could see that we have all the resources we need to fix our problems. Governing is not a game with winners and losers. It’s problem solving. Nobody wins until the problem is solved. We may not be Norway, but number 4 is pretty darn good.