This study investigates the changes in leaders' perspectives towards framing new educational policies supporting sustainable empowerment of academicians via focusing on happiness and well-being. The objectives of this study are (1) to explore various factors influencing academicians' happiness post-pandemic, (2) to propose various guidelines for educational leaders to support future policy formulation, and (3) to develop an institutional happiness framework for building sustainable universities. Based on interviews with university professors, a qualitative methodology is being utilized where themes are extracted using NVIVO. The study highlights various factors contributing towards enhancing academicians' happiness (i.e., academic freedom, work-life balance, workload management, annual academic retreats, ex-student appreciation rewards, mindfulness in research). The proposed institutional happiness model can be used to enhance research practices, teaching patterns, community service awareness, and innovation, which positively contribute towards achieving SDG 3, SDG 4, and SDG 9.
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