• by Larissa Faw , March 19, 2014

There's no excuse for being a grump on Thursday. The United Nations (UN) Foundation is teaming with singer/entertainer Pharrell Williams for the International Day of Happiness to encourage people to help create a happier, healthier world by supporting the work of UN humanitarian efforts.

And this year's event is designed to bring even more joy. Although the International Day of Happiness launched last year, this is the first year that the UN Foundation has had a promotional initiative around it.

As part of the March 20th celebration, people are invited to post YouTube videos of themselves demonstrating their happiness to Pharrell Williams' top-selling song "Happy" with the hashtag #HAPPYDAY and then register their submission here.

Once on the site, people are encouraged to donate to the UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund that supports aid operations for people affected by natural disasters and armed conflicts.

At noon on March 20 in each time zone, Williams will spotlight the best submissions on the site.

Meanwhile, people are also encouraged to use #HAPPYDAY throughout all social networks. For instance, participants can post photos and videos on Facebook, G+, Tumblr or Instagram using the hashtag #HAPPYDAY, or submit Tweet/Vine messages using the hashtag #HAPPYDAY, and share “Happy” Spotify and Google Play playlists on G+, Facebook, Twitter and/or Tumblr using the hashtag #HAPPYDAY.

Fleishman and Havas are working with the UN Foundation to help promote this global digital initiative, as well as Columbia Records, under Sony Music, which represents Williams.

In fact, the singers involvement with this day of cheer was a perfect fit, the UN Foundation said. "Pharrell has been in talks with the United Nations for a while on how he can get involved and make an impact. We provide the mechanism for donating to the UN’s Central Emergency response Fund and so it was worked out well as we were all 'playing in the same space.'"

The social media chatter around this effort has already been impressive. In one week, this initiative has received 710 video submissions including 530 videos and 180 Instagram posts from 18 of the 24 major time zones around the world.