tragedy of the commons

two main characteristics of a commons

non excludability and subtractability/rivalry

non-excludability

you can’t keep people out—cant stop people from entering a public area like an ocean, or national forest.

subtractability/rivalry

when someone else uses the resource, it detracts form your ability to do so, or to do so fully. similar to zero sum game. (if you use it there is less for me)

what is tragic

when dealing with a commons, each individual will try to maximize their gain because of self-interest. you may get 100% of the benefit for a fraction of the cost (depleting resources) so it makes it individually rational to exploit the commons, but collectively irrational because if everyone depleted the same source, it would be polluted or damaged beyond repair. 

what example is hardin most concerned about with tragedy of the commons?

population growth: there are finite resources on the planet and a growing populace with no new advances in food production or other technical solutions that will save us.

what are ways to achieve collective interest, and avoid the tragedy of the commons

privitization

privatization

instead of open access to a resource, parcel it out, so that everyone or groups of people own a small peace. the logic is that when you own something, you incur 100% of the cost of your actions. this creates an incentive to stay within the limits of sustainability

challenges of privatization

there are fairness issues with division of owners (limit access to historic users, ownership will go to those who can afford it)

some things are hard to privatize (atmosphere)

incentives to manage resources sustainably decrease as the amount of resources held goes up

do private owners care about future generations

leggett’s negotiation of acceptable losses

conservation must balance idealism with reality. instead of criminalizing illegal coffee farmers, he negotiates limited human use in exchange for broader ecosystem protection. the main idea is to accept limited degradation to prevent total collapse.

critics of negotiation of acceptable losses

how much human impact is acceptable

does compromise dilute conservation ethics

green new deal

political and policy proposal aimed at addressing climate change and economic inequality at the same time. it is a framework to transform the US economy to run on clean, renewable energy while guaranteeing jobs and economic security for all americans. its goals include:

net zero greenhouse gas emissions

create millions of good paying jobs

invest in sustainable infrastructure

ensure social and racial justice

guarantee basic economic security