Tragedy of Commons
Ecologist Garrett Hardin's "tragedy of the commons" (Hardin,
1968) has proven a useful concept for understanding
how we have come to be at the brink of numerous environmental catastrophes, some
short-term or place-based environmental crises, others global ecological
dilemmas or long-term energy and resource descents. In short, people's behavior
does sometimes cause civilization-threatening situations, not initiated by
malicious outside forces, but rather, resulting from the apparently appropriate
and innocent decisions of individuals and small groups, acting alone.
If we were to take only Hardin's perspective, it would be easy to
despair of the destructiveness and unsustainability of human behavior. However,
such despair comes from having far too narrow and pessimistic a view of human
nature. It benefits our emotional response to these issues, and our
problem-solving ability, to take a broader perspective on human nature, one
that draws upon the full range of social science discoveries and insights.
We can start by correctly defining the problem being faced: a central issue here is whether human nature leads inexorably to unsustainable outcomes. The answer is a straightforward no. Although we are certainly capable of and do pursue maladaptive behavior (e.g., tragedy of the commons, resource over-consumption, ecological overshoot), such behavior is not inevitable.
- See more at: http://www-personal.umich.edu/~rdeyoung/tragedy.html#sthash.a7PXKe0a.dpuf.
1968) has proven a useful concept for understanding
how we have come to be at the brink of numerous environmental catastrophes, some
short-term or place-based environmental crises, others global ecological
dilemmas or long-term energy and resource descents. In short, people's behavior
does sometimes cause civilization-threatening situations, not initiated by
malicious outside forces, but rather, resulting from the apparently appropriate
and innocent decisions of individuals and small groups, acting alone.
If we were to take only Hardin's perspective, it would be easy to
despair of the destructiveness and unsustainability of human behavior. However,
such despair comes from having far too narrow and pessimistic a view of human
nature. It benefits our emotional response to these issues, and our
problem-solving ability, to take a broader perspective on human nature, one
that draws upon the full range of social science discoveries and insights.
We can start by correctly defining the problem being faced: a central issue here is whether human nature leads inexorably to unsustainable outcomes. The answer is a straightforward no. Although we are certainly capable of and do pursue maladaptive behavior (e.g., tragedy of the commons, resource over-consumption, ecological overshoot), such behavior is not inevitable.
- See more at: http://www-personal.umich.edu/~rdeyoung/tragedy.html#sthash.a7PXKe0a.dpuf.
Assignments
a_mastery_checklist.docx | |
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easters_end-_jared_diamond_article.pdf | |
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a_ch_1_guided_reading-1.doc | |
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a_the_lorax_guided_viewing_and_sustainable_developmentdoc-1.doc | |
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hardin_carry_capacity_article.doc | |
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tragedy_of_the_commons_lab.doc | |
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a._tragedy_of_the_commons.ppt | |
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greeece_env_deg.pdf | |
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