Tragedy of the Commons
Much of man's world is treated as a "commons" wherein individuals have the right to freely consume its
resources and return their wastes. The "logic of the commons" ultimately produces its ruin as well as the demise
of those who depend upon it for survival. The commons relationship between people and their environment was
noted by Garrett Hardin in a 1968 paper published in the journal SCIENCE (162:1243-1248). This Web Page is
dedicated to examining in more detail, the consequences of treating our ecosystem as a commons.
Visit the link http://members.aol.com/trajcom/private/commons.htm and answer the following questions.
1. Summarize Hardin’s article “Tragedy of the Commons” .
2. What is the “Commons”?
3. What is the Logic of the Commons?
4. How does the Commons work?
5. Why does the Commons continue?
6. Population growth, greed, and the logic of the commons has virtually destroyed many of the worlds
ecosystems. Identify tree ecosystems and describe how we have negatively affected them.
Visit the link http://members.aol.com/trajcom/private/unpopsci.htm and answer the following questions.
1. Summarize Hardin’s article “Unpopular Science” .
2. Discuss two examples of scientific double-standards.
3. Why should a scientists perception of Global Warming be difficult to perceive?