The document summarizes Garret Hardin's influential 1968 publication "The Tragedy of the Commons". It describes how allowing open access to a shared resource, like a pasture, leads rational individuals to overuse it for personal gain, ultimately destroying the resource. While frequently cited in favor of privatization, the article has received criticism for historical inaccuracies and for mischaracterizing the issues as issues of common rather than open access. Later, Hardin clarified he was referring to "The Tragedy of the Unmanaged Commons".

1. “The Tragedy of the Commons”

2. “The Tragedy of the Commons”
• Published 1968 by biologist Garret Hardin
• Among the most influential scientific publications
"The tragedy of the commons develops in this way. Picture a
pasture open to all. It is to be expected that each herdsman will
try to keep as many cattle as possible on the commons... the
inherent logic of the commons remorselessly generates tragedy.
As a rational being, each herdsman seeks to maximize his
gain....

3. “The Tragedy of the Commons”
• Published 1968 by biologist Garret Hardin
• Among the most influential scientific publications
• Frequently cited in favor of privatization of public property
Criticism:
• Historically inaccurate - “it is difficult to find a passage of
comparable length and fame that contains so many errors as
the one quoted” (Partha Dasgupta)
• “The “Tragedy of the Commons” is one of the modern world’s
most dangerous myths.” (George Monbiot)
• Overuse of the commons in traditional societies was generally
prevented through a sophisticated structure of norms practiced
by the respective communities. There is no evidence of
systematic overgrazing.
• The “tragedy” Hardin describes is in fact not a tragedy of
common property but rather a tragedy of open access
regimes.

4. “The Tragedy of the Commons”
• The “tragedy” Hardin describes is in fact not a tragedy of
common property but rather a tragedy of open access
regimes.
• In later work, Hardin referred to the “Tragedy of the
Unmanaged (Unregulated) Commons”.
• The problems identified by Hardin apply to expansive
resources that are unregulated or where regulation is difficult to
enforce: oceans, atmosphere, expansive tracts of forest or
rangeland, water resources
• Essentially, he describes a Free Rider Problem
• Hardin's actual topic was population control: he interpreted
(excessive) reproduction as a Free Rider problem. This
argument is hardly ever taken seriously or even discussed.

5. “The Tragedy of the Commons”
To read more
• Garrett Hardin, The Tragedy of the Commons (1968)
• Achim Lerch, The Tragedy of the “Tragedy of the Commons”
• Elinor Ostrom, Coping with Tragedies of the Commons
• George Monbiot, The Tragedy of Enclosure
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tragedy_of_the_commons
• http://p2pfoundation.net/Tragedy_of_the_Commons