Senior Project Advisor
Kathleen Brian
Document Type
Project
Publication Date
Spring 2024
Keywords
commons, tragedy of the commons, resource, Garrett Hardin, ecology, conservation, environmental science, eugenics, political science, mythmaking, design, enclosure, economics, common pool resource, privatization, capitalism, sustainability, resilience
Abstract
The concept of “the tragedy of the commons” is a pervasive idea throughout the disciplines of environmental science, economics, law, and political science. It is a metaphor to describe how human use of a common pool of goods leads to depletion of the commons. Typically, the enclosure of the commons under state or private control is the prescribed solution to this environmental dilemma. This article refutes the tragedy of the commons by reviewing the contemporary field of commons studies, referencing the consequences of enclosure, and offering new criticisms of the concept. Studying the commons reveals how the urge to seek profit and political power contributes to the domination and exploitation of natural systems. Instead, local, community-level management of the commons can avoid environmental degradation while providing people with the means of life. Mythmaking and intentional design are methods of creating new relationships between humans and the commons that are equitable and sustainable. The view of the commons must be reframed to promote caring dynamics between humans and the nonhuman world.
Department
Honors
Recommended Citation
KenWood, Liam, "Against the Tragedy: The Role of Meaning Making in Sustainable Commons" (2024). WWU Honors College Senior Projects. 881.
https://cedar.wwu.edu/wwu_honors/881
Type
Text
Rights
Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission.
Language
English
Format
application/pdf