The Tragedy of the Commons describes a situation where a shared resource is exploited – because of individual self-interest – and damages overall social welfare. The air we breathe and the water we drink are just two examples of what we call “Commons.” Tragedy of the Commons is an important phenomenon with moral dimensions.
Garrett Hardin, who coined the term, used the example of a pasture that all shepherds can access. Because the shepherds are all selfishly motivated to graze their animals as much as possible for short-term gain, the pasture is quickly overgrazed and depleted. The overall community suffers.
Some people believe that converting shared public resources into private property motivates owners to preserve those resources for society. Others believe that government regulation is a better solution. Both strategies have limitations.
There are no easy fixes to the Tragedy of the Commons. But prosocial behavior can help. Elinor Ostrom won a Nobel Prize for studying how communities often voluntarily work together to prevent overconsumption, and to create a stable, common pool of resources.
Whatever the strategy, most philosophers agree that we have a moral duty to overcome this tragic phenomenon and to preserve shared resources for the common good.