pull down to refresh
which policymakers?
reply
which policymakers?
The policymakers Hardin referred to were mainly government officials and economists who believed that only top-down control or privatization could solve resource management problems. But Elinor Ostrom’s work showed that local communities themselves can successfully manage shared resources without centralized control, through cooperation, clear rules, and accountability.
Great reminder that the “tragedy of the commons” isn’t a law of nature — it’s a failure of imagination. Ostrom proved that communities aren’t doomed to destroy shared resources. With local knowledge, cooperation, and clear rules, they can thrive without top-down control or privatization. The real tragedy is how often this gets ignored by policymakers.