Tragedy of Commons
The Tragedy of the Commons refers to a situation in a shared-resource system where individual users, acting independently according to their own self-interest, behave contrary to the common good of all users by depleting or degrading that resource through their collective action. The concept was popularized by Garrett Hardin in his 1968 paper, but the dilemma it describes is timeless and occurs across various contexts. Here, I'll incorporate specific statistics and years related to air pollution and climate change to illustrate how the tragedy of the commons manifests in these areas:
1. Air Pollution: According to the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution causes an estimated 7 million premature deaths worldwide annually. Specifically, in 2016, about 4.2 million deaths were attributable to ambient (outdoor) air pollution. These deaths result from increased mortality due to diseases such as stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and respiratory infections. Air pollution exemplifies the tragedy of the commons because the atmosphere is a shared resource that everyone uses. Still, individual and industrial emissions contribute to pollution levels that negatively impact global health and well-being.
2. Climate Change: Climate change is a profound and wide-ranging example of the tragedy of the commons. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported in 2021 that human activities had warmed the planet at a rate unprecedented in at least the last 2000 years. This has led to widespread and rapid changes in the atmosphere, ocean, cryosphere, and biosphere. Specific statistics highlight the urgency of the issue:
- Global surface temperature was 1.09°C higher in the decade 2011-2020 than 1850-1900.
- The global mean sea level rose by 20 cm from 1901 to 2018, with the rate of rise nearly tripling from 1.3 mm per year over 1901–1971 to 3.7 mm per year over 2006–2018.
- Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere reached 410 parts per million in 2019, levels not seen in at least 2 million years.
- The decade of 2011-2020 was the warmest decade on record.
These changes are driven by greenhouse gas emissions from human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels for energy, deforestation, and industrial processes. Despite the global nature of the atmosphere and climate system, individual and national interests in economic development often prioritize short-term gains over long-term sustainability, leading to excessive emissions that all nations suffer from, especially vulnerable communities.
3. Overfishing: The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that about 34.2% of global fish stocks are overfished, a statistic that underscores the pressure on aquatic ecosystems due to unregulated or poorly managed fishing practices.
4. Deforestation: According to the World Bank, the world lost 502,000 square miles (1.3 million square kilometers) of forest between 1990 and 2016, an area larger than South Africa. This loss is largely attributed to the clearing of forests for agriculture, timber, and other uses without considering the long-term environmental costs.
5. Water Scarcity: The World Resources Institute (WRI) projects that by 2040, many regions around the world will face high levels of water stress, with more than a quarter of the world's population living in countries with chronic or recurrent shortages of clean water due to overconsumption and pollution.
These examples illustrate the tragedy of the commons through the lens of environmental degradation, where individual actions have collective impacts that compromise the health, safety, and sustainability of the planet for current and future generations. The challenge lies in finding cooperative solutions that align individual actions with the common good, through policies, technologies, and behaviors that mitigate these impacts.
1. Air Pollution: According to the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution causes an estimated 7 million premature deaths worldwide annually. Specifically, in 2016, about 4.2 million deaths were attributable to ambient (outdoor) air pollution. These deaths result from increased mortality due to diseases such as stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and respiratory infections. Air pollution exemplifies the tragedy of the commons because the atmosphere is a shared resource that everyone uses. Still, individual and industrial emissions contribute to pollution levels that negatively impact global health and well-being.
2. Climate Change: Climate change is a profound and wide-ranging example of the tragedy of the commons. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported in 2021 that human activities had warmed the planet at a rate unprecedented in at least the last 2000 years. This has led to widespread and rapid changes in the atmosphere, ocean, cryosphere, and biosphere. Specific statistics highlight the urgency of the issue:
- Global surface temperature was 1.09°C higher in the decade 2011-2020 than 1850-1900.
- The global mean sea level rose by 20 cm from 1901 to 2018, with the rate of rise nearly tripling from 1.3 mm per year over 1901–1971 to 3.7 mm per year over 2006–2018.
- Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere reached 410 parts per million in 2019, levels not seen in at least 2 million years.
- The decade of 2011-2020 was the warmest decade on record.
These changes are driven by greenhouse gas emissions from human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels for energy, deforestation, and industrial processes. Despite the global nature of the atmosphere and climate system, individual and national interests in economic development often prioritize short-term gains over long-term sustainability, leading to excessive emissions that all nations suffer from, especially vulnerable communities.
3. Overfishing: The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that about 34.2% of global fish stocks are overfished, a statistic that underscores the pressure on aquatic ecosystems due to unregulated or poorly managed fishing practices.
4. Deforestation: According to the World Bank, the world lost 502,000 square miles (1.3 million square kilometers) of forest between 1990 and 2016, an area larger than South Africa. This loss is largely attributed to the clearing of forests for agriculture, timber, and other uses without considering the long-term environmental costs.
5. Water Scarcity: The World Resources Institute (WRI) projects that by 2040, many regions around the world will face high levels of water stress, with more than a quarter of the world's population living in countries with chronic or recurrent shortages of clean water due to overconsumption and pollution.
These examples illustrate the tragedy of the commons through the lens of environmental degradation, where individual actions have collective impacts that compromise the health, safety, and sustainability of the planet for current and future generations. The challenge lies in finding cooperative solutions that align individual actions with the common good, through policies, technologies, and behaviors that mitigate these impacts.
Sustainability and Health
Health is both a resource for, as well as an outcome of, sustainable development. The goals of sustainable development cannot be achieved when there is a high prevalence of debilitating illness and poverty, and the health of a population cannot be maintained without a responsive health system and a healthy environment. Environmental degradation, mismanagement of natural resources, and unhealthy consumption patterns and lifestyles impact health. Ill-health in turn, hampers poverty alleviation and economic development (WHO, 2005). (Source: www.who.org).
Some facts:
Some facts:
- Poor environmental quality contributes to 25% of all preventable illnesses in the world.
- 900 million people lacks access to an improved water supply.
- 2.5 billion people lacks access to any type of sanitation equipment.
- More than 90% of the wastewater in developing countries and 33% in developed countries is not treated (WHO, 1999).
- Disease causing vectors are transmitted through contact with water, air, and solid waste.
- Health is inextricably linked to sustainable development.
- For people living in poverty, illness and disability translate directly into loss of income. This can be devastating for individuals and their families who are dependent on their health for household income.
- For people living in poverty, illness and disability translate directly into loss of income. This can be devastating for individuals and their families who are dependent on their health for household income (WHO, 2004).
