Epistemological Implications of the Tragedy of the Commons

Abstract

This paper defines and examines the Garett Hardin’s concept of the Tragedy of the Commons. First, an introductory to the concept is presented along with an extensive critique on Hardin’s 1968 impactful publication. Second, although the tragedy of the commons belies in the field of environmental economics, an extensive research is conducted on how the concept has naturally extended to other cornerstones such as Philosophy, Ethics & Morality, and human behavior. The objective of this paper is to not see whether the concept is dubbed correct or erroneous, but rather urge readers to take a collective stand regardless of the universal validity of the concept and shed some serious insight on the hazards of climate change and pursuit of self-interest.