Tragedy of the Commons Lab - Human Impact on the Environment

In 1968 the Tragedy of the Commons was published. A major principle of the article is the notion that any resource that is open to everyone – such as the air or parts of the ocean – will eventually be destroyed because everyone can use the resource but no one is responsible for preserving it.  When people are not compelled to preserve resources for the welfare for future generations, the Tragedy of the Commons occurs.

Objective: The purpose of this simulation is to demonstrate how individuals compete for resources.

Scenario: Each one of you represents the head of a family that is in need of food.  In order for your family to survive, you must catch enough fish for them to eat.  The only food source is a small local lake which can hold up to 20 fish.  You are all the head of households that are competing for food from a common area.

This is a full-class lab with in-depth and meaningful analysis. Students work in groups and will run this lab twice (once without communication, once with) to determine the best way to handle fishing as a means to eat and as an industry.

Lots of relatable questions to get kids thinking about how humans impact the environment!