Growth of the Global Economy

With the expansion and growth of the global economy, depletion of the earth’s natural resources is becoming an increasing problem. Following an economic boom and the rise of the middle class in heavily populated countries such as China, Indonesia, and the Philippines, consumption for a variety of natural resources is dwindling. While certain groups try to bring to light the problems associated with increasing consumption of the earth’s resources, there remain problems associated with preserving the resources, efficiency in methods of consumption, negative side effects of waste, and sustainability to ensure a world without the threat of lack of resources for the livelihood of the organism that inhabit this planet.

The term commons refers to the shared resources of earth that are accessible to anyone who populates the earth. Resources that fall under the common category include anything from public radio, fertile soil, water, timber, to poultry. People enjoy unrestricted access to these resources and these resources readily available for consumption from wanting consumers. Referring to commons, Garrett Hardin describes the self-inflicting harm the residents of earth bring on themselves. In a thought provoking and gripping article, Hardin reflects upon the unsustainable nature of human consumption of resources.

Hardin in “Tragedy of Commons" reveals the dangers of failing sustainability among the earth’s population. When a common resource is made available, humans will ultimately consume in order to enhance their livelihoods. Consumption of resources is an important factor necessary for the earth’s population. However, as one continues to consume with only one’s survival in mind, the perspective of preserving resources for the population in entirety becomes obsolete. People will then continue to consume with only individual needs in mind, therefore depleting the resources made available. Hardin states that a person who also has access to certain resources will consume more than is necessary for survival in order to bring security to one’s livelihood. As individuals continue to stockpile more resources than necessary, resources overtime will be overused and ultimately become depleted. With the rise of the human populace, Hardin states that sustainability will become impossible no matter the advances in technology. In fact technology may only bring greater shortages of resources as the common resources readily available will be consumed at a larger and faster pace. With the new technologies created having a greater output of pollution, there also remains a negative consequence of growth in pollution affecting the quality of the resources of the earth. The immense growth in human population will only hinder efforts of sustainability as consumption rises