In 1968 the Tragedy of the Commons was published. A major premise of the article is the notion that any resource that is open for anyone to use – such as 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 of future generations, the Tragedy of the Commons occurs.
In this simulation, 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 30 fish.
Once a year (round) you will get a chance to fish and each time you fish you may take from 0 to 5 fish from the lake. It is your choice how many fish you take, however, if you only take one fish, your family will starve. If you take more than 2 fish, you can sell them for a profit. The fish in your lake will reproduce once a year (round). Keep the fish that you “catch” in front of you. If any family has starved then they cannot fish the next year.