--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all." description: "\"Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all.\" — Garrett Hardin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/garrett-hardin-11328_freedom_freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all_1806271.jpg" --- # Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all. ![“Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all.” quote by Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/garrett-hardin-11328_freedom_freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all_1806271.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/garrett-hardin-11328_freedom_freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all_1806271.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/garrett-hardin-11328_freedom_freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all_1806271.jpg) > “Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all.” [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When shared resources are unmanaged, individuals act in self‑interest, leading to collective ruin. **In simple terms:** Common resources can be destroyed by selfish use. Key Takeaway Manage commons collectively. Themes commons resource depletion collective action Mood cautionary analytical Type environmental economic When to use this quote - public lands - fisheries - air quality Key Concepts economics environmental science ethics Questions to Reflect On - How can incentives align personal and collective good? - What governance models protect shared resources? A Different Perspective Regulation may be resisted or ineffective. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brings Ruin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brings-ruin-2076002/) [Commons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commons/) [Commons Brings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commons-brings-2076003/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedom Commons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-commons-2076001/) [Ruin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ruin/) ## Related quotes > [Some thing is better than nothing... But Pretending brings nothing;it ruin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-hmangte/some-thing-is-better-than-nothing-but-pretending-brings-nothing-it/) [Steven Hmangte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-hmangte/) > [In an approximate way, the logic of commons has been understood for a long time, perhaps since the discovery of agriculture or the invention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/in-an-approximate-way-the-logic-of-commons-has-been-understood-for-a/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Ruin is the destination toward which all men rush, each pursuing his own best interest in a society that believes in the freedom of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/ruin-is-the-destination-toward-which-all-men-rush-each-pursuing-his/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [“Google and Apple offer the image of a pseudo-commons to Internet users. That image recalls Nick Dyer-Whiteford's claim that, in light of the structural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sumanth-gopinath/google-and-apple-offer-the-image-of-a-pseudo-commons-to-internet/) [Sumanth Gopinath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sumanth-gopinath/) > [“The claimed legitimizing devices of political consent or personal labour served only to obscure the unjustifiable seizure of land from the common by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-vallentyne/the-claimed-legitimizing-devices-of-political-consent-or-personal/) [Peter Vallentyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-vallentyne/) > [What distinguishes a commons is that it is not private property, does not have a price, and is oriented towards 'use value' rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-standing/what-distinguishes-a-commons-is-that-it-is-not-private-property-does/) [Guy Standing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-standing/) > [“To say it's the poor quality of the paint under socialism is correct, but it is not enough. To say it's soft-coal exploitation and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavenka-drakuli/to-say-it-s-the-poor-quality-of-the-paint-under-socialism-is-correct/) [Slavenka Drakulić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavenka-drakuli/) > [I studied politics and economics at Bristol, and people always assumed that I'd go into politics or a non-government organisation when I left. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-elliot/i-studied-politics-and-economics-at-bristol-and-people-always-assumed/) [Ben Elliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-elliot/) > [“Libraries represent the sole contemporary American institution with the potential for making available a wide-ranging, genuinely diverse spectrum of opinions, cultural expressions, and ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanford-berman/libraries-represent-the-sole-contemporary-american-institution-with/) [Sanford Berman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanford-berman/) > [The honest truth is that if this government were to propose the massacre of the first-born, it would still have no difficulty in getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-abbott/the-honest-truth-is-that-if-this-government-were-to-propose-the/) [Diane Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-abbott/) > [Kris Commons and Scott Brown are key players for Celtic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-de-boer/kris-commons-and-scott-brown-are-key-players-for-celtic/) [Frank de Boer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-de-boer/) > [Climate change is a global commons problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ottmar-edenhofer/climate-change-is-a-global-commons-problem/) [Ottmar Edenhofer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ottmar-edenhofer/) > [We have reached a new milestone as a human family. With seven billion of us now inhabiting our planet, it is time to ask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-ki-moon/we-have-reached-a-new-milestone-as-a-human-family-with-seven-billion/) [Ban Ki-moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ban-ki-moon/) > [The rise of capitalist practice and morality brought with it a radical revision of how the commons are treated, and also of how they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-rise-of-capitalist-practice-and-morality-brought-with-it-a/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“Dedicated to all who are building the information commons.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-von-hippel/dedicated-to-all-who-are-building-the-information-commons/) [Eric von Hippel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-von-hippel/) ## More by Garrett Hardin > [Ecological differentiation is the necessary condition for coexistence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/ecological-differentiation-is-the-necessary-condition-for-coexistence/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Fundamentalists are panicked by the apparent disintegration of the family, the disappearance of certainty and the decay of morality. Fear leads them to ask,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/fundamentalists-are-panicked-by-the-apparent-disintegration-of-the/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Indeed, our particular concept of private property, which deters us from exhausting the positive resources of the earth, favors pollution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/indeed-our-particular-concept-of-private-property-which-deters-us/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [“Individualism is cherished because it produces freedom, but the gift is conditional.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/individualism-is-cherished-because-it-produces-freedom-but-the-gift/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [But it is no good using the tongs of reason to pull the Fundamentalists' chestnuts out of the fire of contradiction. Their real troubles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/but-it-is-no-good-using-the-tongs-of-reason-to-pull-the/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [To say that we mutually agree to coercion is not to say that we are required to enjoy it, or even to pretend we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/to-say-that-we-mutually-agree-to-coercion-is-not-to-say-that-we-are/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [The god who is reputed to have created fleas to keep dogs from moping over their situation must also have created fundamentalists to keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-god-who-is-reputed-to-have-created-fleas-to-keep-dogs-from-moping/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [It takes five years for a willing person's mind to change. Have patience with yourself and others when treading in an area protected by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/it-takes-five-years-for-a-willing-person-s-mind-to-change-have/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Economists (and others) who are satisfied with nature-free equations develop a dangerous hubris about the potency of our species](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/economists-and-others-who-are-satisfied-with-nature-free-equations/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [No one should be able to enter a wilderness by mechanical means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/no-one-should-be-able-to-enter-a-wilderness-by-mechanical-means/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [The morality of an act is a function of the state of the system at the time it is performed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-morality-of-an-act-is-a-function-of-the-state-of-the-system-at/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Value is a relative concept: the value of each action is determined by comparing it with other possible actions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/value-is-a-relative-concept-the-value-of-each-action-is-determined-by/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [The optimum population is, then, less than the maximum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-optimum-population-is-then-less-than-the-maximum/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [(Technology reliability) x (Human reliability) = (System reliability)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/technology-reliability-x-human-reliability-system-reliability/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Numeracy: 1. The art of putting numbers to things, that is, assigning amounts to variables in order that practical decisions may be reach. 2.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/numeracy-1-the-art-of-putting-numbers-to-things-that-is-assigning/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) [Explore all 60 Garrett Hardin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) ## More Commons quotes > [“Dedicated to all who are building the information commons.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-von-hippel/dedicated-to-all-who-are-building-the-information-commons/) [Eric von Hippel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-von-hippel/) > [The rise of capitalist practice and morality brought with it a radical revision of how the commons are treated, and also of how they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-rise-of-capitalist-practice-and-morality-brought-with-it-a/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [We have reached a new milestone as a human family. With seven billion of us now inhabiting our planet, it is time to ask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-ki-moon/we-have-reached-a-new-milestone-as-a-human-family-with-seven-billion/) [Ban Ki-moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ban-ki-moon/) > [Climate change is a global commons problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ottmar-edenhofer/climate-change-is-a-global-commons-problem/) [Ottmar Edenhofer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ottmar-edenhofer/) > [Kris Commons and Scott Brown are key players for Celtic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-de-boer/kris-commons-and-scott-brown-are-key-players-for-celtic/) [Frank de Boer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-de-boer/) > [The honest truth is that if this government were to propose the massacre of the first-born, it would still have no difficulty in getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-abbott/the-honest-truth-is-that-if-this-government-were-to-propose-the/) [Diane Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-abbott/) > [“Libraries represent the sole contemporary American institution with the potential for making available a wide-ranging, genuinely diverse spectrum of opinions, cultural expressions, and ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanford-berman/libraries-represent-the-sole-contemporary-american-institution-with/) [Sanford Berman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanford-berman/) > [I studied politics and economics at Bristol, and people always assumed that I'd go into politics or a non-government organisation when I left. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-elliot/i-studied-politics-and-economics-at-bristol-and-people-always-assumed/) [Ben Elliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-elliot/) > [“To say it's the poor quality of the paint under socialism is correct, but it is not enough. To say it's soft-coal exploitation and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavenka-drakuli/to-say-it-s-the-poor-quality-of-the-paint-under-socialism-is-correct/) [Slavenka Drakulić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavenka-drakuli/) > [What distinguishes a commons is that it is not private property, does not have a price, and is oriented towards 'use value' rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-standing/what-distinguishes-a-commons-is-that-it-is-not-private-property-does/) [Guy Standing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-standing/) > [“The claimed legitimizing devices of political consent or personal labour served only to obscure the unjustifiable seizure of land from the common by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-vallentyne/the-claimed-legitimizing-devices-of-political-consent-or-personal/) [Peter Vallentyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-vallentyne/) > [“Google and Apple offer the image of a pseudo-commons to Internet users. That image recalls Nick Dyer-Whiteford's claim that, in light of the structural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sumanth-gopinath/google-and-apple-offer-the-image-of-a-pseudo-commons-to-internet/) [Sumanth Gopinath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sumanth-gopinath/) > [As a young man, Dickens worked as a reporter in the House of Commons and hated it. He felt that all politicians spoke with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/as-a-young-man-dickens-worked-as-a-reporter-in-the-house-of-commons/) [Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/) > [It takes a lot to silence the House of Commons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsay-hoyle/it-takes-a-lot-to-silence-the-house-of-commons/) [Lindsay Hoyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsay-hoyle/) > [I can't get very excited about the House of Commons these days because I don't feel the power is there. What is really bizarre…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/i-can-t-get-very-excited-about-the-house-of-commons-these-days/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) [Browse all 38 Commons quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commons/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Garrett Hardin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Commons" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/garrett-hardin-11328_freedom_freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all_1806271.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/garrett-hardin-11328_freedom_freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all_1806271.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/garrett-hardin-11328_freedom_freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all_1806271.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all.” — Garrett Hardin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Garrett Hardin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Freedom in a commons brings ruin...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/freedom-in-a-commons-brings-ruin-to-all/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```