---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our mental environment is a…"
description: "\"Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much the..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/kalle-lasn-22904_air_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_2446604.png"
---

#  Our mental environment is a common-property resource like…

![“Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much the same way we lobbied for non-smoking areas ten years ago.” quote by Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/kalle-lasn-22904_air_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_2446604.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/kalle-lasn-22904_air_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_2446604.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/kalle-lasn-22904_air_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_2446604.png)

> “Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much the same way we lobbied for non-smoking areas ten years ago.”

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Our mental space is a shared resource that should be protected like clean air or water, preventing unwanted intrusions.

**In simple terms:** Mind is a public good needing protection.

Key Takeaway

Guard your mental boundaries.

Themes

privacy environment well‑being

Mood

concerned protective

Type

activist reflective

When to use this quote

- social media use
- workplace design

Key Concepts

cognitive liberty mental health public sphere

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we create mental safe zones?
- What policies protect mental space?

A Different Perspective

Protection can be hard to enforce.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Air](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air/) [Areas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/areas/) [Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/) [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Environment Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment-common-533572/) [Mental Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-environment-533571/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Non Smoking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/non-smoking-533574/) [Property](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/property/) [Protect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protect/) [Protect Unwanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protect-unwanted-533573/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Resources](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resources/) [Smoking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoking/) [Smoking Areas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoking-areas-533575/) [Ten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ten/) [Ten years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ten-years/) [Ten years ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ten-years-ago/) [Unwanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unwanted/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Years ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-ago/)

## Related quotes

> [“Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [The commercial media are to the mental environment what factories are to the physical environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/the-commercial-media-are-to-the-mental-environment-what-factories-are/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [Indeed, the night sky is the part of our environment that's been common to all cultures throughout human history. All have gazed up at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/indeed-the-night-sky-is-the-part-of-our-environment-that-s-been/)

[Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/)

> [“A person writes similar to how a blind person uses brail. We grope along the palpable corridors of the mind’s organic texture to locate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilroy-j-oldster/a-person-writes-similar-to-how-a-blind-person-uses-brail-we-grope/)

[Kilroy J. Oldster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kilroy-j-oldster/)

> [I believe it is important for people to create a healthy mental environment in which to accomplish daily tasks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-believe-it-is-important-for-people-to-create-a-healthy-mental/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [When asked whether he minded if someone smoked in a non-smoking compartment. Certainly not if you don't object if I'm sick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-beecham/when-asked-whether-he-minded-if-someone-smoked-in-a-non-smoking/)

[Thomas Beecham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-beecham/)

> [I'm allergic to cigarettes, so on the road I have to stay in a non-smoking environment or I get sick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/3-doors-down/i-m-allergic-to-cigarettes-so-on-the-road-i-have-to-stay-in-a-non/)

[3 Doors Down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/3-doors-down/)

> ['You ain't got any tobacco,' he said scornfully to Bunyip Bluegum. 'I can see that at a glance. You're one of the non smoking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lindsay/you-ain-t-got-any-tobacco-he-said-scornfully-to-bunyip-bluegum-i-can/)

[Norman Lindsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lindsay/)

> [Last time I went Intercity there were a couple across the aisle having sex. Of course, this being a British train, nobody said anything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-wood/last-time-i-went-intercity-there-were-a-couple-across-the-aisle/)

[Victoria Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-wood/)

> [“This is a non-smoking car. Clever car, It'll live longer that way”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alen-mattich/this-is-a-non-smoking-car-clever-car-it-ll-live-longer-that-way/)

[Alen Mattich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alen-mattich/)

> [If someone had said to me ten years ago "Yo, we have this role of this pimp who wants to be a rapper, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-chestnut/if-someone-had-said-to-me-ten-years-ago-yo-we-have-this-role-of-this/)

[Morris Chestnut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-chestnut/)

> [The time to begin most things is ten years ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mignon-mclaughlin/the-time-to-begin-most-things-is-ten-years-ago/)

[Mignon McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mignon-mclaughlin/)

> [“Ten years ago, he was the hard­work­ing salt of the earth. All he want­ed was to go to Heav­en. Sit­ting here to­day, ev­ery­thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/ten-years-ago-he-was-the-hard-work-ing-salt-of-the-earth-all-he-want/)

[Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/)

> [“I tried to leave you alone, Fitz. To find what peace you could, even if it excluded me from your life.” Ten years ago,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-tried-to-leave-you-alone-fitz-to-find-what-peace-you-could-even-if/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [I open journal, I look at the picture and I remember where I was. And I remember the time of day, the temperature of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-small/i-open-journal-i-look-at-the-picture-and-i-remember-where-i-was-and-i/)

[David Small](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-small/)

## More by Kalle Lasn

> [An increasing number of people are growing uncomfortable with the gulf between the world's rich and the poor. Ostentatiously splashing your money around simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/an-increasing-number-of-people-are-growing-uncomfortable-with-the/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [It's a measure of the depth of our consumer trance that the death of the planet is not sufficient to break it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/it-s-a-measure-of-the-depth-of-our-consumer-trance-that-the-death-of/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [The commercial media are to the mental environment what factories are to the physical environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/the-commercial-media-are-to-the-mental-environment-what-factories-are/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [“Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [All of us somehow felt that the next battleground was going to be culture. We all felt somehow that our culture had been stolen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/all-of-us-somehow-felt-that-the-next-battleground-was-going-to-be/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [The global economy is a doomsday machine that must be stopped and reprogrammed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/the-global-economy-is-a-doomsday-machine-that-must-be-stopped-and/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [“Corporations are not legal “persons” with constitutional rights and freedoms of their own, but legal fictions that we created and must therefore control.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/corporations-are-not-legal-persons-with-constitutional-rights-and/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [Amming a coin into a monopoly newspaper box or liberating a billboard in the middle of the night can be a rather honest and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/amming-a-coin-into-a-monopoly-newspaper-box-or-liberating-a-billboard/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [In the Soviet Union you weren't allowed to speak out against the government. In the US you cannot speak out against sponsors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/in-the-soviet-union-you-weren-t-allowed-to-speak-out-against-the/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [Overconsumption is the mother of all environmental problems. For the first time in the history of capitalism, consumption itself has become controversial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/overconsumption-is-the-mother-of-all-environmental-problems-for-the/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [The most powerful narcotic in the world is the promise of belonging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/the-most-powerful-narcotic-in-the-world-is-the-promise-of-belonging/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [“Do an overwhelming number of respected scientists believe that human actions are changing the Earth's climate? Yes. OK, that being the case, let's undermine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/do-an-overwhelming-number-of-respected-scientists-believe-that-human/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [There is a profound injustice at the heart of the American economy. You look at the media and realize that these corporate-run commercial entities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/there-is-a-profound-injustice-at-the-heart-of-the-american-economy/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [American culture is no longer created by the people... A free, authentic life is no longer possible in AmericaTM today. We are being manipulated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/american-culture-is-no-longer-created-by-the-people-a-free-authentic/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

> [I believe that one of the most powerful things of all is aesthetics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/i-believe-that-one-of-the-most-powerful-things-of-all-is-aesthetics/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

[Explore all 26 Kalle Lasn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

## More Air quotes

> [I will be a tireless advocate for our District's defense priorities including Sheppard Air Force Base, Pantex, Bell Helicopter, universities conducting important research, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronny-jackson/i-will-be-a-tireless-advocate-for-our-district-s-defense-priorities/)

[Ronny Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronny-jackson/)

> [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/)

[Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/)

> [If U.S. air, naval, missile, and ground forces were not in and around Korea, and if we were not treaty-bound to fight alongside South…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/if-u-s-air-naval-missile-and-ground-forces-were-not-in-and-around/)

[Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/)

> [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. The smell of coalsmoke in the air at night. Old times, dead years. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-cooler-days-have-brought-a-wistful-mood-upon-him-the-smell-of/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/)

[Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/)

> [I'm a candle flame that sways in currents of air you can't see. You need to be the one who steadies me to burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/i-m-a-candle-flame-that-sways-in-currents-of-air-you-can-t-see-you/)

[Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/)

> [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/)

[Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/)

> [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/)

[Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/)

> [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. All the normal noises of life were gone, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-a-few-mouthfuls-of-moon-flavored-air-even-the-stubbornly-drowsy/)

[N.D. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-d-wilson/)

> [There was a little nook on Air Force Two that contained the vice presidential seal, and I would sort of wedge myself in there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-biden/there-was-a-little-nook-on-air-force-two-that-contained-the-vice/)

[Jill Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-biden/)

> [Words are substance strange. Speak one and the air ripples into another's ears. Write one and the eye laps it up. But the sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-beachy-quick/words-are-substance-strange-speak-one-and-the-air-ripples-into/)

[Dan Beachy-Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-beachy-quick/)

> [ \[A\]s you partake of the world's bill of fare, that's darned good advice to follow. Do a lot of spitting out the hot air.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-seuss/a-s-you-partake-of-the-world-s-bill-of-fare-that-s-darned-good-advice/)

[Dr. Seuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-seuss/)

> [...As the disparity between the rich and the poor grows, the fight to corner resources is intensifying. To push through their "sweetheart deals," to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-the-disparity-between-the-rich-and-the-poor-grows-the-fight-to/)

[Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/)

> [Washington bureaucrats have classified the very air we exhale as a pollutant and have gone unchallenged in this incredible assertion. The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/)

[Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/)

> [“It is unnatural to fear something natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/it-is-unnatural-to-fear-something-natural/)

[Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/)

[Browse all 6,278 Air quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much the same way we lobbied for non-smoking areas ten years ago.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Kalle Lasn"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Air"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/kalle-lasn-22904_air_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_2446604.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/kalle-lasn-22904_air_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_2446604.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/kalle-lasn-22904_air_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_2446604.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves…” — Kalle Lasn",
                "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": "Kalle Lasn",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Our mental environment is a common-property...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or-2/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
