The tragedy of the commons suggests that, left to our own devices, we will overuse and overconsume our shared resources in the name of self-interest. And that either privatization or state control is required to keep us in check. But Elinor Ostrom advanced a third option, a polycentric governance approach in which the people involved solve the problem on their own through a commons solution.

Dr. Nick Cowen is a lecturer in the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Lincoln and the author of the paper, ‘Cost and Choice in the Commons: Ostrom and the Case of British Flood Management’. Today, Nick joins Ross to discuss the differences among state, market, and commons solutions to the environmental problems we face. He explains how Ostrom’s work changed the way we think about the tragedy of the commons and walks us through several examples of communal solutions that preserve shared resources.

Nick goes on to introduce the concepts of residual-claimancy and the transitional gains trap, describing how government intervention in flood management followed by a period of privatization led to the current dilemma in Great Britain. Listen in for insight around how Ostrom’s communal systems might appeal to both conservative and liberal politics and learn how we can apply her interdisciplinary ideas to protect our shared resources.