Sunday 24 July 2016

The Tragedy of the Commons

We played a fishing game, competing for limited resources in a lake. We needed to catch at least two fish to feed our family, but could catch up to four to make an extra profit. After each round of fishing, the fish left in the lake reproduced.


Did anyone in your group take too many fish? What was the consequence?

People grabbed the fish and let me and my family die. - Bella

It was possible for everyone to survive, everyone could die, or one family might survive. - William

When people grabbed a lot at the start, there weren't many left towards the end. - Lucy

Taking four fish in the middle of the game generated a steady profit. Taking everything at the end was even more profitable. - Harry

Someone took four fish every time, so each time there were less fish left to reproduce. People started starving round by round, mainly because of one person's choices. - Brie

Two of us starved in the second year because the others caught too many fish. - Max He.

We were lucky because our village only took what we needed. -Reuben




How did it make you feel if anyone did take too many fish?

I felt hurt that someone would want to take more, because it would kill the rest of us. - Wade

It was sad because we had a trust thing going, then people ruined it. - Amy

If some one else took too many, I would take more in retaliation. - Harry

But if everyone takes more, you run out of fish and you all die. - Mitchell

It makes it harder for everyone else. - Anthony

It's annoying because when you didn't have any more, you were out of the game. - Samantha

It was annoying because when people took a lot at the start, the fish couldn't reproduce. - Ollie



Does our society reward those with the “most”?

People with more money have more opportunities. - Bella

Some things money can't buy, like family and having good friends. You have to be a good person to get those kinds of privileges. - Ben

Probably not because they have too much money. If they give money to charity, it would make a lot of lives happier. - Jordi

If people are rich enough, they can do whatever they want, like bribing police. - Reuben

Many people work really hard for their families and want their families to live good lives, but this doesn't mean it works out for them. Despite their best intentions, their family might not be wealthy. - Rosa

There are rich people who have more than enough, so it's better to give to those who don't have enough. - Max He.

Not really because if everyone tries to get the most, it ends up being bad for everyone, like running out of fish. - Caitlyn

Most people get to go to school. It doesn't really matter which one you go to because all teachers teach the same sorts of things. You don't have to have everything. There's stuff to do, even if you don't have any money. - Lilly

When you've got less money, you can still do things, but you have to make them up yourself. - Zara

If you don't have much money, you have to find cheaper options. When you have more money than other people, you can basically do what you want. - Myro

Quite often people with a lot of money are not as close to family and friends, or they might not have as many friends. They might have a bunch of people who only like them for their money. If you have less, you might appreciate it more. - Bella

People with lots of money really like their money and they want to keep it. They might not want to spend it. - Elise




After learning about the tragedy of the commons, we played the fishing game again.

In Game 2, did you change your strategy? If so, what did you do differently and why?

We let one of our villages take all the fish because we knew he would share the prize with us. - Olivia

The same people were just as greedy as last time. - Connor

We fished three each on the first round, so on the second round, we died. - Max He.

Our group decided at the start to only take two, but as the rounds went on, some people decided to be greedy, and then we died. - Phoenix





How might we prevent the tragedy of the commons?

Take only what you need, not more than that.  - Charlotte

If someone takes too much, you can take too much from them, so they know how it feels. - Samantha

If you have your own private lake, once you've fished it all, it's gone. It doesn't affect other people. - Brie

Prevent it by making a deal with everyone. You could trade. - Julia

Teach people about the consequences, like by showing them those videos. Put them in jail if they take too much anyway. - Reuben

Is competition healthy for our society?

Sports are a good way to get out there and be active and competitive, but competition isn't just about playing sports. - Connor

In a way it is. If it's sports, it's good. Other competitions, like for land, might not really be good. - Ollie

Yes and no. If it's limited resources, it's bad. If it's sports, it's good. - Max He.

Something like a dance competition is healthy because it's good for fitness. If it's more like silly little things, like who has the best clothes, it's not that good. - Millie

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