The Struggle to Govern the Commons
Abstract
Human institutions—ways of organizing activities—affect the resilience of the environment. Locally evolved institutional arrangements governed by stable communities and buffered from outside forces have sustained resources successfully for centuries, although they often fail when rapid change occurs. Ideal conditions for governance are increasingly rare. Critical problems, such as transboundary pollution, tropical deforestation, and climate change, are at larger scales and involve nonlocal influences. Promising strategies for addressing these problems include dialogue among interested parties, officials, and scientists; complex, redundant, and layered institutions; a mix of institutional types; and designs that facilitate experimentation, learning, and change.
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So long as conflicts do not escalate to a point where the governance system becomes dysfunctional, they can bring about learning and change as different interests, philosophies, and perspectives are aired in the process of deliberation and conflict resolution.
“So long as conflicts do not escalate to a point where the governance system becomes dysfunctional, they can bring about learning and change as different interests, philosophies, and perspectives are aired in the process of deliberation and conflict resolution (Dietz et al., 2003).”
From Polycentric Systems of Governance: A Theoretical Model for the Commons (2019) · cites this paper as Dietz et al., 2003
Conflict resolution may be as important a reason for designing resource governance institutions as concern over a resource.
“as Dietz et al. (2003) note, conflict resolution may be as important a reason for designing resource governance institutions as concern over a resource.”
From Polycentric Systems of Governance: A Theoretical Model for the Commons (2019) · cites this paper as Dietz et al., 2003
Learning is promoted by deliberation.
“It is promoted by deliberation, including '[w]ell-structured dialogue involving scientists, resource users, and interested publics, and informed by analysis of key information and environmental and human environment systems' (Dietz et al., 2003, p. 1910).”
From Polycentric Systems of Governance: A Theoretical Model for the Commons (2019) · cites this paper as Dietz et al., 2003
Catastrophic resource collapses have resulted when central governments exerted sole authority over resources.
“Dietz et al. (2003) note in this regard that catastrophic resource collapses have resulted when central governments exerted sole authority over resources.”
From Polycentric Systems of Governance: A Theoretical Model for the Commons (2019) · cites this paper as Dietz et al. (2003)
Such participation can build trust among disparate governance actors to encourage cooperation and stimulate institutional innovation to deal with challenging natural resource concerns.
“Such participation can build trust among disparate governance actors to encourage cooperation and stimulate institutional innovation to deal with challenging natural resource concerns (see Dietz et al., 2003).”
From Polycentric Systems of Governance: A Theoretical Model for the Commons (2019) · cites this paper as Dietz et al., 2003
In a fishery commons, if co-proprietors fail to agree upon general principles for governing the common or do not succeed in a robust institutional design for collaborative governance even though they know that by failing they risk the resource drying up and hence are ultimately harming themselves, the situation becomes collaboratively irrational.
“The situation becomes collaboratively irrational if they fail to do so even though they know that in a collaborative framework by failing to do so they risk the resource to dry up and hence are ultimately harming themselves.”
From Collaborative Irrationality, Akrasia, and Groupthink: Social Disruptions of Emotion Regulation (2017) · cites this paper as Dietz et al., 2003
Free riding poses a major challenge to self-governance.
“Free riding poses a major challenge to self-governance, and a prominent solution to this challenge has been altruistic punishment.”
From Cooperation without punishment (2023) · cites this paper as [9]
Complex systems like SAS are socio-environmental systems in which natural phenomena and social institutions are firmly intertwined.
“Complex systems like SAS are socio-environmental systems in which natural phenomena and social institutions are firmly intertwined (Dietz et al., 2003).”
From Towards integrated management of sandy anthropogenic shores: Developing tools for the exploration of human-natural interactions (2025) · cites this paper as Dietz et al., 2003
Coastal areas are complex systems where natural processes and human activities are closely intertwined.
“Coastal areas are complex systems where natural processes and human activities are closely intertwined (Dietz et al., 2003).”
From Towards integrated management of sandy anthropogenic shores: Developing tools for the exploration of human-natural interactions (2025) · cites this paper as Dietz et al., 2003
Dietz et al. (2003) proposed five adaptive governance requirements for complex systems: providing good, trustworthy information; dealing with conflicts; inducing compliance; providing infrastructure; and designing institutions to allow for adaptation.
“Dietz et al. (2003) proposed five “adaptive governance requirements for complex systems”:”
From Design principles for global commons: natural resources and emerging technologies (2011) · cites this paper as Dietz et al. 2003
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“Viewed from the group level, however, suppose that the co-proprietors fail to agree upon general principles for governing the common together or do not succeed in a robust institutional design for collaborative governance (Dietz et al., 2003).”
BackgroundBakhshianlamouki, E., Augustijn, E.-W., Brugnach, M., Voinov, A., & Wijnberg, K. (2025) · Environmental Research Communications · doi:10.1088/2515-7620/adc353
- Authors
- Dietz, T., Ostrom, E., & Stern, P. C.
- Affiliations
- National Academy of Sciences (US)
- Environmental Science and Policy Program and Departments of Sociology and Crop and Soil Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
- Corresponding author
- Stern, Paul C.
- Venue
- Science
- Published
- 2003-12-12
- Volume
- 302
- Issue
- 5652
- Pages
- 1907-1912
- ISSN
- 0036-8075 (ISSN-L)
- 1095-9203
- OpenAlex
- W2165702945
- Cited by
- 4,209
- References
- 127
- Citations by year
- 2026: 158 · 2025: 167 · 2024: 158 · 2023: 185 · 2022: 173 · 2021: 249 · 2020: 258 · 2019: 280 · 2018: 223 · 2017: 225 · 2016: 212 · 2015: 205 · 2014: 255 · 2013: 204 · 2012: 225
- FWCI
- 73.13
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Science (publishedVersion)
- Princeton University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- VTechWorks (Virginia Tech) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Sustainability and Climate Change Governance
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law › Sustainable Development and Environmental Management
- Keywords
- commons governance, environmental institutions, institutional resilience, transboundary pollution, tropical deforestation, climate change, institutional complexity, multi-stakeholder dialogue, institutional experimentation, environmental change
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