The tragedy of the commons occurs when individuals overuse a resource held in common by all, but owned by no one, resulting in its degradation. Examples of such resources include:

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The tragedy of the commons typically refers to the overuse and degradation of shared, non-excludable resources like the atmosphere and oceans, where individual users acting independently according to their own self-interest behave contrary to the common good of all users by depleting or spoiling the shared resource.

The Tragedy of the Commons Occurs When Individuals Overuse a Resource