Elinor Ostrom

The governance of natural resources used by many individuals in common is an issue of increasing concern to policy analysts. Both state control and privatization of resources have been advocated, but neither the state nor the market have been uniformly successful in solving common pool resource problems. After critiquing the foundations of policy analysis as applied to natural resources, Elinor Ostrom here provides a unique body of empirical data to explore conditions under which common pool resource problems have been satisfactorily or unsatisfactorily solved. Dr Ostrom uses institutional analysis to explore different ways - both successful and unsuccessful - of governing the commons. In contrast to the proposition of the 'tragedy of the commons' argument, common pool problems sometimes are solved by voluntary organizations rather than by a coercive state. Among the cases considered are communal tenure in meadows and forests, irrigation communities and other water rights, and fisheries.

The analysis of how institutions are formed, how they operate and change, and how they influence behavior in society has become a major subject of inquiry in politics, sociology, and economics. A leader in applying game theory to the understanding of institutional analysis, Elinor Ostrom provides in this book a coherent method for undertaking the analysis of diverse economic, political, and social institutions.Understanding Institutional Diversity explains the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework, which enables a scholar to choose the most relevant level of interaction for a particular question. This framework examines the arena within which interactions occur, the rules employed by participants to order relationships, the attributes of a biophysical world that structures and is structured by interactions, and the attributes of a community in which a particular arena is placed.The book explains and illustrates how to use the IAD in the context of both field and experimental studies. Concentrating primarily on the rules aspect of the IAD framework, it provides empirical evidence about the diversity of rules, the calculation process used by participants in changing rules, and the design principles that characterize robust, self-organized resource governance institutions.

Traditional economic models of how to manage environmental problems relating to renewable natural resources, such as fisheries, have tended to recommend either government regulation or privatisation and the explicit definition of property rights. These traditional models ignore the practical reality of natural resource management. Many communities are able to spontaneously develop their own approaches to managing such common-pool resources. In the words of Mark '[Professor Ostrom's] book Governing the Commons is a superb testament to the understanding that can be gained when economists observe in close-up detail how people craft arrangements to solve problems in ways often beyond the imagination of textbook theorists.' In particular, communities are often able to find stable and effective ways to define the boundaries of a common-pool resource, define the rules for its use and effectively enforce those rules. The effective management of a natural resource often requires 'polycentric' systems of governance where various entities have some role in the process. Government may play a role in some circumstances, perhaps by providing information to resource users or by assisting enforcement processes through court systems. Elinor Ostrom's work in this field, for which she won the Nobel Prize in economics in 2009, was grounded in the detailed empirical study of how communities managed common-pool resources in practice. It is essential that we avoid the 'panacea problem'. There is no correct way to manage common-pool resources that will always be effective. Different ways of managing resources will be appropriate in different contexts - for example within different cultures or where there are different physical characteristics of a natural resource. Nevertheless, there are principles that we can draw from the detailed study of the salient features of different cases to help us understand how different common-pool resources might be best managed; which rules systems and systems of organisation have the best chance of success or failure; and so on. Elinor Ostrom's approach has been praised by the left, who often see it as being opposed to free-market privatisation initiatives. In fact, her approach sits firmly within the classical liberal tradition of political economy. She observes communities freely choosing their own mechanisms to manage natural resource problems without government coercion or planning. In developing a viable approach to the management of the commons, it is important, among other things, that a resource can be clearly defined and that the rules governing the use of the resource are adapted to local conditions. This suggests that rules imposed from outside, such as by government agencies, are unlikely to be successful. There are important areas of natural resource management where Elinor Ostrom's ideas should be adopted to avoid environmental catastrophe. Perhaps the most obvious example relevant to the UK is in European Union fisheries policy. Here, there is one centralised model for the management of the resource that is applied right across the European Union, ignoring all the evidence about the failure of that approach.

Explores ways that the tragedy of the commons can be avoided by people who use common-property resources

Wie kann mit natürlichen Ressourcen – z. B. mit Land, Wasser oder Fischbeständen – so umgegangen werden, dass alle Menschen ihre Bedürfnisse befriedigen können? Wie funktionieren gemeinschaftlich verantwortete Institutionen dauerhaft? Diese Fragen haben die US-amerikanische Politikwissenschaftlerin und Umweltökonomin Elinor Ostrom ein Leben lang beschäftigt. 2009 wurde sie als erste Frau mit dem Wirtschaftsnobelpreis ausgezeichnet, denn ihre Gemeingüter-Forschung gilt als bahnbrechend. Ostrom legt offen, wie kollektives selbstorganisiertes Handeln gelingt, und zeigt, dass es Regulierungsalternativen abseits von Markt und Staat gibt. In ihrer Nobelpreisrede, die hier erstmals in deutscher Übersetzung erscheint, zeichnet Ostrom ihre intellektuelle Lebensreise nach.

Was haben Wasser und Wissen, die Atmosphäre und der öffentliche Raum gemeinsam? Sie gehören zu den für selbstverständlich gehaltenen Voraussetzungen des wirtschaftlichen und sozialen Lebens. Doch so wichtig diese sogenannten Gemeingüter für unser aller Wohlergehen sind, so gering wird ihr Wert geschätzt: Sie werden privatisiert oder zerstört und gehen der Gesellschaft immer mehr verloren. Elinor Ostrom, Trägerin des Wirtschaftsnobelpreises und eine der bedeutendsten Gemeingüter-Forscherinnen, geht dieser Entwicklung am Beispiel der Wälder, der Meere und der Atmosphäre auf den Grund. Dabei begnügt sie sich nicht mit einer Problembeschreibung. Auf Basis jahrzehntelanger Forschung zeigt sie vielmehr auf, wie es gelingen kann, mit gemeinsam genutzten Dingen so umzugehen, dass alle Menschen ihre Bedürfnisse langfristig befriedigen können. Dazu gilt es vor allem, Kreativität zu wecken und Kommunikation zu fördern. Wenn man die Menschen an der Lösung der Probleme beteiligt, die ihr unmittel bares Leben betreffen, wird beides gelingen.

This volume brings a set of key works by Elinor Ostrom, co-recipient of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, together with those of Vincent Ostrom, one of the originators of Public Choice political economy. The two scholars introduce and expound their approaches and analytical perspectives on the study of institutions and governance. The book puts together works representing the main analytical and conceptual vehicles articulated by the Ostroms to create the Bloomington School of public choice and institutional theory. Their endeavours sought to ‘re-establish the priority of theory over data collection and analysis’, and to better integrate theory and practice. These efforts are illustrated via selected texts, organised around three themes: the political economy and public choice roots of their work in creating a distinct branch of political economy; the evolutionary nature of their work that led them to go beyond mainstream public choice, thereby enriching the public choice tradition itself; and, finally, the foundational and epistemological dimensions and implications of their work. ‘This is a wonderful collection of the writings of two of our most distinguished colleagues in political science. Lin and Vince Ostrom have been an inspiration to many of us. While they will be missed, they will also be remembered, in no small measure because of their voluminous research corpus ‒ a portion of which is collected here.’Kenneth A ShepsleGeorge Markham Professor of Government, Harvard University

Integrating recent research in the fields of public administration, public finance, institutional economics, and policy analysis, this book shows how institutional arrangements and the incentives they generate can help or hinder development efforts. The authors present a method for systematically comparing alternative institutional arrangements for the development of rural infrastructure. Their analysis reveals the special strengths and weaknesses of polycentric as compared to centralized or decentralized institutional arrangements. Descriptions of a variety of infrastructure projects—including roads, bridges, and irrigation systems—in geographical settings as diverse as Africa, Asia, and Latin America are used to illustrate key concepts.Perfect for courses on policy analysis, development administration, and economic development and for use by professional practitioners, Institutional Incentives contributes appreciably and practically to the understanding of sustainable development, infrastructure maintenance, institutional analysis, and the central importance of institutional arrangements.

Many large-scale irrigation projects established in developing countries have failed - despite huge inputs of foreign aid - because the institutions for opening and maintaining the projects proved inadequate. Ostrom counsels planners to look beyond a narrow concern with engineering and to let irrigation consumers involve themselves in the design, operation, and maintenance of water-supply systems.

This book by Daniel Cole and Elinor Ostrom, winner of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Economics, shows how property rights systems affect the use of scarce natural resources. It is a rich source of information for those involved in conservation, land dispute resolution, land market regulation, public policy, and zoning.

Contemporary research on the outcomes of diverse institutional arrangements for governing common-pool resources (CPRs) and public goods at multiple scales builds on classical economic theory while developing new theory to explain phenomena that do not fit in a dichotomous world of “the market” and “the state.” Scholars are slowly shifting from positing simple systems to using more complex frameworks, theories, and models to understand the diversity of puzzles and problems facing humans interactingin contemporary societies. The humans we study have complex motivational structures and establish diverse private-for-profit, governmental, and community institutional arrangements that operate at multiple scales to generate productive and innovative as well as destructive and perverse outcomes (North 1990, 2005).

Swedish / Svenska

Este livro reúne os resultados de um projeto de pesquisa de larga escala e multidisciplinar desenvolvido em mais de doze países e em cerca de oitenta locais diferentes. O projeto concentrou-se em investigar as mudanças na cobertura vegetal e o uso da terra em regiões de florestas, e o papel da população através do exame de vários casos, de forma a testar como a densidade populacional ou sua distribuição está associada à perda de florestas ou a sua recuperação. O trabalho focalizou, em particular, florestas do trópico úmido, do trópico semi-árido e florestas temperadas deciduais, as quais correspondem a uma porcentagem significante da cobertura vegetal total do planeta e por uma proporção significativa da biodiversidade mundial. - See more

Elinor Ostrom est mondialement reconnue pour son travail sur les communs. Relire ou découvrir son discours d'acceptation du Nobel d'économie de 2009 montre combien sa vision à la fois écologique et sociale ouvre des perspectives actuelles. Elle a su critiquer les modèles de l'économie dominante et mobiliser son savoir scientifique issu du terrain au profit d'une vision humaniste. Elle propose de remplacer le modèle abstrait d'individus réduits à des calculateurs à la recherche d'avantages vers des coopérateurs protégeant collectivement les ressources vitales. Sa théorie s'appuie sur de nombreuses recherches coopératives sur le terrain dans le monde entier.Dans sa préface, Benjamin Coriat remet en perspective les travaux d'Elinor Ostrom au sein des recherches actuelles sur les communs. Il donne des clés pour comprendre les travaux d'Elinor Ostrom et ouvre des perspectives pour le mouvement des communs.

Swedish / Svenska

Madrid. 24 cm. 373 p. Encuadernación en tapa blanda de editorial ilustrada. Colección 'Prácticas cOºnstituyentes ; ', numero coleccion(11). Charlotte Hess & Elinor Ostrom, (eds. ). Sociología del conocimiento. Tecnología de la información .. Este libro es de segunda mano y tiene o puede tener marcas y señales de su anterior propietario. 9788494460036

This book, prepared by the Permanent Secretariat of the Latin American Economic System (SFXA), analyzes a range of factors in the current economic policies of the United States that affect Latin American and Caribbean countries. In particular, it pinpoints the effects of U.S. monetary policy on the region's economies and trade relations and on the

This book, prepared by the Permanent Secretariat of the Latin American Economic System (SFXA), analyzes a range of factors in the current economic policies of the United States that affect Latin American and Caribbean countries. In particular, it pinpoints the effects of U.S. monetary policy on the region's economies and trade relations and on the

Frank E. Seidman Distinguished Award in Political Economy acceptance paper, 1997Presentation of acceptance paper by 1997 recipient Elinor Ostrom and discussion by Kenneth Arrow, Thomas Schelling, Amartya Sen, Michael Nelson, moderator, award presentation by Kenneth Arrow. Friday, September 26, 1997, Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee.

Improving Irrigation in Asia is based on a longitudinal study over two decades on innovative intervention for sustained performance of irrigation systems. The work identifies key factors that can help explain the performance of interventions, and explicates lessons for resource management and the management of development assistance. In 1985, the Water and Energy Commission Secretariat of Nepal and the International Irrigation Management Institute developed an ingenious intervention program for nineteen irrigation systems located in the middle hills of Nepal in an attempt to overcome the prevailing 'best-practices' traps, in regard to assisting irrigation systems. This book highlights the innovativeness of the project lay in its provision of ample opportunities for farmers to make decisions regarding the operation of the irrigation system based on their local knowledge and creativity. The authors of this work, Elinor Ostrom, Wai Fung Lam, Prachanda Pradhan and Ganesh P. Shivakoti provide detailed analysis of these interventions and support the conclusion that farmers can build on an innovative intervention that not only provides physical improvements but also enhances farmers' problem-solving capacity. They argue that to achieve sustainable improvements in performance, the farmers themselves need to engage in collective action over time and support local entrepreneurs who provide leadership and stimulate adjustments to change. Providing practical policy solutions, this study will prove a fascinating and invaluable read for academics and scholars of development studies, resource management, and irrigation studies, as well as development specialists in international agencies, policy makers in governments and international donor agencies.

Few social scientific concepts have gathered so much attention and so many followers in such a short period of time as the concept of social capital. The purpose of this authoritative volume is to review the foundations for this fast growing field. The selected articles embed the concept in core theoretical work in economics, political science, sociology, development theory, and philosophy. Topics contemporary conceptual and philosophical foundations; forms of social capital; and the relation of social capital to both development and democracy. This collection will provide an insightful reference source to students and researchers alike.

Book by Elinor Ostrom, Roger B. Parks, Gordon P. Whitaker

Principal investigator, Elinor Ostrom ; Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research, the University of Michigan.