Exploding population and rapid industrialization threaten the day when the demands of the human race will exceed the carrying capacity of the earth's ecosystem. The Global Commons - a commons is a shared resource, such as air, land, water, or oceans that groups of people use collectively. There is a paradox to the commons. If each group attempts to maximize their gain in the short run through the use of the commons, then the commons may be destroyed. Both existing users and future users loose.
Ecology is the study of how living things interact with one another.
Damage to one part of the ecosystem can affect people in other locations. The destruction of the rain forest may impact others on the planet through the disturbance of the ecological balance of nature. The need for balance between economic and environmental considerations is called sustainable development. Sustainable development refers to development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Poverty is an underlying cause of environmental degradation.